The Doors Quarterly Magazine

[eks74014]

In 1993 I discovered the likes of Rainer Moddemann and his Doors fanclub / fanzine, it was an amazing find and I enjoyed every issue of the Doors Quarterly... for one thing, it was a huge help in sifting the good bootlegs from the huge pile of crap; there also was his outstanding co-penned encyclopedia of underground releases: "The Doors On Stage"... besides that, in general, all the info and news provided was just amazing - remember, this was the pre-internet dark ages... I bought his book, "Doors" from the then owner of the restaurant at 18 rue Beautreillis and that too has been an invaluable source of information.

Rainer was huge in Doors circles and he was on good personal terms with the three Doors and their entourage... then there was the website which looked very promising but then all a sudden everything was over and done with in a flash; or so it seemed... the magazine dried up after issue 37 in June of 1999 and Rainer seemingly vanished: things turned awfully quiet around him and no longer did he come to Paris on July 3rds and Dec. 8ths.

I've always wondered about the details of this sudden retreat, only knowing it had something to do with his relations to the Doors turning sour... still curious and interested, on July 3rd this year I dropped the question on Kerry Humpherys and Michelle Campbell and their responses were rather straightforward: Ray Manzarek fell out with Rainer over bootlegs and other issues.

Are there any other former DQ subscribers here on the forum, and how would you look back on this episode in Doors history?... does anybody have more info on what really happened to Rainer and his once booming fan community?

[TheWallsScreamedPoetry]

I know/knew a few people who know the Rainer story as they were people who knew him well and were involved in the making of Doors4ly and it was a little bit more than he fell out with Ray over bootlegs.
Some folks who go and used to go to Paris told me a few tales about him and why he no longer goes to Paris.

I got on OK with him and was a member of his forum. He gave me a few tips and some help when I started my fanzine.

All sorts of shit gets passed asround the net about people.
According to some I myself am the biggest Doors hater on the Internet.
So pick your rumour/tale and run with it.
But I think it's unfair to tarnish fellow fans unless they can talk back so I won't be telling you what I know about what happened.

Doors4ly was a good magazine and it's forum was interesting.
I would rather not see a discussion of Rainers faults here but feel free to talk about Doors 4ly.

[eks74014]

no, exactly... I'm not after sensationalising Rainer's faults whatever they might be... it's just that this very sudden demise of a healthy club and magazine as well as the total retreat of its creator has never been explained... it's become clear now though that this goes deeper than any average 'falling out with' and I totally join you in your keeping respect for Moddemann and all others involved... thanks for your honesty, Alex.

I never was on the DQ forum; I had never given the Doors + the Internet a decent tought until after the 40th Anniversary weekend in Paris last month... but the magazine I've always found amazing and I'm currently blowing the dust off my copies and reading them all over again - now able to even manage the little bits & pieces written in German.

This here forum has opened my eyes to the rather icky backstage area behind the clean facade of Doors world... not that I always just take in and swallow whatever's being thrown at me but putting all the facts, the posts, all those little bits & pieces together paints a rather gloomy reddish sky where not everything is love & peace within and surrounding the Doors camp.

This brings me to the very interesting cover story of DQ 36 (June 1998)... in the post 2002 light of Densmore vs. Manzarek & Krieger, it's an almost delight to see John and Robby standing shoulder to shoulder, smiling off the cover pic.



The so lovingly called "Krieger-Densmore Reunion 1997" turns rather grey upon reading Rainer's reports though... In short, basically it was the Robby Krieger Band coming to Europe for some concerts in Denmark, Germany and France... Then this rumour started doing the rounds after it was announced that Ray would be hopping along: the Doors as a trio would be headlining an open air festival in Denmark; a proper Doors reunion was mistakingly, rather painfully announced... As soon as the issue was set straight, Ray bailed out because of health problems and John would take his seat joining Robby and his band on this venture.

So it happened but then the article describes how John never did occupy the drum stool for an entire show and how he decided to not be present at the poorly advertised concert in Disneyland (of all places!)... In the end, reading this today makes it feel like a flunked attempt to fill a crack in the wall with too cheap a plaster; the fixing job is a total see through and as we know now, the damage done would only get worse afterwards.

Still, this was all pre-2002; five years before the big ball of shit started rolling... shame that Rainer wasn't there any longer when the whole D21C/ROTS/R&R and the neverending re-issuing, reboxing and remixing started happening... and it would have been nice to see the Bright Midnight releases being reviewed in his own personal, typical style...

[TheWallsScreamedPoetry]

It would be cool if you could scan some of those Doors4lys and add them here as I never got to be part of that but have heard a lot about the magazine format during my Paris trips.

I was part of his forum and we had some good discussions there.
It sadly was a victim of the Pam/Pat War and as he was a friend of Keneally he closed the forum down when it became infested with the Courson crowd.
I give him his due though as he set out his allegience and gave them the opportunity to stop their insanity but in those days both camps had more crazy people than sane ones and they basically took no notice and the forum folded.
These loonies did that to a lot of good Doors forums. I was very wary of these people and never let them get a hold on mine.



In relation to this cover a little bit of information from the time came out in the trial and was part of the final ruling the judge made. I post it below.

19. Previous Objections To Being Identified As The Doors With Less Than The Three Surviving Members Of The Original Band

In December 1992, The Doors were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The ceremony was attended by the three surviving band members and Morrison’s sister Anne. The three surviving band members performed during the ceremony.

In 1997, the Robby Krieger Band scheduled a short tour in Denmark. Ray Manzarek was scheduled to be a guest musician. Manzarek became ill, however, and Densmore substituted for him. The show was billed as “Robby Krieger Band with special appearance by John Densmore of The Doors.” The following year, Robby Krieger and Densmore undertook another short music tour of Europe, and the show was billed as “Robby Krieger with John Densmore of The Doors.” At least one promoter identified the performers as The Doors. Densmore strongly objected and tore up some posters that contained the erroneous description. Later, Krieger and Manzarek performed in Mexico, and again the performance was occasionally promoted erroneously as The Doors. Posters depicting the performers as The Doors were destroyed at Densmore’s request.

Earthquake in LA....Rock n Roll On Trial, The Doors trial 2003-2008

[eks74014]

alright, cool idea... let's revive some of the Doors Quarterlies, see what's there and put it under today's very different headlights... have to get some scanning device set up first but I won't be long.