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Break on Through: The Life and Death of Jim Morrison

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Mad poet. Adored icon. Wild rocker. Alcoholic genius. Brilliant musician. Jim Morrison died in 1971, but his legend still sits among us.

With people who are brilliant and badly-behaved, as Morrison was, it's difficult to get a balanced view that seems like an actual person. But James Riordan's "Break On Through: The Life and Death of Jim Morrison" manages to do just that.

James Douglas Morrison was an army brat, intelligent and well-read, who began to blossom into a poet and musician in college. He went on to become the singer/frontman of the band "The Doors," adding his outstanding poetry-like songwriting to his bandmates' equally outstanding musical skills. Soon they were a massively popular rock band.

But Morrison had other facets as well: He was attracted to the bizarre, and could be cruel, sweet, loving, strange, and often drunken and loutish. He was also contradictory: He sought notice as a poet, but was still mainly known as a rock star; he slept around and handfasted a rock critic, but always stayed with girlfriend Pamela Courson. After living on the edge for years, Jim passed away in Paris, under strange circumstances.

Most biographies of Jim Morrison err on one side or another. Either they portray him as a sadistic, drunken lout, or they show him as a transcendent gentleman. The truth isn't usually that simple, and neither was Morrison. And Riordan shows us the different sides of Morrison's personality -- good and bad, together.

Like Morrison himself, the book has its contradictions: There is a somewhat fannish tone to the some of the writing. On the other hand, it's willing to acknowledge that Morrison could be lewd, weird, obnoxious and drunken. Riordan also shows us Jim's gradual flowering into a poet, his literary influences such as Nietszche, and the relationships between the Doors.

Riordan also courts controversy by studying and dissecting the various theories about Morrison's death. Don't expect wacked out conspiracy theories, or medical improbabilities -- Riordan stays calm and rational throughout the whole thing, and reveals the most likely scenarios. He also avoids outright judgements on controversial figures like Patricia Kennealy.

As the book draws to a close, Riordan keeps things dignified. He devotes the final chapters to studying the lives of Pamela Courson and the other Doors in the years following Morrison's death, as well as the creation of the "American Prayer" album. The only flaw is Kennealy's bizarre description of Morrison's "fetch," which seems more fiction than fact.

Jim Morrison's wild life and mysterious death are the stuff of which tabloid biographies are made. But James Riordan keeps things simple and smart in "Break on Through: The Life and Death of Jim Morrison."

This book touts itself as the definitive account of Jim Morrison's life and art but it's essentially a re-write of Jerry Hopkins' "No One Here Gets Out Alive". Really! Compare the two yourself: there are numerous passages in this book that are basically paraphrased from the original 1980 bio. I simply don't see much evidence of the authors' claimed extensive research. However, to give credit where it's due: some of the writing is evocative and downright excellent. For example, the passages on Morrison in Venice, CA when he first begins writing music or as he put it "meeting the spirit of music" put you right there in a genuinely moving manner. Also, the depiction of Morrison's last concert in New Orleans where that spirit abandons him is also striking.

While the world awaits the new book on Jim Morrison by Stephen Davis, you can still take time and appreciate James Riordan's classic work on this already classic subject. Jim Morrison remains one of the great icons of rock music, his image of a brilliant, insane poet who's antics and stage presence paved the way for gothic, theatrical rock (artists like Iggy Pop, Marilyn Manson and Scott Weiland all confirm the influence) is timeless and still inspiring to many. Riordan does his subject total justic with a book written with a literary flair in the words and an attention to detail that makes it vital to both the newcomer to The Doors and to Morrison followers. The portrait we are presented with at the end is of a genius driven by ideas and troubled by personal demons that probably did him in. What's fascinating is how Riordan has managed to dissect every aspect of the man. He studies in detail Morrison's tastes in surrealism, poetry and shamanism and makes comparisons between shamanistic rituals and Morrison's own stage behaviuor. And yet amongst all this the author never loses touch with what has made Morrison immortal in popular culture, the music. We get in-depth examinations of the lyrics and sound of The Doors and it's influence on artists such as Patti Smith, U2 and Alice Cooper. And Riordan never loses the sense of making the book entertaining, he writes with a novelistic touch that makes the book feel almost cinematic in it's approach, just read the first chapter, or better yet, the first page. "Break On Through" is a brilliant biography that any bookphile or rock enthusiast would enjoy. It's a captivating character study and an interesting look at the power of rock music in our age.

