MortSahlFan — 6 years ago(September 04, 2019 08:02 PM)

A) Lyrics
B) Interviews
When I say lyrics, I meant what did you learn from Jim after reading them. I'm not very good at deciphering lyrics, especially his. I listen to them as music, and mishear lyrics all the time, and even when I read them, I'm usually lost. And I've been a HUGE fan since middle school. Sometimes I think people might read too much - sometimes you like a certain rhyme, or how certain words sound. Maybe it was a mood at that particular moment, or something you think others need to hear.
Unfortunately, there aren't many interviews of Jim, but I think his first Doors biography summed it up well.
"I'm interested in anything about revolt, disorder, chaos, especially activity that appears to have no meaning. It seems to me to be the road toward freedom."
Alcohol does affect people, but he got arrested for being drunk in 1963, stealing a policeman's hat. I think the average fan just will say "drugs" or "booze", which is usually too easy. I remember reading from one of The Doors that his drinking went up because he couldn't sleep. Maybe he just wanted escape? He once said how he drank so he could talk to a**holes..
What about before booze? He was always anti-authority, and I think more emphasis should be on his upbringing, and especially his father. He didn't even see him (or his mother) after the age of 21, broke all contact (unusual for even dysfunctional families), was essentially homeless, and always seemed to poke authority, especially the police. He'd miss so many shows, and wouldn't even play "the game" early on. In his last audio interview he admits "I see myself as an intelligent, sensitive human, with the soul of a clown which forces me to blow it at the most important moments."
I'm guessing fame might have been another form of gasoline. Perhaps he thought "I'm still not happy, despite …..". Again, I could revert to his not being taken too seriously as a poet, but what about before that? I think he might have been impressionable, based on those he read, and their lives, Rimbaud for example. Living inside his head constantly? An imagination can probably take you far, especially for someone who grew up with so many books, all that fantasy, all the possibilities, and maybe a letdown.
C) If you can think of anything else, maybe his journal writings, "the times" (beatnik and hippie) or some influence something I didn't mention, etc..
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