The Doors made a huge name for themselves in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s by continually releasing smash hits. Besides the flamboyant style of lead singer Jim Morrison, a lot of the band’s notoriety came from its musical chops.
Many of the best bands in the world have one person that stands out in people’s mind. Granted, for different people, the member of the band that stands out is different.
Take these as examples: Led Zeppelin (Jimmy Page), Kiss (Gene Simmons), Black Sabbath (Ozzy Osbourne), The Eagles (Don Henley), AC/DC (Angus Young), Aerosmith (Steven Tyler) and for many fans The Doors were synonymous with Jim Morrison.
However, guitarist Robby Krieger wrote some of The Doors most famous songs on his Gibson SG, including "Light My Fire,” "Love Me Two Times,” "Touch Me" and "Love Her Madly."
Just to get an idea of how many hit songs Krieger, John Densmore, Ray Manzarek and Jim Morrison wrote in a few years, let’s look at 1967 to 1971. A relatively short period of time in music history, but a very productive one.
The Doors release six albums in those five years including the songs “Break On Through,” “Light My Fire,” “The End,” “Love Me Two Times,” “Moonlight Drive,” “Hello, I Love You,” “Touch Me,” “Roadhouse Blues,” “Love Her Madly,” “L.A. Woman,” and “Riders On The Storm.” And those are just some of the bigger ones -- there are others, depending on your taste in The Doors music.
While The Doors continued on for a couple of years after Jim Morrison’s death, July 3, 1971 marked the end of an era in rock music.
Krieger gained notoriety not just for writing some classic riffs, but also for the way he played his guitar. While most rock guitarists chose to use a pick, Krieger played by plucking the strings with his fingers.
While not the most popular style, it does allow for a lot of control over the strings and the tone.
I’m using Guitar Rig, AmpliTube and Pod Farm. I used a classic amp model in all three applications, going more for a tone on the cleaner side. When palm muting notes, you still get a fair bit of crunch, but not over the top.
I targeted the guitar sound in “Love Me Two Times” and “Roadhouse Blues” for the Robby Krieger tone I made on the computer. When plucked lightly, you will get a nice clean sound, but it will thicken up when you pick harder and palm mute the notes.
I used a guitar with passive pickups, so keep that in mind when loading these tones on your computer.
Robby Krieger wrote some of the most amazing riffs in rock. Grab your guitar and start playing!
Download the Guitar Rig preset for Robby's tone here.
Download the Pod Farm preset for Robby's tone here.
Download the Amplitube preset for Robby's tone here.