If there was but one biography I was able to read for the rest of my existance, I would consider this one being the one I select. I have loved The Doors and Jim Morrison for as long as I can recall, and found the practise of alternative religions and shamanism interesting long before I learnt that Jim was more than just dabbling in Shamanism, but believed he was posessed by a medicine man. Hence, this novel, with all its poetry clippings, information regarding shamanism, a somewhat more accurate portrayal of Jim, and the writer's zealous attitude regarding Jim ( it was clear the writer found Jim Morrison to be the most marvellous person to have existed), combined with the simple, factual and well written book presentation, this is one of the most passionate and beautiful biographies I have ever encountered. It is clearly meticiously researched (as is seen by the poetry excerpts scattered throughout) and obviously of huge interest to the author. Although I can't imagine it being of great interest to those not particularly interested in Jim Morrison, as there is much less emphasism on The Doors, and basically solely revolves around the chrismatic lead singer. I feel, however that it will certainly provide entertainment for most willing to see it through to the close, simply because Jim Morrison was an enigmatic and highly interesting personality. This novel centres much around the idea that Jim was a poet, and not a rock star, and while this can prove repitious, the case is presented in a way that allows us to excuse much of Jim's outward behaviour. A brilliant overview of a brilliant genius.

I have to admit that I was a latecomer to the Doors' music. I remember kidding my high school teacher "Oh God, you like the Doors!!!???" I just could never get past the keyboards because I hated the sound of organs. It wasn't until I saw the Doors movie by Oliver Stone that I was really turned on to their music. It wasn't just their music, it was Jim Morrison's search for meaning. While you can malign the movie all you want for its one dimensional portrayal of Jim as a moronic alcoholic, it did sorta provide a music video of his soul.

Not satisfied with the movie's version of truth, I soon tracked down No One Here Gets Out Alive and started reading it at an airport waiting for a flight. I really liked it but when I got to the end it was so ludicrous in that the authors purposely perpetuated the myth that Jim never actually died and that he faked his death. They encouraged that belief and it just totally destroyed the credibility of their work. That's about the time that Break on Through came out.

I see Break on Through as the best book written about Jim that I have read. It seems to be the only work that tries to be what is considered real biography and not just an overglorified picture book like Dark Star. It covers Jim's childhood, public school years and his college years, the rise of the Doors, and his death all in warm, human detail. A good biographer is not just a compiler of facts. He is an artist. Riordan and Prochinsky do a good job of showing us the deeper sides of Morrison. They also discuss in great detail that philosophies and influences that ruled and ultimately destroyed Jim's life: Romanticism, Surrealism, Blake, Rimbaud, Nietzche, Booze.

Just like the movie, the other 3 Doors are underrepresented here, becoming merely horatio like characters who can merely look on as Jim lives out his brief but fiery candle. If you want their side of it, check out Ray Manzarek's and also John Densmore's own autobiographies on the subject. Another good place to get the Doors story is the Doors: A Celebration DVD which includes almost 3 hours of commentary by the surviving Doors.

I loved the earlier parts of the book before The Doors hit it big. You get the sense that Jim would have made a good scholar and a great long lived artist but he made the mistake of thinking that you have to live out your ideals. Yes, it's romantic to believe that you have to burn out rather than fade away but how can you create if you're DEAD. His college days are particularly interesting, knowing what he did to pass the time and what he read. You got the sense before they hit it, that everything seemed new to Jim but once he was a star it was just the same old same old. Different cities, same act. The latter half of the book reflects this and becomes less interesting.
Not that it's boring, just that by that time you could see the tragedy coming.

All in all, I think this is the best biography of Morrison produced so far. Read Noone Here Gets Out Alive too but read that with a grain of salt. Break on Through is miles above it.

I have been fascinated with The Doors music for more than 25 years when a friend of mine in school got me into them. Jim Morrison has been and continues to be a subject of deep interest and fascination for me as for countless of other Doors fans. I have read just about every book written on Jim and the band and this by far is the most accurate I believe. The authors did extensive research on Morrison and spent several years writing and perfecting this biography. This is an excellent book and makes a wonderful read not only for Doors fan but for people that enjoy reading about the excesses of rock and roll and the music industry. Jim Morrison was a man ahead of his time, extremely gifted and talented perhaps the most well read of all rock stars. He was an intellectual who possessed a brilliant mind but by the same token he was deeply misunderstood by society and by the authorities which he despised so much. Morrison was a brilliant scholar, an amazing poet, a soulful singer with a clear and very distinctive voice and a fantastic songwriter. He was a genius no doubt and his demise on July 3, 1971,in Paris is still mourned by the legions of fans that the mercurial and ecletic singer left behind. BREAK ON THROUGH:THE LIFE AND DEATH OF JIM MORRISON, is a must read for any admirer of this brilliant artist and renaissance man. The book is 544 pages long and it traces Jim's life from the beginning in Melbourne Florida where he was born to his sad and untimely death in Paris. Read this book and find out what the real Jim Morrison was all about. This book will probably shock and confuse a lot of people but it is an excellent biography of a man that 35 after his death still continues to fascinate and spark the interest of people all over the world.

