Robby Krieger is grieving the death of his wife of more than 50 years, Lynn Ann Veres, just days before the Doors guitarist is set to take the stage in Menlo Park. Veres, who inspired the band's 1971 hit “Love Her Madly,” died on Oct. 29 at age 79, according to a statement Krieger shared. Krieger said he and the couple's son, Waylon, were with her when she died.
“After more than 50 years of love and marriage, my wife Lynn Ann Veres passed away peacefully last night, October 29th,” Krieger wrote, in a statement reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. Guitar Player quoted Krieger as saying, “Waylon and I were with her until the end.” He added that he would “miss her so much.”
Krieger did not disclose a cause of death, according to Guitar Player, which reported that the guitarist confirmed his wife's death at age 79 after more than five decades together. The couple married on Christmas Day in 1972, the outlet noted, meaning they were approaching their 54th wedding anniversary.
The Woman Behind a Doors Classic
Veres was the inspiration for “Love Her Madly,” the Doors song released in 1971 that climbed to No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, Guitar Player reported. Krieger wrote or co-wrote several of the band's biggest songs, including “Love Me Two Times,” “Touch Me” and “Love Her Madly,” as noted by the Mercury News. Krieger dedicated his 2021 memoir, Set the Night on Fire, to Veres, describing her in it as a “fireball spirit” and writing that she was “the only person I've ever met who lets me be me.”
In the same memoir passage, Krieger wrote, “She's the only person I've ever met who lets me be me, and that's why I'll always love her,” according to Guitar Player's reporting. The outlet's account of Krieger's remembrance did not include further detail about the couple's early years together or how their relationship began.
Still Set to Play the Guild Theatre
Despite the loss, Krieger remains scheduled to perform at the Guild Theatre in Menlo Park on Nov. 13, the Mercury News reported. Tickets for the show start at $75, according to the outlet's report, and the venue's own listing shows an 8 p.m. start time. The Menlo Park date follows a show Krieger played at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga at the end of July, the Mercury News noted.
The upcoming concert places Krieger, one of the Doors' surviving members, in the Bay Area at a deeply personal moment, with the tour continuing even as he mourns. The Mercury News report did not provide additional detail on the structure or length of the current run of shows beyond the Saratoga and Menlo Park dates.
