Painted by muralist Rip Cronk, this likeness of a microphone-holding, shirtless Jim Morrison can be seen on the side of a three-story building located at 1811 Speedway and 18th Place in Venice Beach, CA. Originally painted in 1991, Cronk touched up the painting in the Summer of 2012, creating a vibrant orange background over what had previously been both a darker blue color, and the building’s natural white brick. The mural is a must-see for Doors fans if you happen to be in the area.
Jim Morrison shuffled off this mortal coil exactly forty years ago today. Wow. A lot of Doors fans reading this post weren’t even born then. I was ten years old, so Jim has been dead for most of my life. He left us a lot of good and very unique music, and for this we should continue to fete him each year on the anniversary of his passing. My fellow rock critic Rob O’Connor has an noteworthy contribution to this day of remembering Jim Morrison in his latest Yahoo Music column, List of The Day, in which he conducts an interview with himself about Morrison’s life and The Doors’ contribution to music. It is quite clever/hilarious while also remaining respectful to the memory of Mr. Mojo Rising. Sort of. Also, O’Connor offers some solid advice for the novice Doors collector. Example:
Question #7: Which Greatest Hits Album Should I Buy?: Thanks for asking! The Doors, like The Smiths, have more greatest hits albums than actual studio albums. So, I would suggest buying all six of their studio albums. They’re all super! Then grab Absolutely Live!
On This Date in 1964: The Whisky a Go Go club opened on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, CA. The Whisky was a launching pad for such acts as The Doors and Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention. It’s also the club where Led Zeppelin performed their first US shows, supported by a then unknown band called Alice Cooper. Bands I can remember seeing at The Whisky include The Plasmatics and Nina Hagen. There are likely many others, but those memories aren’t really available to me anymore.
It’s Jim Morrison’s Birthday today (December 8th), and what better way to celebrate the birth of the Lizard King than by tossing back a couple of margaritas while reading This Story?
