Classic Songs: ‘Riders On The Storm’ by The Doors.

When you think of great frontmen of rock history, Mick Jagger, Freddy Mercury, Eddie Vedder and Michael Hutchene, all instantly come to mind. Some of these frontmen have already achieved ‘iconic’ status, but none are as rebellious as Jim Morrison from The Doors. Morrison’s celebrity, in particular, influenced the ‘anti-establishment’ behaviour and sentiment of the sixties.

He thought of himself as a poet, as well as a rock genius, who was inspired by the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche, Apollonian and Dionysian and many others. He was the first rock singer in living memory to be arrest on stage during a concert. He even famous refused to play at Woodstock, believing that someone was crazy enough to shoot him on stage while performing.

His use of LSD, heroin, alcohol and fan adulation, may have been the cause of his rebellious and often strange behaviour, but one cannot deny his genius behind some of the greatest rock songs ever recorded. Musical standouts include Light My Fire, Roadhouse Blues, L.A. Woman and the doom-laden odyssey The End. I’d be very surprised, in particular, not to find The Doors (1967) debut album in any rock aficionado collection!

Unfortunately, Morrison’s life was cut short with his death, on this day 3rd July, 1971. His girlfriend, Pamela Courson, found the charismatic singer dead in a bathtub in a Paris hotel. He died of heart failure, possibly induced by alcohol and an accidental heroin overdose. Interestingly, his death was kept secret, until his burial at Pere Lachaise Cemetery, in the east of Paris. His grave, is still often today, a shrine for alienated youth, who leave interesting items such as letters, cigarettes and flasks of whisky.

Interestingly, according to The Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek, the final song the band ever recorded with frontman Jim Morrison was Riders On The Storm. It was later released as a single about a month before his death. If this is true, it’s an incredible eerie haunting track to unintentionally leave behind as your swansong. 

The inspiration behind the lyrics of Riders On The Storm came from Morrison’s fascination with Billy Cook, a hitchhiker who went on a chilling three-killing spree across several American states in 1951. He brutally murdered six people, including an entire family of five. As morbid as this sound, Morrison set about making a point about modern American society. And he often does it using haunting lyrics and images that confront and confound us.

“There’s a killer on the road / His brain is squirmin’ like a toad / Take a long holiday / Let your children play / If you give this man a ride / Sweet family will die/ Killer on the road, yeah.”

But it’s important to note that this verse alone doesn’t necessarily define the intent of the song. Decoding what Morrison has to say as a poet or lyricist is often left to us to decipher. That said, I believe ‘Riders’ is a reminder of the journey we take on life’s rocky road. (The good and the bad). While the ‘killer on the road’ might represent the dangers we face (even death itself), lines like “You gotta love your man” reminds us of the more tender aspects of life like relationships, love and understanding. 

I’ve been asked many times before which song is my favourite from The Doors. If the mood suits me, I often do say Riders On The Storm (which appears on the 1971 album L.A. Woman). It’s a song sonically that you can truly get lost in its atmospheric and melodic grandeur. For seven odd minutes we drift through a wonderous masterclass of psychedelic rock and jazz. Famously the song opens with rain and thunder sound effects before Ray Manzarek imitates the sound of rain on his Fender Rhodes keyboard. I get goosebumps every time I hear it. Moreover I really like John Densmore’s jazz inspired soft hands on drums and Robby Krieger’s solos and rhythm sections on guitar which are super cool. Honestly, what more can I say? This song is epic even without the boisterous fanfare of something like Roadhouse Blues or Break On Through (To The Other Side).  

*This article was originally written in 2016 in a different form. It has been repurposed here for my classic songs series.