THE DOORS' JOHN DENSMORE: HIS USE OF BRUSHES

John Densmore, The Doors' drummer, is arguably the rock artist who used brushes instead of drumsticks most frequently.

To expand the range of sound inflections he could produce, he made significant use of this technique, which first appeared in jazz music in the early 20th century.

Using brushes instead of sticks produces a sound similar to a soft rustling when the drummer hits his instrument (mainly the snare drum). Sharp blows on drums and cymbals are muffled, transforming them into a prolonged whisper interspersed with soft vibrations and a more intimate tone.

This sound is achieved thanks to metal bristles on the end of the stick, which soften the sharp tone usually produced by sticks on drums.

This innovation in jazz music first appeared in the 1910s. At that time, there was a need to soften the sound of the drums, especially in ballads, and to ensure that they remained in the background of the arrangement.

The aim was to prevent the percussive pattern from drowning out the other band members at a time before effective amplification systems existed.

Initially, this was necessary for live performances, and later for the first jazz studio recordings (from 1916 onwards).

One of the earliest examples of how brushes were initially used dates back to the first form of Jazz, New Orleans Jazz. This example comes from Baby Dodds, the drummer in the great Jelly Roll Morton's trio, in the 1927 recording of "Mr. Jelly Lord" (link here).

Following its adoption in subsequent jazz genres such as Swing (1930's), Be Bop (1940's) and Hard Bop (1950's), the use of brushes spread to Pop Rock and Rock in the 1960s. Examples of this latter development include “You've Got to Hide Your Love Away” by The Beatles (1965) and “Street Fighting Man” by The Rolling Stones (1968).

As we already said, John Densmore is arguably the musician who has used brushes most often and most creatively in rock music.

His enthusiasm for this percussive technique stemmed from his passion for Jazz, which he shared with Ray Manzarek, the band's keyboardist, and Robby Krieger, the guitarist.

Examining the six albums released by The Doors between 1967 and 1971, we find five instances in which the drummer used brushes.

These are: “End of the Night” from the debut LP “The Doors”; “Yes, the River Knows” from the LP “Waiting for the Sun”; “Blue Sunday” and “The Spy” from “Morrison Hotel”; and “Cars Hiss By My Window” from the album “L.A. Woman”.

In “End of the Night”, recorded in August 1966, Densmore demonstrates remarkable creativity by playing with a brush in his right hand and his usual drumstick in his left.

In the verses, the brush maintains a persistent and cautious rhythm on the snare drum. Although its sound is muted and intangible, it intertwines evocatively with the lazy Latin beats produced by the stick (listen, for example, from min. 0:19 to min. 0:45).

Additionally, the brush occasionally produces ethereal sparks on the ride and crash cymbals, notably during the final chorus (from min. 2:05 to min. 2:33).

In this way, the drummer frames the song with indistinct contours of nocturnal visions, further enhancing its psychedelic mood.

About a year and a half later, in spring 1968, we encounter the recording of “Yes, The River Knows”, in which the dynamic line played by the brushes on the snare drum flows naturally into the song.

Note the Hard Bop Jazz-inspired style Densmore displays in the verses (for example, from min. 1:10 to min. 1:29) and even more so during his accompaniment to Robby Krieger's solo (from min. 1:25 to min. 1:49).

This stylistic inclination towards the Hard Bop Jazz style of drumming is also evident in the brushwork displayed in “Blue Sunday” and “The Spy”, both of which were recorded in November 1969.

By dividing his time between the snare drum and the ride cymbal, Densmore is able to envelop these two tracks in a subtle and sophisticated atmosphere that was quite unusual for late 1960s rock.

“Cars Hiss By My Window”, recorded in December 1970, features brushes combined with Chicago Blues. This Blues genre, which originated in the second half of the 1940s, had already incorporated brushes; for example, in Howlin' Wolf's "Little Red Rooster" (released in 1961 and brought to wider success by the Rolling Stones in November 1964).

In “Cars Hiss By My Window”, The Doors' drummer uses the brushes on the snare drum to evoke the indifferent, sleepy passage of cars referred to in the song's title.

Densmore's blend of brushes and Chicago Blues is particularly expressive. It produces a quiet, regular crackling sound that brings the other elements of the arrangement and the vocal line of the composition within the boundaries of a warm, intimate soundscape.

Outside of the official albums, there is an alternative version of “Queen of the Highway”, recorded in an unusual jazz-like style at the end of 1968. This recording took place during one of the first sessions for the LP "The Soft Parade", although the song was selected for the album "Morrison Hotel" more than a year later, having undergone another musical adaptation.

While the brushes are only present in the first half of the song, this version demonstrates the technical aspects implied by the use of brushes more effectively than the other tunes mentioned above.

The drummer entrusts the rhythmic accents to the hi-hat, as usually happens in Hard Bop Jazz, launching into articulate percussive figures fleetingly outlined by brushes on the snare drum.

Finally, we cite "I Can't See Your Face in My Mind", a track from "Strange Days", the second LP by the Californian band released in September 1967.

Here, we hear the "psychedelic brushes", a studio effect created to replicate the sound of brushes in a lysergic key. For more information, read the chapter dedicated to "I Can't See Your Face in My Mind" in my book "The Doors Through Strange Days".

John Densmore introduced brushes into The Doors' music across the various genres they tackled, from psychedelic rock (“End of the Night”) to soft rock (“Yes, the River Knows”), from Rock Blues (“The Spy”) and Rock ballads (“Blue Sunday”) to Blues (“Cars Hiss By My Window”).

In doing so, he popularized this typically jazz instrument in Rock music in a convincing, innovative and eclectic way.

My book "The Doors Through Strange Days"- The most comprehensive journey ever made through The Doors' second LP, is available on Amazon.com, .uk, .it, .mx, .ca, etc.

Here’s a link:

Amazon – “The Doors Through Strange Days”