The Collected Works of Jim Morrison: Poetry, Journals, Transcripts, and Lyrics

Jim Morrison

Jun 2021 · HarperCollins

About this eBook

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The definitive anthology of Jim Morrison's writings with rare photographs and numerous handwritten excerpts of unpublished and published poetry and lyrics from his 28 privately held notebooks.

You can also hear Jim Morrison’s final poetry recording, now available for the first time, on the CD or digital audio edition of this book, at the Village Recorder in West Los Angeles on his twenty-seventh birthday, December 8, 1970. The audio book also includes performances by Patti Smith, Oliver Ray, Liz Phair, Tom Robbins, and others reading Morrison’s work. 

Created in collaboration with Jim Morrison’s estate and inspired by a posthumously discovered list entitled “Plan for Book,” The Collected Works of Jim Morrison is an almost 600-page anthology of the writings of the late poet and iconic Doors’ front man. This landmark publication is the definitive opus of Morrison’s creative output—and the book he intended to publish. Throughout, a compelling mix of 160 visual components accompanies the text, which includes numerous excerpts from his 28 privately held notebooks—all written in his own hand and published here for the first time—as well as an array of personal images and commentary on the work by Morrison himself.  

This oversized, beautifully produced collectible volume contains a wealth of new material—poetry, writings, lyrics, and audio transcripts of Morrison reading his work. Not only the most comprehensive book of Morrison’s work ever published, it is immersive, giving readers insight to the creative process of and offering access to the musings and observations of an artist whom the poet Michael McClure called “one of the finest, clearest spirits of our times.”  

This remarkable collector’s item includes: 

• Foreword by Tom Robbins; introduction and notes by editor Frank Lisciandro that provide insight to the work; prologue by Anne Morrison Chewning
• Published and unpublished work and a vast selection of notebook writings 
• The transcript, the only photographs in existence, and production notes of Morrison’s last poetry recording on his twenty-seventh birthday 
• The Paris notebook, possibly Morrison’s final journal, reproduced at full reading size
• Excerpts from notebooks kept during his 1970 Miami trial
• The shooting script and gorgeous color stills from the never-released film HWY
• Complete published and unpublished song lyrics accompanied by numerous drafts in Morrison’s hand
• Epilogue: “As I Look Back”: a compelling autobiography in poem form 
• Family photographs as well as images of Morrison during his years as a performer

About the author

James Douglas Morrison (1943-1971) was a poet, filmmaker, screenwriter, and the lead singer of as well as the lyricist and a composer for The Doors. Prior to his death, Morrison self-published three limited-edition volumes of his poetry: The Lords/Notes on Vision (1969), The New Creatures (1969), and An American Prayer (1970). Simon & Schuster published the combined The Lords and the New Creatures in 1970. Posthumous editions of Morrison’s writings include Wilderness: The Lost Writings of Jim Morrison, Volume I (1988) and The American Night: The Lost Writings of Jim Morrison, Volume II (1990). Tom Robbins is a writer, novelist, editor, and journalist. He was born in Blowing Rock, North Carolina on July 22, 1936. Robbins studied journalism at Washington and Lee for two years and later graduated from the Richmond Professional Institute in 1961. He attended the Graduate School of Far Eastern Studies at the University of Washington. From 1957 to 1960, Robbins served in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Korea as a meteorologist. During his years in the service he took courses in Japanese culture and aesthetics in Tokyo. After the military, Robbins took a job as a copy editor at the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Robbins later worked as feature editor and art critic at the Seattle Times and part time at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Robbins published the novel, Another Roadside Attraction in 1971. Other books include Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Still Life With Woodpecker. Even Cowgirls Get the Blues was made into a 1996 film directed by Gus Van Sant. Robbins has also acted in such films as Made in Heaven and Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle. A documentary entitled, Tom Robbins: A Writer in the Rain was made in 1997. In 2014, his title Tibetan Peach Pie: A True Account of an Imaginative Life, made The New York Times Best Seller List.