I have read three books on the The Doors. They are 'No-one gets out of here alive' by Sugerman, 'Riders on the storm' by John Dansmore and this one. 'Break on though' must be the best, most detailed and well-researched one of all three. I found 'No-one gets...' too dramatized of Morrison's whole history and 'Riders...' lacked facts.

In a nutshell, I think this is the one that you really ought to read if you should read just one about Jim Morrison.

This book depicts this controversial man's life from hischildhood until his death. It contains 544 pages of detaileddescriptions of the rise and fall of one of rock music's most influential stars. More importantly, the author did not write a monotonous book of facts. Instead, the author creatively portrayed Morrison, covering all aspects of his life: his childhood, his relationship to his parents, his high school and college years, his decision to become lead singer of The Doors, his abuse of alcohol and drugs, his controversial brushes with the law, his impact on society, and his death. One reason why I liked the book so much was the way that it was divided up into chapters that focused on different periods of Morrison's life. It would be wrong for me to say that James Riordan objectively wrote this biography. This is especially true when writing about Jim Morrison, one of the most controversial men in rock music. Riordan glorifies Morrison, and at times, I thought that Morrison was his hero. He speaks of Morrison's exploits with pride and literally compared the man to God. This is the first biography that I have ever read about a person that doesn't just point out dates and facts. Instead, Riordan wrote about who, what, when, where and how Jim Morrison came idolize youth and the 1960's. I highly recommend this book to people of all ages and backgrounds because the book intricately talks about the life of a man who changed society. Break on Through: The Life and Death of Jim Morrison, is unlike any book that I have ever read and I enjoyed it very much.

..I read this book back in 1991 when it came out and reread it sporadically ever since. there is so much information here and a good analysis of Jim Morrison as a poet and a man.
The book is written for true fans of Morrison only. If you want a thorough understanding of who he was and how he became an icon of the era then this is the book for you.
It is a scholarly biography and well researched. I would recommend it to anybody wanting to know Jim Morrison in depth.

"Break On Through" is one of the great rock bios. It is an exciting, incredibly well-detailed read. The problem I tend to have with a lot of biographies is that the writer doesn't really capture the person's life, instead, the writer simply records what the person did and when blah blah blah. In other words, bad bios tend to be no less than simply boring. "Break On Through" is written with a cinematic energy and a true feel for the essence of the material. James Riordian and Jerry Prochnicky have made a brilliant study of one of the enduring rock legends, Jim Morrison. Riordan is also the writer of the brilliant biography of Oliver Stone and does an equally excellent job here. Jim Morrison is a very complex figure, an artist and captivating poet who will always remain a weird enigma in that no one will ever really be able to explain the REAL Morrison. So, this should be read as another study on an icon. But boy is it rich! It celebrates the excess, the depth, and the poetry behind the Morrison story (and The Doors music). Like the Oliver Stone movie, "The Doors," one of course should not read this as the DEFINITIVE explanation, but as another point of view. "Break On Through" manages to transport the reader back to the era in which it takes place with a revolutionary energy that makes it a book that is hard to put down. But I also loved it because it has detailed observations of the music, lyrics and philosophies. The authors actually take time to even explore exactly what living by the "Dionysian" concept means. It also presents fascinating, interesting events and it works not only as a bio on Morrison, but as a study of the beginnings of a new form of rock music. The book also explores how The Doors and Morrison's stage attitudes and lyrical style produced what would eventually be the Punk movement and bands like The Cult, U2, Creed, Echo And The Bunnymen, even Alice Cooper and many others. It brilliantly portrays the rise of an icon. It is also a great story, that of a brilliant artist who's drive to excess lead to his early demise and how he left the music world an influence that is immortal. Well written and brilliant, "Break On Through" is a must for those who like a good biography, rock fans and of course, Doors fans. Great book.