Robby Krieger - Set The Night on Fire, Living, Dying, And Playing Guitar with The Doors
by Lisa Torem
published: 12 / 4 / 2022

intro
In her 'Raging Pages' book column Lisa Torem assesses Doors' guitarist Robby Krieger's new autobiography, 'Set The Night on Fire, Living, Dying, And Playing Guitar with The Doors'
The American rock band, The Doors, featured the dramatic vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They formed in Los Angeles in 1965. The curious counter-culture of the era gravitated to Morrison’s erratic, spoken word approach to songwriting and the quartet’s wildly inventive arrangements. Even the band moniker held an air of mystery. It was inspired by ‘The Doors of Perception’ by Aldous Huxley, and the William Blake line: ‘If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to Man as it is: infinite.’ Certain youth interpreted that line as an invitation to take psychedelic drugs. Meditation and alternative lifestyles reigned. The Doors did their part by developing an intoxicating, sonic landscape, rife with cutting lyrics and mind-expanding riffs. In this revealing biography, Krieger, the guitarist and co-writer of some of The Doors’ most striking hits, divulges vivid memories of the band’s global appeal. At a Midwest concert, Morrison ‘baited the crowd, writhed around, he used coarse language.’ When working alongside a front man who projected a god-like persona, the band often witnessed unpredictable crowd and authority reactions. As Morrison stretched the behavioural envelope night after night, arrests followed. There was severe push-back even after the Morrison years. For example, Manzarek and Krieger were subject to tear gas cannisters in Bogota, Columbia: ‘I was just playing my guitar when suddenly I started gagging.’ The rollercoaster trajectory led to Krieger’s own addictions. In-house legal battles, automobile accidents and family traumas also play a big part in the book. In all cases, Krieger speaks frankly about not just the duress, but the transformations that resulted. The band members supported Morrison, especially when they felt he’d been scapegoated by agenda-seeking politicians. ‘For the record: The Doors never did peyote in the desert,’ the authors assert, when discussing director Oliver Stone’s 1991 film, ‘The Doors’, which, while beautifully filmed, relied on a certain degree of poetic licence. Fortunately, Krieger takes the time to separate other facts from fiction as well. Throughout, there are pertinent nods to recording studio sessions where tensions brewed and imperative decisions were made, plus insider stories drawn from the Sunset Strip’s Whisky A Go Go and Krieger’s homestead on Topanga Beach. As the stalwart keeper of the band’s flame, Krieger dispels murky myths, while providing a clear portrait of an incredible era and a forward-thinking band.
Also In Raging Pages
Benjamin Orr (2018)
Bernard Purdie (2015)
Billy Bragg (2017)
Billy J. Kramer (2016)
Bob Boilen (2016)
Bob Dylan (2018)
Bob Marley (2019)
Brian Wilson (2017)
Clive Davis (2015)
Common (2020)
Damned (2021)
Don Short (2020)
Elliott Murphy (2019)
Elvis Costello (2015)
Frank Zappa (2017)
Gary Wright (2014)
Gene Simmons (2015)
Geoff Emerick (2018)
George Martin (2019)
Green Day (2019)
Ian Mclagan (2016)
Jann Wenner (2019)
Jerry Lee Lewis (2015)
Jerry Nolan (2018)
Jim Summaria and Mark Plotnick (2019)
Joe Perry (Aerosmith) (2014)
John Lennon (2017)
Kinks (2014)
Lani Hall Alpert (2019)
Laurence Juber (2014)
Liberty DeVitto (2021)
Lisa Robinson (2021)
Lita Ford (2021)
Little Anthony (2014)
Louise Harrison (2015)
Manic Street Preachers (2017)
Mary Wilson (2021)
Michael Bloomfield (2020)
Michael Dorf (2019)
Miscellaneous (2014)
Ozzy Osbourne (2014)
Pamela Des Barres (2017)
Peter Doherty (2014)
Radiohead (2022)
Renee Rosen (2018)
Richard Balls (2018)
Ringo Starr (2015)
Roger Daltrey (2020)
Rolling Stones (2016)
Ronnie Wood (2015)
Sam Phillips (2018)
Sean Madigan Hoen (2014)
Silas House (2020)
Spencer Vignes (2017)
Sylvain Sylvain (2018)
Thin Lizzy (2016)
Tommy James (2021)
Tori Amos (2020)
U2 (2021)
Who (2014)
Will Romano (2015)
Woody Woodmansey (2018)
Zz Top (2014)
Article Links:-
https://robbykrieger.com/https://www.facebook.com/OfficialRobbyKrieger
https://twitter.com/officialkrieger
Play in YouTube:-
Picture Gallery:-

digital downloads
most viewed articles
current edition
Beth Arzy - InterviewSimon Love - Interview
Rob Pursey - Interview
Stranglers - Rock City, Nottingham, 23/3/2022
Roy Moller - Interview
Tommy Gunnarsson - A Life in Music
St Christopher - Interview
Heist/Idiot Son - (With The Volunteered and Simon Bromide), The Water Rats, London, 10/9/2022
Rupert Wates - Interview
New Leaf - The Year of the Ox
previous editions
Cathal Coughlan - InterviewWorld Party - Interview
Sam Brown - Interview 2008
Microdisney - The Clock Comes Down the Stairs
And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - Interview with Conrad Keely
Pete Brown - Interview
Trudie Myerscough-Harris - Interview
Jimmy Nail - Interview
Charlotte Hatherley - Interview
Altai Rockets - Interview
most viewed reviews
current edition
Dave Stewart - Ebony McQueenVarious - Heroes & Villains – The Sound Of Los Angeles 1965-1968,
Josie Bello - Resilience
Smile - A Light for Attracting Attention
Sam Brace - Fever and Bones
Gabi Garbutt and the Illuminations - Cockerel
Simon Love - Love, Sex and Death Etc
Girls At Our Best! - Pleasure
Norah Jones - Come Away With Me: 20th Anniversary Edition
Soft Cell - Happiness Not Included
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Adrian P
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Carl Bookstein
Chris O'Toole
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dixie Ernill
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank