RIP Ray Manzarek
Founding member of The Doors passes away at 74
Ray Manzarek, the keyboard player and founding member of The Doors, has passed away at the age of 74.
The musician had been fighting bile duct cancer for several years, he died in Rosenheim, Germany, surrounded by his family.
Manzarek founded The Doors with Jim Morrison after a chance meeting in California in 1965. The band went on to sell more than 100 million albums and has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
He carried on playing live following Jim Morrison's death in 1971, and since 2002, had been on the road with Doors guitarist Robby Krieger.
Kreiger has released the following statement:
"I was deeply saddened to hear about the passing of my friend and bandmate Ray Manzarek today. I'm just glad to have been able to have played Doors songs with him for the last decade. Ray was a huge part of my life and I will always miss him."
Manzarek is survived by his wife Dorothy, his son Pablo and two brothers, Rick and James.