h Posted September 30, 2002 Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 Doors of deception By KIERAN GRANT -- Toronto Sun -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE DOORS Molson Park, Barrie Sunday, September 29, 2002 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BARRIE -- Jim Morrison left The Doors ajar when he shuffled off this mortal coil -- or off somewhere -- three decades ago. But while the surviving bandmembers continued to play on over the ensuing years, the touring version of the band that rolled into Molson Park as part of Harley-Davidson's Open Road roadshow last night has sparked enough fuss you'd almost think old Jimbo was still at it. What "The Doors" didn't spark was much in the way of a crowd on the chilly evening, with attendance for their closing set at roughly 3,000. (That's our estimate -- the folks at Harley weren't releasing ticket counts until after press time.) Perhaps the debate among both fans and detractors as to the veracity of "The Doors" -- co-founding keyboardist Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger with big-name support from The Cult's lead singer, Ian Astbury, and ex-Police drummer Stewart Copeland -- is a moot point here. Either way, this workable incarnation of the group offered a faithful rendering of their oeuvre, with Astbury and, in particular, Copeland chipping in enough of their own respective touches to keep it from being a totally shameful Morrison mock-up. The supply of tunes was a no-brainer: Roadhouse Blues, Break On Through, When The Music's Over, Love Me Two Times, Whiskey Bar, Back Door Man, the spoken-word Ghost Song -- complete with native dancers -- Spanish Caravan, L.A. Woman, Light My Fire, Riders On The Storm, etc. Manzarek and Krieger, their sound rounded out by a bassist (they didn't have one in the early days), noodled in familiar style, the funhouse organ intermingling with blues-edged guitar to generate a modicum of enthusiasm. It was weird then, that the show's strongest feature, apart from the hits, was the substitutes themselves. Copeland -- sitting in for original Door John Densmore, who's out of action with hearing problems -- was totally at ease, almost running away with the show with his feather-touch/powerhouse balance. Something of a busman's holiday, maybe. Poetry attack aside, the well-suited Astbury's Morrisonisms were no more blatant than usual, with the tunes coming across in his Cult-era yowl. Then again, while Astbury may have had more to gain commercially from the gig, it was just a relief seeing him up there instead of Creed's Scott Stapp, who's sat in with "The Doors" in recent years. It's too bad "Two Original Doors With Two Surprisingly Good Replacements" wouldn't fit on the bill. The Harley-Davidson Open Road Tour is scheduled to run into next summer to mark the company's 100th anniversary. This past weekend's festival also featured performances by Journey, April Wine and Kim Mitchell Saturday, and David Usher and Bif Naked yesterday. Attractions include an excellent indoor exhibition of vintage motorcycles -- which would have fit nicely in a more permanent venue or at an auto show. Proceeds from the event when to the Muscular Dystrophy Association Of Canada. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Low Roller Posted September 30, 2002 Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 Dammit! I would've loved to see The Doors, one of my all-time favorite bands. Ghost Song is the SHIT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bouche Posted September 30, 2002 Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 wild. There was this thing on MMM yesterday highlighting various "reunions" in the last few years. The Doors was one of them, and they were shown with the Creed-tard and Astbury and some other dude standing in for Morrison, minus the shlong waving. I think they did a performance on MTV or VH1. Anyway, the highlight of this show was teh Van Halen "reunion" at the MTV music awards (or some other crock of shite). I guess Van Halen (sans Roth) came out to present a major award, and Roth decided to step out on stage and have a little reunion. The other Halen dudes weren't very pleased, and Roth just acted like a putz, and stealing the mic from Eddie. It seems that David Lee had some explainin' to do as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h Posted September 30, 2002 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 looks like dave is feeling kinda shiney in that picture too bouche Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gentlemonkey Posted September 30, 2002 Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 wow mike, how'd you get the scanner to reach the ceiling above you bed..? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bouche Posted September 30, 2002 Report Share Posted September 30, 2002 The tricky part was actually peeling the pages apart to get a good scan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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