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The Doors' Jim Morrison Died In 1971, The Same Year NPR Debuted Original Programming

The members of The Doors, from left to right: Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek (seated).
Michael Ochs Archives
/
Getty Images
The members of The Doors, from left to right: Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek (seated).

This story originally aired on Sept. 1, 2021.

Fifty years ago, on July 3, 1971, Jim Morrison — lead singer of the rock group The Doors — died in Paris. It was the first year of NPR and Mike Walters, an early host of All Things Considered, worked his way up to that news by reciting a few relevant lyrics from "An American Prayer," a song written by Morrison: "We live, we die, and death not ends it / Journey we more into the nightmare / Cling to life our passioned flower."

Morrison's death was a cultural milestone of NPR's first year. The Doors had just released L.A. Woman, an album so memorable it still lives and breathes, half a century later. The title track is one of the great rock songs of that period: "Driving down your freeways / Midnight alleys roam / Cops in cars, the topless bars / Never saw a woman / So alone, so alone," Morrison sings on the rock classic, a vignette about people at the margins of society.

Morrison often wrote about alienation, drawing millions of fans, including generations of high school kids who could relate. Listeners were also entranced by the band's unmistakably dark sound. When Morrison performed, he and the band packed auditoriums with their theatrical screams and pulsating electronic music. And by 1971, the year of NPR's story, The Doors had played some of the biggest gigs, like the Hollywood Bowl and The Ed Sullivan Show.

That spring, the 27-year-old singer-songwriter moved to Paris, where he had plans to develop his poetry. But, a few months later, he died of a cause that was listed as heart failure, though no autopsy was performed. The initial news of Morrison's death and funeral was kept quiet to avoid the attention that surrounded the passing of such other rock personalities as Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix.

"Morrison's death was heartbreaking," says Anthony Decurtis, a contributing editor for Rolling Stone. "You know, he lived hard for someone to die at 27, certainly. And it was a big, big loss. I think Morrison had much more work to do. We all have missed out on that."

Copyright 2024 NPR

Steve Inskeep is a host of NPR's Morning Edition, as well as NPR's morning news podcast Up First.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.