# The “painfully stupid” band who sold 120,000,000 records, and represented everything Lou Reed hated about classic rock

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/the-painfully-stupid-band-who-sold-120000000-records-and-represented-everything-lou-reed-hated-about-classic-rock/
- Published: 2026-11-03T16:49:25+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-04T01:12:11+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-stupid-band-everything-lou-reed-hated-about-classic-rock/
- Topics: Entertainment, Music

## Key points

- Lou Reed saw The Doors as a symbol of what he disliked in 1960s rock.
- He disparaged their music and songwriting in interviews.
- The band went on to sell more than 120 million records.

## Summary

Lou Reed criticised The Doors as “painfully stupid and pretentious”, seeing them as emblematic of the classic rock and counterculture he disliked. His hostility contrasted with the band’s lasting popularity and influence, and reflected a sharp divide in how he and Jim Morrison approached poetic songwriting.

Reed attacked the group in the 1970s and again in a 1987 PBS interview, objecting to their playing, writing and perceived artistic pretensions. The article says The Doors have sold more than 120 million records and notes that David Bowie and Iggy Pop praised them; it suggests Reed’s commercial disappointments may have contributed to his bitterness, while presenting that as interpretation.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.