Customer Reviews
2008-10-10
Indian, Indian, What Did You Die For?...
Indian says "Nothing at all."
...Gently they stir. Gently rise. The dead are newborn awakening, with ravaged limbs and wet souls. Gently they sigh in rapt funeral amazement...
Two things that Jim Morrison was obsessed about was death and his c---. What is really freaky in "An American Prayer" is when he recites poetry about the death OF his c---!
This album is deep Morrison. Too deep for the Casey Kasum or Ed Sullivan crowd. So deep that deep thinkers just might get the true meaning of the Morrison lyrics: "Words got me the wound, and words will get me well if you believe it."
For me, it represents the Fundamentalist's persecution of "gays," and the Fundamentalist's promises of "Reparative Therapy" in those 'ex-gay' ministries!
Highly recommended!
2008-07-15
works...
Jim Morrison's poetry can obviously seem pretty ridiculous, but this album rules. Morrison was not by any means a poet in the traditional literary sense; to consider him as such is really unfair and inappropriate. As the lead singer of a rock band he was more of a performance artist and that's reflected here. His voice and the instrumentation work very well together to create a vivid, unique sonic journey (as cheesy as that sounds, it's the only way I can describe this album). It's a necessary experience for any true music fan. Listen to it from beginning to end with an open mind and it's a lot of fun. I can appreciate that a lot of what Morrison wrote can be perceived as pretty nuts and at times flat out juvenile, but it all still works big time for me. I think it's because he really meant it.
2008-04-10
Underrated...
I've read in Blender magazine that they suggested to people that "this album should be avoided." How very wrong and sad! I've owned this album since I was a kid (going on 15 years) and Jim Morrison had talent for evoking imagery in one's mind. This man was not an amateur writer or poet for that matter. He had God-given talent that was distinctive. This is not a poetry reading by Jewel, this is Jim Morrison. No disrespect to Jewel but here we're speaking of the lead singer for the Doors. What I enjoy most about this collection is the trip I embark upon when I listen from beginning to end. It makes me think of so many things such as travelling, music, sex, women, suspense, Latino culture, death, life and love. The fact is I do not know Jim Morrison as a person. Therefore, I have no right to judge his personal habits. What I do know of him is that talent is talent. Here he is doing what he loves to do with no pressure from a record company, an audience or police. The accompaniment of the surviving Doors adds a special touch to the readings. I appreciate owning a little piece of Jim Morrison's mind and for those of you who are just getting into Doors music, listen intently and try not to judge until you've finished the entire record. If you don't like it, that's why we have return policies and refunds.
2008-02-05
Strange Brew...
As a spoken word collection, Jim Morrison strips away the trappings of pop culture and truly shows the power of his poetry. In a way, it shows a direction he may have taken in performance art if not for his untimely death.
But the concept is ruined by The Doors, who took Morrison's tapes and recorded nothing more than doodlings in Muzak, which sadly makes the end result a parody of the Beat Generation. Ultimately, this is for Morrison fans who are looking to complete their library of authorized releases.
2007-02-13
An American Poet...
James Douglas Morrison is known as a shaman, the lizard king, and lead singer of the Doors, but was also a poet who recorded some of his poems and stories. The result is a journey through the dark alleyways of Morrison's mind. Unfortunately, Morrison died prematurely at the age of 27 in a Parisian bathtub on July 3, 1971. However, the remaining three Doors members (Ray Manzarek, keyboards; Robby Krieger, guitar; John Densmore, drums) took the raw material and provided music to accompany Morrison's voice in a manner that is both deft and supportive of Morrison's poetry. Occasionally the music is overdone to the point of sounding like soft jazz or worse - a stereotypical porn soundtrack. The album, "An American Prayer," was released in 1978; the remastered 1995 version has three bonus tracks. The most notable bonus track is the compelling and haunting "Bird of Prey" with Morrison singing a cappella, as if straight from the grave.
Do not expect a standard story with a narrative arc. "An American Prayer" is better heard as a cohesive mood that begs to be played in one sitting on a moonless night with a solitary candle. To explore the nightmare terrain, Morrison pens words the F.C.C. would not allow for public broadcast; nonetheless the word choice, for the most part, is effective and essential despite the vulgarity. At times the poetry can be trite as the following line from the title poem, "An American Prayer." "Do you know we are ruled by T.V." But more often the words are compelling for its imagery like the following gem from the title poem. "Death makes angels of us all & gives us wings where we had shoulders smooth as raven's claws." The fallen world Morrison ushers the listener into is one full of confusion, madness, random acts of violence, sex and sudden death.
"An American Prayer" does contain a murderer on the loose ("The Hitchhiker") and it is Morrison himself. Dead Indian souls are ready to possess Morrison's childhood mind in "Newborn Awakening." Barely above a whisper, Morrison says, "Indians scattered on dawn's highway bleeding/Ghosts crowd the young child's fragile eggshell mind." Morrison's melancholic thoughts speak of a poet not well-adjusted. Morrison's voice is clear, but also has a worn edge to it. This is no surprise when you consider Morrison had become overweight, suffered a fallout and conviction from a 1969 Miami concert (Morrison is found guilty of profanity and exposing himself), and had countless paternity suits plaguing the end of his life.
In "Stoned Immaculate," Morrison pleads, "Let me tell you about heartache and the loss of god,/Wandering, wandering in hopeless night." And then later asks in "Lament," "Could any hell be more horrible than now and real?" It is hard to argue with him after this beautiful tour of discord ends.
Bohdan Kot
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