10 Most Iconic Keyboard Songs In Rock Music
4. Riders on the Storm - The Doors
Even in a decade that was as accepting to off the wall ideas as the '60s, the Doors were still a bit of a weird animal. You still had the iconic stage presence of Jim Morrison at every show, but you have to remember that this was a band with no bassist, a guitar player who only played fingerstyle, and a keyboardist who was practically the main draw of the music. Weird doesn't always mean bad though, and Riders on the Storm captures a darkness that most guitar-centric bands couldn't pull off.
Looking to update the Western song Ghost Riders in the Sky, Ray Manzarak had come up with the idea to make the progression sound a lot jazzier, playing the piano part with one hand and the bass part on another keyboard at the same time. This wasn't always the most practical set up though, with the session bass player struggling to play the bass part because of how difficult it translated to the fretted side of the instrument.
The whole thing sounded too good to pass up though, and Ray really landed the killing blow of the song with the sliding scales that open up the song, almost simulating the sounds of rainfall until Morrison's vocals come in. The minute that you hear those piano breaks, you're no longer in your room just listening to music. Ray has just put you out on the highway, and you had better keep your guard up for any seedy characters around the corner.