Watch Kyle Maclachlan perform The Doors song ‘Light my Fire’ live in 1991
After rising to prominence in the 1980s, notably collaborating with David Lynch on multiple projects, such as Blue Velvet and Dune, Kyle MacLachlan landed a role in Oliver Stone’s biopic The Doors. The actor, who was also filming Lynch’s Twin Peaks at the time, ditched his Special Agent Dale Cooper uniform for a more laidback, ’60s look and channelled his inner rockstar into playing keyboardist Ray Manzarek.
Stone’s film was received with mixed reviews. Although the cast’s performances, notably Val Kilmer’s portrayal of Jim Morrison, were praised by critics, the existing band members were less enthusiastic about the movie. They quickly called out many historical inaccuracies and criticised Stone’s decision to hone in on the life of Morrison, which painted him in an utterly unrealistic way.
During an interview with The Boston Phoenix, Manzarek stated: “Oliver Stone is the anti-Doors. Oliver Stone’s movie makes Jim out to be an alcoholic, drunk weirdo; a strange poet totally out of control, and you never see the intellectual side of Jim Morrison. You never see the wit, the charm, the elegance. You never get a sense of the real poet. You see a crazed Jim Morrison”. He continued his biting take-down of the movie by referring to the portrayal of Morrison as “Oliver Stone in leather pants”.
Regardless of the backlash that the movie received from the band, MacLachlan asserts that he had a fantastic time, apart from having to wear muttonchops. Talking to Consequence, MacLachlan said, “Yeah, which was the most uncomfortable thing you could imagine. Awful, awful. But again, just a wonderful experience – we got to be pretend rock stars. I learned all the songs; while I was travelling through Europe at the time as I was lugging around a keyboard. And they would change all the time: Oliver would say, ‘We’re not going to do that song, we’re gonna do this one.’ But anyway, it was a giant, crazy show.”
In an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show, MacLachlan discussed the movie, stating that he met Manzarek “a couple times” and “spoke with him.” He described him as “a good guy,” stating that he “hope[s] he likes it, I hope he goes with it.” Although that was not the case, MacLachlan was clearly dedicated to his role, exemplified in his ability to emulate the band’s songs, demonstrating his keyboard skills on the show.
Choosing ‘Light My Fire’ as his song of choice, the actor joined William Topley and Luke Brighty from the shortlived British group The Blessing on stage to perform the iconic track. MacLachlan seemingly performs with ease, even effortlessly playing Manzarek’s keyboard solo.
Watch the clip below.
