Music on Mondays — Girl, we couldn’t get much higher
I always love it when the planets align. Today the History planet and the Music planet have aligned.
On this date in 1967, The Doors appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” The Doors were celebrating their #1 hit “Light My Fire,” and “The Ed Sullivan Show” was the top-ranked variety show.
“The Ed Sullivan Show” was done live, and Jim Morrison (lead singer of The Doors for those who don’t know) had agreed to alter the lyrics of their #1 hit “Light My Fire” for prime-time viewing. He had agreed not to sing “Girl we couldn’t get much higher” because of its veiled reference to getting high on drugs. When the cameras rolled during their performance, however, he sang the lyrics anyway. Ed Sullivan was furious and banned The Doors from any future performances on his show.
Ed Sullivan died in 1974, well before rap and hip-hop introduced not-ready-for-prime-time words and visuals to the pop music industry. Jim Morrison left The Doors in the Spring of 1971 and moved to Paris, France, with his girlfriend. He died on July 3, 1971, of what most historians believe to have been a drug overdose, specifically cocaine. However, France only performed autopsies if foul play was suspected, so an autopsy on Morrison was not performed, leaving his cause of death to be debated to this day.
Here is “Light My Fire,” The Doors’ second single, their first #1 single, and still their most popular song.
LYRICS
You know that it would be untrue;
You know that I would be a liar;
If I was to say to you;
Girl, we couldn’t get much higher
Come on, baby, light my fire,
Come on, baby, light my fire,
Try to set the night on fire
The time to hesitate is through,
No time to wallow in the mire,
Try now we can only lose,
And our love become a funeral pyre
The time to hesitate is through,
No time to wallow in the mire;
If I was to say to you;
Girl, we couldn’t get much higher
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Posted on September 17, 2012, in History, Music on Mondays, Photos and tagged light my fire by the doors, the doors, the ed sullivan show. Bookmark the permalink. 19 Comments.
I luv this song. It’s, like, hot!
I remember that, oh yes, I do.
Love The Doors and this song. Thanks Russel
Russel, thank you for this post. We need a little rebel every now and then. I do wonder what Ed Sullivan would think of the music today?
Ivon
nice work -Ive been on the computer for over a week=sick-then the cable got messed up, I had 977 messages piled u, so obviously I wont be able to do a lot-still not well-rough week. Hope you are doing well–beebeesworld
Love it! Thanks for the tune and the history. To be honest, I think Ed Sullivan would still be his stuffed shirt self, but it takes all kinds to make the world go round
You are a veritable fountain of knowledge. It really saddens me when society focuses on reducing every other piece of art to a drug reference of some kind. Drugs are old hat to most of the world and if an artist does drugs that does not make every line written into a reference to them. Some were undoubtedly intended as drug references, but even when the artist gives another more literal interpretation (for example when John Lennon said of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds that it was written for his own child’s imagination), people cannot seem to accept that. Many of these beautiful old songs make perfect sense and have meaning as songs about something else like “love” but many people won’t accept that and I feel this kind of reduces and oversimplifies it in many cases, which is a shame.
I don’t know if you heard about the big fuss here in Canada when the national radio station (CBC) ruled that the Dire Straits song, Money for Nothing, was a slur against women and homophobic besides, and they would not play it anymore . . . . a perfect example of people misreading lyrics in an oversimplified way to fit it into their agenda. I guess Neil Diamond is the latest victim.
I totally agree. For those who have been in love, there are many instances of not being able to get much higher, and without drugs.
“Money for Nothing” has been controversial since its release way back in 1985. Even then, 16 years after the Stonewall Riots in New York City, gay slurs were frowned on, mostly. I never took issue with the lyrics, perhaps because the music was so good.
For more on the racist, sexist, homophobic controversy, see the Wikipedia article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money_for_Nothing_(song)
Your first line is exactly what I was trying to say. (I am verbose!)
In Money For Nothing, the entire song mocks the kind of people who say those slurs and who can’t appreciate the effort that goes into being a successful musician. It became very popular here after the intended ban, and was reviewed in many high school English classes that week! Thankfully, I think the kind of people Dire Straits was making fun of are in sharp decline since 1985!
I don’t think Dire Straits was making fun of them. I think they were singing about them in a documentary sort of way. I also think that, at least here in the United States after the Great Recession, there are more of them than ever, and if the Republicans get in office and succeed in taking us back to the 1950s, there will be even more!
I agree that your country is presently suffering from some segments who don’t associate individual freedoms and progress with anything more personally significant than their right to pack a firearm! You only have to look at certain oppressive middle-eastern regimes that America gets involved in, to see what it means when “I’m right” becomes more important than democracy, and this is so ironic given how incredibly much your country has given for the sake of democratic freedoms abroad. Tough economic times never bring out the best in “a people”, but hopefully the positive side will prevail.
As for Dire Straits, I’d agree the song is documentary as far as music and media of the era, but Mark Knopfler, is often very ironic and it’s hard to imagine he meant for us to take the lyrics literally when (if read literally) they put down exactly what he is–successful artists and musicians. Also, he creates a very unlikable persona with the lyrics in that song (a jealous hick, really), and I don’t think we’re supposed to want to identify with the character.
I don’t believe he thought much of people lying about in their mundane jobs criticizing and belittling the success of others, including himself.
I love this story! I’d never heard that about Jim Morrison before, but I love putting the story behind this recent experience:
http://ayearofpics.wordpress.com/2012/09/07/paris-jim-morrisons-grave-at-pere-lachaise-cemetery/
Thanks for visiting my blog and pointing me over to this post of yours from today!
Many groups and singles made it big after their appearance on Ed Sullivan. I remember his show well. Most people in the States believe that Jim Morrison died of an overdose.
Blessings ~ Maxi
I was never much of a Doors fan, then I saw the movie they made about them (about 20 years back) and they re-enacted the scene you describe above and I thought they were great. (I can be a little bit of a rebel sometimes hehe) I kinda like their song, “People are Strange”, too. Awesome post.
I took guitar class in high school and this was one of the songs my instructor taught us. We actually got to play it on stage at our year end concert. 20 awkward high school kids playing this in unison on various guitars and it still sounded good!
Ahhh, classic to be sure. One way to be infamous is to off yourself when you’re still young and beautiful, a shame he’s remember as much for his demise as he is for the music.
Drug overdoses and suicides will get you remembered in the music world.
The song brings back some lovely memories during my high school years. What’s up with Zoey TCC, RR, is she high?
Nah. Just zoning out after a hearty meal of ocean whitefish and tuna……….lol