Jim Morrison: Would he have continued with The Doors?

I've read several biographies of Jim and all reach different conclusions -
Some say if he had lived past July 1971, he would've retired from music or at least The Doors. That the departure to Paris marked the end of The Doors, at least with Jim, and they knew it even before he died - that he might not have even ever come back to the US on a fulltime basis.

Some say he was simply taking a break emotionally and physically while his appeal process went through, and The Doors had already begun working on new material to present to him when he returned (It is claimed he wrote letters to people stating his desire to return to the US in October 1971).

What do you think, had he lived, he might have done?

 

I think Jim would've found religion or jail.

 

He already found religion. Unfortunately it was himself. But yeah, if JM didn't end up in jail I think Densmore would've eventually killed him.

 

Jim was going to jail and to prevent it, he went to France and was never coming back.

The Doors were over when he left to Paris.

IMO

 

If so damn shame. Morrison wasn't even really guilty of what he was accused of and even if he was, giving him a sentence of like 6 months hard labor was just...unfair. It's sad that the Establishment felt so threatened by people like Jim or rock in general at that time.

 

He was probably in Paris awaiting the result of the Miami appeal. Paris had no extradition treaty with the U.S. at the time. He was sending mixed messages concerning his future with The Doors. He placed a call to Densmore while in Paris. Densmore told him that L.A. Woman was doing well. Jim was pleased and expressed interest in doing another album. There were so many variables, the most important being the outcome of the appeals process and whether or not Jim would return to the U.S.

 

It seems unlikely during the 1971/1972 era. Perhaps there would have been some sort of reunion at some point, many years removed from LA Woman, but by many accounts, the band with Morrison was finished even before he left for Paris.

 

1. I am a fan of the core Doors albums
2. Jim was(IMO)an accidental singer. He never set out to be in a rock band. Had he not hooked up with Ray, his doggerel poems would never have become songs, let alone classics.
3. Jim did not have the willpower to deny himself anything. Had he continued with the band(who he seemed to resent by then) he would have been an accidental OD. Watch the Live In Europe DVD.
4. The Nixon "justice" dept was on a vendetta against rock stars. He was right to leave. Unlike Lennon he could come home when Dicky was gone.

The Doors would have gone on without him as they did. with probably the same lack of success.

 

He wasn't going to jail. A couple of years later, the things he was alleged to have done were commonplace.

My guess is that he would have rejoined the Doors after a long break.

 

I have no idea, but it's a fascinating 'what if?' scenario. I'm not a huge fan of L.A. Woman (except for 4 prime cuts off the LP), but it is an interesting question what direction they'd have taken after that -- more bluesy direction, or something else? It's a real shame we'll never know. The Doors were among the unique bands of the era. They simply did not sound like anyone else.

 

I agree. He certainly did not set out to become a singer. His ambition was to be a filmmaker. He hooked up with Ray, joined Ray's band Rick and the Ravens on stage and got the bug. He started writing songs, found that he had a natural talent for it. Ray, of course, saw Jim's talent and saw an opportunity to hit the big time. He helped Jim develop his voice, and the rest is history.

 

Especially compared to the antics today of some stars. It was a long time ago, but the overreaction of the powers that were is still unbelievable. The greatest threats come from their mates in high places not from rock stars.

 

History tells us what happened, history never repeats apparently according to Split Enz

 

No way.

He was out of the music business.

 

I do wonder if they would've taken a proggish turn? Some of their longer jams bordered on or predated prog and that was a huge sound in the early mid 70s - s0mething which would've well suited Jim's poetry. Or if they would've gone a country-ish route similar to the one The Dead took in the early 70s.

 

They had the chops to go in more of a jazz fusion direction, but I don't fathom going towards prog or workingmans-era Dead. That's just me

 

Nope, retire and write/read books.

sean

 

The DOORS had exhausted their creative genius and were on the way out. Jim would have died the same death, but it may have been a couple on months later. Actually only a few groups were capable of more that 4 albums back then.

 

I think that after the Miami incident resolved (and I'm sure it would have resolved - no way was he actually going to serve jail time for alleged public indecency or whatever the charge was) he would have returned to The Doors. It may have taken a couple of years but he would have done it. He might have tried publishing his poetry or making films or whatever but I think it would have become clear to him pretty quickly that if he was going to get his work before the public in the most efficient and successful way possible, it would be through The Doors. Perhaps he might have split with The Doors and formed an entirely new band, but I have little doubt that he would have returned to music eventually.

 

Things would have been rough for a few years. Maybe he would attempted to lay down vocals for the next doors album, or maybe not. If Jim had been alive, it's debatable whether the remaining doors would have continued without him under that name. Yes, I know there is evidence they considered just that when Jim was still alive, but there would have been tremendous pressure from Elektra to patch things up with Jim and possibly no interest from Elektra in a non Jim doors while Jim was around.

A few years later, either Jim would have cleaned up a bit and there'd probably be a "reunion" album. But because Jim hadn't died, all the mythology stuff wouldn't have started up, and instead people would need to deal with a (most likely) craggy beyond his years Jim fronting the reformed group. It probably would have been a middling success. Beyond that, who knows...

 

This raises an interesting point: Jim would probably have had to experience a significant lifestyle change to continue in music, seeing as it appears that his voice was pretty ravaged with drink by 1970. If he'd tried to return to music in, say, 1973 or '74 with a voice that was worse than what appears on L.A. Woman, and without the benefit of mythology that surely accounts for at least some of the high profile the Doors enjoy even today, he might have just ended up another washed-up rock star. But I like to think positive.

 

he would have bought a few kfc franchise restaurants in ohio.

 

It is more likely that he would have continued to move towards film work; but of course, this is all speculation. Nevertheless, after a couple of years of writing books with limited production runs that no one was buying and pumping money into film projects, Morrison would have probably had financial problems forcing him back into music.

 

I think that this is highly likely.

 

As I recall reading a few times, Jim's legal troubles, while perhaps silly by today's standards, were real enough that he would have probably done jail time because the appeals weren't going work... he definitely fled to Paris.

I think the band would have followed him there, and made more music, but perhaps focusing on a slightly different approach. He was a true chameleon....I could see him changing.