On this day in 1970, Jim Morrison, the enigmatic frontman of The Doors, stepped beyond the spotlight of rock and roll and into the literary world with the publication of his first official poetry collection, The Lords and The New Creatures. The book, a haunting blend of poetic meditations and surreal imagery, remains the only collection of his verse released during his lifetime.
A striking departure from the hard-edged blues-rock sound that made him a counterculture icon, The Lords and The New Creatures offered fans a glimpse into Morrison’s deeper creative consciousness. The book combined two previously self-published works: The Lords: Notes on Vision and The New Creatures, both of which Morrison had initially printed in limited quantities and distributed to friends and close associates.
The Lords reads like a series of fragmented observations and aphorisms—almost philosophical diary entries—exploring the nature of perception, media, and authority. With references to film, myth, and the modern cityscape, Morrison dissects how technology mediates reality. It’s a poetic investigation into power and voyeurism, a fitting subject for a man often seen as both rebel and spectacle.
The New Creatures, meanwhile, ventures into the realm of dreams and primal instincts. These poems are darker, more abstract, and deeply symbolic, filled with vivid and sometimes disturbing imagery. Themes of sexuality, death, transformation, and ritual run throughout, revealing a fascination with the liminal spaces between life and death, sanity and madness, creation and destruction.
Morrison, who studied film and literature at UCLA before forming The Doors in 1965, often spoke of poetry as his first love. Influenced by the works of Arthur Rimbaud, William Blake, and the Beat Generation, Morrison’s poetry echoes the cadence of rock lyrics but ventures into more introspective and esoteric territory.
At the time of publication, The Lords and The New Creatures was met with mixed reviews. Critics were divided: some dismissed the work as indulgent or incoherent, while others praised its rawness and ambition. Yet, over the years, the book has gained recognition as a key part of Morrison’s artistic legacy—a testament to his multidimensional talent and his relentless pursuit of expression beyond traditional boundaries.
Unlike many celebrity poetry ventures, Morrison’s work wasn’t an afterthought to fame—it predated and paralleled his music career. His writings remain essential to understanding the man behind the myth: a poet who used his platform not just to entertain, but to challenge, provoke, and explore the hidden corners of the human experience.
Fifty-five years after its publication, The Lords and The New Creatures continues to resonate with readers, musicians, and artists drawn to Morrison’s unique voice. It stands as both a cultural artifact of its era and a timeless exploration of the visionary mind of one of rock’s most iconic figures.
