Ray Manzarek was born on February 12th of 1939 in Chicago, Illinois.

He is best known as the keyboardist (and a co-founder) of the 1960s psychedelic rock group The Doors.

The Doors were formed in 1965 by Manzarek (keyboards) with Jim Morrison (vocals), John Densmore (drums), and Robby Krieger (guitars.)

The band released six studio albums from 1967 through 1971 before lead singer and lyricist Jim Morrison died on July 3, 1971. All six albums have been certified Platinum by the RIAA with their self titled debut being their biggest seller (4x Platinum.)

Manzarek’s keyboards were a huge part of The Doors sound which gave their songs quite a different sound than the more guitar oriented rock bands of their era (and most rock bands that have come since.)

The Doors were inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 and Manzarek, Densmore, and Krieger performed at the induction ceremony with Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder singing in place of Morrison.

Manzarek has also released six solo albums from 1973′s The Golden Scarab to 2008′s Ballads Before The Rain (With Roy Rogers.)

“Light My Fire” Live