I'll get to Ray Manzarek and the horrible transgression he perpetrated on yours truly later. I guess the Doors did okay, but, if you've heard me play ...
 
I'm not responsible for the billions and billions of people competing with me for notoriety here on the old marble. It's hardly fair. Many of them are willing to go to extremes which I find beneath me. Well, I guess if my breasts were a bit poutier, I'd flaunt them more than I already do. I suppose, I'd accept my Gerber's gladly from a silver spoon, though the excuse is convenient.
 
I admit to being blessed with talent, more than most. Hell, I'm more talented than billions of folks, and luckier too. It sounds so good, doesn't it? Imagine the mountain top I could stand on overlooking those I dwarf in ability. But then, there are those other mountains, the ones with the millions and millions who dwarf me.
 
See, too many damn people to compete with. You have to be Streisand to be a singer, or Cher has to find you attractive. You have to be King to be an author, or at least have your finger on the exact mindless drivel the majority of the populace wishes to immerse their limited brain cells in. I have mad luck, yes. But not insane luck.
 
I've had some minor brushes with potential stardom. There was the time I jammed with Steppenwolf at Johnny Thompson's Guitars, back in the day. It occurred to me I could bump off their keyboard player ,and bank on their memory of our great jam session.

My thinking went-- they'd recall to themselves, "Hey, what are we gonna do now?"

"Well, what about that awesome, cool dude from Johnny Thompson's the other day?"

"Oh ... hells ya. He'll save the day. Our troubles are over. Mike was his name. Mike, the new keyboardist for Steppenwolf".

Get yer motor runnin' ... Well, I just wasn't a violent guy, so I let a sure thing pass by. It isn't all about fame after all.
 
Then there was the call from Geffen Records. My band and I had sent a tape to them, and we were awaiting their response.

To hear: "This is Geffen Records" on the other end of the phones was rather exciting to be honest.

Then came the rotten news. Damn Elton John had left his label and decided to sign with Geffen. He took the last spot Geffen had available for the year.

They told us we were going to be signed, but, "Hey, it's Elton John, you understand? But keep working on it. We think you have a great sound".

Yeah, right. I'll leave it to you to decide if he made the right choice or not. Elton John .... GEEZ!
 
Of course, I've had major brushes as well. Back in the day, the premier L.A. musicians hung out on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Clubs like the Whiskey a Go Go featured bands like the Doors in their infancy. You could see them up close and personal at that time. Some, like the Doors, went on the have huge careers, others faded into the background.

There was a pecking order, and we all knew each other well. I was a keyboardist and one of the best at the time. Well, as it turns out, the Doors' keyboardist took sick before a gig at the Whiskey, and I happened to be there. It was a certainty that after a couple sets with me, Ray Manzarek would be a distant memory to Jim and the guys.
 
As the lights dimmed and we prepared to take the small stage ... guess who the hell showed up? Yep, that no good rotten Ray Manzarek.

He comes trotting up saying, "I'm all better now".

No one even looked my way. He just brushed by me, and took MY place on stage. Just like that I was booted from the Doors, and my place in history was denied. I'd like to say I'm not bitter and holding a grudge against Ray, especially since he's long since passed away. But I want to be honest. Yeah, I can't bring myself to forgive him, and I cringe every time I hear his organ noodling away on one of their records.
 
You'll never know what might've been, or what height the Doors could've reached with me in the fold. Oh, well, I guess it's water under the bridge, and they'll have to live with whatever success they managed.
 
But, OH, what might've been ...