Jim Morrison & The Doors Discussion

This thread is to discuss the life of James Douglas Morrison, and the band that he was lead

singer of - The Doors.

Jim Morrison, RIP: December 8th 1943 - July 3rd 1971

[image=http://www.thedoorsuncovered.com/gallery/picgrfx/jm/jmnm0010.jpg]

This is the official website of The Doors
This is the official website of Michael McClure & Ray Manzarek
Here is a great fan site, called The Doors Uncovered

I have been a huge fan of The Doors for a long time now, but even more so in the last year or so. I really love their music and their varied styles. I just find it tragic, that in the latter stages of his life, Jim led such a self destructive lifestyle through drugs and alcohol. In his time, I think he was greatly misunderstood.

A few months ago, I read the book [link=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1592400647/qid=1093673315/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/102-9783580-6560113?v=glance&s=books&n=507846[Jim Morrison: Life, Death, Legend by Stephen Davis[/link]. I thought it was a FANTASTIC read, a great biography. Stephen Davis has written biographies about many other bands, such as Led Zepplin and Rolling Stones, so he knows the ins and outs of the music industry. I highly recommend this book to any Doors fan. Check the link above for more info on the book and reader reviews at amazon.com

The book tells Morrisons life story from when he was a child in school, through his teenage years, his time at UCLA, and through the Doors and beyond. Many things I didn't know about the band were revealed in the book. Such as the fact that Jim was bisexual. Harrison Ford at one time was a stagehand for the band.

One awesome point I discovered, was how perceptive the vision of Jim Morrison was. In one interview, he actually predicted the Techno era that would happen 30 years later. If you go to the official Doors website, you can actually view a realmedia video snippit of this interview

I recently recieved Riders on the Storm: My Life with Jim Morrison and the Doors, by John Densmore, however I have not had a chance to read it yet... will give some feedback once I have read the book. I think it will be an interesting book, as it was widely known that Jim Morrison and John Densmore (the drummer) did not get along at all.

I also recieved Lords And New Creatures, by Jim Morrison - a collection of the poetry written by Jim Morrison. I love reading his poetry, it really makes you think, however at times, it really does become abstract.

The film 'The Doors' by Oliver Stone is one of my favourite movies, and I have watched the DVD dozens of times. I think it is one of the best movies about a band EVER. Oliver Stone really captured the feel of the era and the band. And Val Kilmer puts in a career best performance as Jim Morrison... the similarities are uncanny. Amazingly, Val Kilmer actually sang a lot of the songs in the film.

My favourite songs by the Doors are: LA Woman, The End, Roadhouse Blues, Break on Through, Riders on the Storm, Touch Me.[/link]

 

Hmmm... wonder why those links didn't work?

 

I enjoy The Doors very much and on several seperate occasions have thought about buying a biography about Jim Morrison but for some reason didn't. I just love their music. About a half a year ago I found a GREAT deal on a Doors CD. It was a 2 disc set of the best of The Doors for $16.00. Something like 38 songs or so and it also has video of a live performance of Roadhouse Blues as an added feature.

I think I'll listen to The Doors tonight as I fall asleep.

 

The biography by Stephen Davis is HIGHLY recommended! It is actually new, published this year. The John Densmore book, and other books you will find are actually quite old.

I too, have listened to the Doors whilst falling asleep!

 

The Doors were a great band. One of the best. But Jim Morrison was quite possibly the biggest ******* ever; at least until Dennis Leary came along. He was a brilliant songwriter and frontman, but he was definately someone you'd want to stay away from.

I heartily embrace the leather pants though.

a live performance of Roadhouse Blues

Is it the one where he talks about astrology at the end? That's a famous one.

 

Reading through the biography, you do come to realise that he did have many ******* moments, but I think that was brought on through insecurity, lack of self-confidence (when he was confident, it was just a show... a mask), and emotional baggage from his childhood... lack of love from his parents.

 

[image=http://www.thedoorsuncovered.com/gallery/picgrfx/bnp/bnpc0006.jpg]

This is a poem by Jim Morrison:

Phantasmagoria, magic lantern shows, spectacles
without substance. They acheived complete
sensory experiences through noise, incense,
lightning, water. There may be a time when
we'll attend Weather Theaters to recall the
sensation of rain.

 

It might be the one....it says the "Famous Roadhouse Blues Footage" so it probably is. I have yet to watch it in full though.

 

This is a poem by Jim Morrison:

Catalog of Horrors
Descriptions of Natural disaster
Lists of miracles in the divine corridor
Catlog of fish in the divine canal
Catlog of objects in the room
List of things in the sacred river

 

The End is one of the darkest, most profound songs I've ever heard. What's it about even? I've heard it's about a breakup.

 

If you can grab a copy of the biography I mentioned, it goes behind some of the meanings of the lyrics.

 

I know that the Oedipus Complex plays a huge role in that song...

 

I AM THE LIZARD KING!!!!


I CAN DO ANYTHING!!!!!

 

Raise your hand if you understand!

 

I love Riders on the Storm, as well as many other of the Doors songs....LA Woman...Break on Through...

The phrase "Riders on the storm" was taken from a Lord Byron poem--

"Their life is agitation, and their life
A storm whereon they ride"

Lord Byron suffered from manic/depression and lived a life of excess, melancholy, enormous creativity, and seemed to have been constantly waging a battle against the fire that was consuming him. It seems Jim Morrison was fighting the same battle.

 

I think Doors is one of the most overrated groups ever. Morrison is a lousy singer and most of the guitar riffs are copied straight from The Kinks.

 

I don't think that Jim is a lousy singer, but hey, that is my opinion. I think he has great vocal talent, across many different styles.

And he is a fantastic writer and poet.

 

I love The Doors. I first discovered them in high school and still listen to them. My favorite song in The Crystal Ship.

I thought Oliver Stone's film was pretty good. Apparently, Ray Manzarek hated it. I've been meaning to read some of the books.