On This Day in 1968: The Doors Earned a Gold Record for Their #1 Hit Amid Claims It Ripped Off The Kinks

Gold Success and Fan Reaction

On August 28, 1968, The Doors received a Gold record from the RIAA for their song “Hello, I Love You,” which sold over one million copies in the U.S. and became their second No. 1 on the charts. The single had already taken off, peaking at No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 15 in the U.K.

Yet despite its commercial success, many long-time fans felt the song didn’t match The Doors’ darker, more intense sound. It marked a shift toward a lighter, more pop-oriented style that not everyone embraced.

 

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Echoes of The Kinks

“Hello, I Love You” sparked a controversy over similarities to The Kinks’ 1964 hit “All Day and All of the Night.” Ray Davies, the Kinks’ frontman, was told by his publisher that The Doors had used the riff from that well-known guitar line. Rather than sue outright, Davies hoped for a fair admission of influence. “Jim Morrison admitted it, which to me was the most important thing. The most important thing, actually, is to take (the idea) somewhere else,” he recalled.

A legal outcome followed: a UK court ordered The Doors to pay royalties to The Kinks, and songwriting credits were adjusted accordingly.

Morrison’s Honest Take

Jim Morrison didn’t shy away from acknowledging the track’s place in the band’s catalog. He admitted:

“Sure, ‘Hello, I Love You’ isn’t one of our best songs, but I am not ashamed of it.”

In that same discussion, he added that he preferred the B-side, “Love Street,” hoping it might take over radio play.