Butts Band was a British and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

group formed by ex-

Doors A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security by ...

members

John Densmore John Paul Densmore (born December 1, 1944) is an American musician, songwriter, author and actor. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band the Doors, and as such is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He appeared on every recordi ...

and

Robby Krieger Robert Alan Krieger (born January 8, 1946) is an American guitarist and founding member of the rock band the Doors. Krieger wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including the hits " Light My Fire", " Love Me Two Times", " Touch Me", and ...

, active from 1973 to 1975. The band released two albums and, with the exception of Krieger and Densmore, they consisted of different band personnel on each.

History

Butts Band came about as a consequence of

the Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

trying to find a replacement for lead singer

Jim Morrison James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredictable and err ...

, who had died in July 1971. The three remaining Doors had released two albums ('' Other Voices'' in 1971 and '' Full Circle'' in 1972), with

Ray Manzarek Raymond Daniel Manzarek Jr. (né Manczarek; February 12, 1939 – May 20, 2013) was an American keyboardist. He is best known as a member of the Doors, co-founding the band with singer and lyricist Jim Morrison in 1965. Manzarek was induct ...

and Krieger sharing vocals. Unable to recruit a singer in the US, the three Doors went to London in 1973 seeking an experienced lead singer and auditioned several British singers, including

Howard Werth Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

(the singer of

Audience An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), or ...

Kevin Coyne Kevin Coyne (27 January 1944 – 2 December 2004) was an English musician, singer, composer, film-maker, and a writer of lyrics, stories and poems. The "anti-star" was born in Derby, Derbyshire, England, and died in his adopted home of Nurember ...

(from Siren) and

Jess Roden Jess Roden (born 28 December 1947) is an English rock singer, songwriter and guitarist. Biography Roden's first band was The Raiders followed by The Shakedown Sound which also included the guitarist, Kevyn Gammond, and keyboard player, August E ...

(who was the leader of

Bronco A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock. The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...

). Werth rehearsed with the band for a week. Elektra Records founder

Jac Holzman Jac Holzman (born September 15, 1931) is an American music businessman, best known as the founder, chief executive officer and head of record label Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records. Holzman commercially helped launch the CD and home video form ...

favoured Werth to replace Morrison, as he had at one stage foreseen Audience taking over the Doors' spot on Elektra, but Audience had disbanded and Holzman now envisioned Werth and the Doors merging as the "new Doors". However, the three remaining Doors felt that adding a new singer was not working out and decided to disband. With Manzarek returning to Los Angeles, Krieger and Densmore began looking for a new project, linking up with Roden,

Phil Chen Phillip David Chen (21 October 1946 – 14 December 2021) was a Jamaican bassist. He was one of England's most utilized session bassists during the 1970s and 1980s, including Jeff Beck, and the Rod Stewart band from 1977 to 1980, but is prob ...

and Roy Davies to form the Butts Band (allegedly named after a cave where Roden's previous band used to practice). The band signed with Blue Thumb Records and began working on their first album, with longtime Doors sound engineer/co-producer Bruce Botnick taking the producer role. Recording was split between studios in London (three weeks at

Olympic Studios Olympic Studios was a renowned British independent commercial recording studio based in Barnes, London. It is best known for its recordings of many artists throughout the late 1960s to the first decade of the 21st century, including Jimi Hendr ...

) and Kingston, Jamaica (for another three weeks) on their way home to California. Their self-titled debut album was released in 1973. Krieger was quoted as saying, "It's not 'head music', it's 'heart music'. It's 'up music'. It's music you can dance to." Following the album's release, the band appeared on '' The Midnight Special'' and the ''

Old Grey Whistle Test ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...

''. Following the pressure of having two members living in California and three in London, this incarnation of the band split up. The former British musicians were replaced by musicians from the Los Angeles area: Michael Stull (guitar/piano), Alex Richman (keyboards), Karl Rucker (bass), Bobbi Hall (congas) and an additional drummer, Mike Berkowitz. This line-up released ''

Hear and Now ''Hear and Now'' is a 2007 documentary film by Irene Taylor Brodsky, winning awards in 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival and the Heartland Film Festival; and garnering a Peabody Award in 2008. Plot The filmmaker's parents were both born deaf; a ...

'' in 1975. The Butts Band permanently disbanded after the second album, with Krieger and Densmore embarking on solo projects. In 1978, the three remaining Doors reunited for the first time to record '' An American Prayer''.

Former members

– drums (1973–1975) *

– lead guitar (1973–1975) *

– bass (1973–1974; died 2021) *Roy Davies – keyboards, synthesisers (1973–1974) *

– vocals, rhythm guitar (1973–1974) *

Mick Weaver Mick Weaver (born 16 June 1944, Bolton, Lancashire, England) is an English session musician, best known for his playing of the Hammond B3 organ, and as an exponent of the blues and funk. Career Weaver's band performed as Wynder K. Frog and ...

– organ (1973–1974) *Mike Berkowitz – drums (1974–1975) *Alex Richman – keyboards, vocals (1974–1975) *Karl Rucker – bass (1974–1975) *

Michael Stull Michael J. Stull (April 17, 1949 - October 30, 2002) was a songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, and voice-over artist from Eureka, California. He was the first son of Jacquelyn and Joseph Stull. Mike had three brothers, William and Timothy Stull and ...

– vocals, rhythm guitar, piano (1974–1975) *

David Paul Campbell David Paul Campbell is an American musician and songwriter. Campbell was briefly a student at the University of Georgia before pursuing music, falling in first with old high school classmate Ry Cooder, then Taj Mahal. During his time in Atlant ...

– keyboards, vocals (1975)

Timeline

Discography

*''

Butts Band Butts Band was a British and American group formed by ex-Doors members John Densmore and Robby Krieger, active from 1973 to 1975. The band released two albums and, with the exception of Krieger and Densmore, they consisted of different band per ...

'' (1973) *''

'' (1975)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Butts Band, The Musical groups established in 1973 Musical groups disestablished in 1975 British rock music groups Musical groups from London 1973 establishments in England 1975 disestablishments in England Blue Thumb Records artists