I’ll tell you the story, how it really happened… Over a year ago I was dating my wife and we took a ride down the Pacific Coast Highway. I was playing “Light My Fire” ‘cause I was trying to get in favor with my future wife, right? A woman gives a man inspiration and she was digging on the sounds, you know? Then I was playing “Break On Through” and for me, for where I’ve been in life and to where I’m at now, I’m in the light. When I was an addict I used to be in the dark. I explained to her how I listen to this music and when I break on through to the other side I’m into the light. The music and some of the lyrics that Jim came out with like “the gate is straight, deep and wide,” well, Jesus made that comment, “straight is the gate,” and that’s the name of my company, “Straight Gate Fence.” Those were the tunes I was playing. We ended up getting married! A year or so later I took her for an anniversary ride down the Coast Highway again. This time I was playing “Riders On The Storm” over and over, looking into the sun and thinking about the struggles I’ve overcome in life, being in control, the waves, the ocean and the turmoil. A week or so later I bought a keyboard for my son who plays the piano. We came back to our house and he began to play “Light My Fire” on the keys. I picked up the harmonica and started in with “Roadhouse Blues.” Now I go to a biker church and that’s where I play that tune. So, my son and I are sitting in the living room jamming, it was a nice Friday, he’s kicking in on the piano and I’m playing the harmonica. At the same time this guy called Ray Manzarek phones. We’re playing and he called, believe it or not. But he called because I build fences. I’m thinking, I know that name but my imagination must have gone wild, it’s too coincidental, it must be a mistake. Well, he needed a fence for his cat. He wanted me to come out Saturday. I hang up the phone and I think, Man, Ray Manzarek. There’s his name on the album cover! What a trip. Here we are playing his music. Having your rock star call you is kind of like Wow!

My wife and I went out to see Ray on the Saturday morning and I brought my harmonica along. After I talked to him about what he wanted I asked him, “Are you Ray the keyboard player?” I knew he was. He smiled. I told him the story of how I was playing his music when he first phoned. I shared with him that I had become a Christian and that I belonged to a biker church called “Set Free.” Like I said, I play harmonica in our church and we do “Roadhouse Blues” but we change one word. Instead of “keep your eyes on the road…” we sing “keep your eyes on the Lord….” We get all the biker brothers, their friends, liars and prostitutes together and we’re all coming out of our darkness and into the light. We play those tunes. So I was sharing with Ray that his music’s being played in the Set Free Church. I used to get high in the 60s but I hear the truth now. I’m a clean machine. I know how to listen to the music and trip on it. I share it with my wife that way. Music’s a good thing. “Break on through to the other side,” means break into the light instead of the darkness. Those are good words, you know? Like “let your children play.” There’s some good stuff in that. I’m just surprised and amazed at all the young people that love The Doors today. Anyway, that’s how I met the guy. I’m just a little ol’ fence builder having fun at Set Free, our Christian biker church. Check it out at www.setfree.org. We’re not a traditional church. We have a sign in our building that says “Warning—entering this building may break your traditions.” We’re just people, man, but instead of suits, ties and Cadillacs we drive Harleys.