The Doors Performance That Made Ed Sullivan Really Mad
On September 17, 1967, The Doors defied Ed Sullivan and the CBS censors by refusing to change the word “higher” while performing their #1 hit, “Light My Fire,” on The Ed…
American Rock singer Jim Morrison (1943 – 1971), of the group the Doors, (Photo by Jack Rosen/Getty Images)
On September 17, 1967, The Doors defied Ed Sullivan and the CBS censors by refusing to change the word “higher” while performing their #1 hit, “Light My Fire,” on The Ed Sullivan Show.
“‘The Doors will never do this show again,’ Ed fumed after we’d directly disobeyed his censorship requirements. Jim turned to him and remarked, ‘Hey, that’s okay—we just did The Ed Sullivan Show.’”
Ray Manzarek explained that Jim Morrison and his bandmates decided they would not buckle to the network censors. Manzarek promised the CBS executive just before the performance that they would go ahead and replace the offending lyric.
Getty ImagesThe Doors with Jim Morrison Getty Images
Jim was asked to sing, ‘Girl, there’s nothing I require.’ It’s laughable. Imagine Morrison singing ‘require’ instead of ‘higher’?”
However, they would be performing live, so the band knew they could get away with singing the controversial song as written.
In the process, the band won their battle with CBS and made television history.
The Rolling Stones Make Changes To A Song For Ed
The Rolling Stones' main controversy on the Ed Sullivan Show occurred in January 1967.
On January 13, 1967, Decca released “Let’s Spend The Night Together,” with the B-side “Ruby Tuesday”
The day after that, on January 15, The Rolling Stones appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, and were forced to change the lyrics to the a-side of their single, so as not to offend the delicate minds of American TV viewers.
When they were forced to change the suggestive lyrics of their song "Let's Spend the Night Together" to "Let's Spend Some Time Together" to appeal to the show's family-friendly audience.
During the live performance, Mick Jagger subtly rolled his eyes at the camera while singing the altered lyrics. This rebellious act signaled his disdain for the censorship and boosted the band's rebellious image.
In the weeks that followed, The Rolling Stones had the word “night” bleeped out of their record, and some stations went as far as banning it altogether. “Ruby Tuesday” ended up topping the charts, while “Let’s Spend The Night Together” could only make a lowly No.55.
