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“Smart, engaging...”—PopMatters“
Fascinating, informative, extraordinary, and essential reading for the legions of Jim Morrison fans.”—Midwest Book Review
Shrouded in mystery and the swirling psychedelic sounds of the Sixties, the Doors have captivated listeners across seven decades. Jim Morrison—haunted, beautiful, and ultimately doomed—transformed from rock god to American icon. With each successive generation of fans, the Doors become more popular and transcendent. Yet the band’s full significance is buried beneath layers of mythology and folklore.
In Roadhouse Blues, Bob Batchelor presents an epic tale of one of rock’s (and America’s) most significant periods, as the Age of Aquarius gave way to a new age of mayhem, presidential misdeeds, and murder. Batchelor combines cultural history, musical and lyrical analysis, and a broad stroke of pop-culture mythos to give fresh perspective on a pivotal time.
Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, Roadhouse Blues is a biography of a man, a band, and an era that set the tone for the contemporary world. Beyond the mythology, the hype, and the mystique around Morrison’s untimely death, this book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride, examining the impact the band had on America as the nation veered from decadence to debauchery.
“We’re gonna have a real good time!”
List of contents
1. Lighting America’s Fire
2. How a Sound (and a Band) are Born
3. The Doors Rule!
4. Blood in the Streets, It’s Up to My Ankles
5. Another Lost Angel
6. Death of the Lizard King
7. America’s Favorite Rock and Roll Band
8. Who Was Jim Morrison and Why does it Matter?
About the author
Bob Batchelor is an
award-winning cultural historian and author of
Stan Lee: A Life,
The Bourbon
King, and a dozen other books exploring history and biography. He has
written about many iconic musicians and eras, including Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash,
Grunge, and jazz. Batchelor’s books have been translated into a dozen languages,
while his work has appeared or been featured in the
New York Times,
Cincinnati
Enquirer,
Los Angeles Times, Today.com,
The Guardian, and
Time. He is a frequent on-air expert.
Batchelor earned a doctorate in Literature at the University of South Florida
and lives in North Carolina with his wife Suzette and their two daughters.
Summary
“Smart, engaging...”—PopMatters
“Fascinating, informative, extraordinary, and essential reading for the legions of Jim Morrison fans.”—Midwest Book Review
Shrouded in mystery and the swirling psychedelic sounds of the Sixties, the Doors have captivated listeners across seven decades. Jim Morrison—haunted, beautiful, and ultimately doomed—transformed from rock god to American icon. With each successive generation of fans, the Doors become more popular and transcendent. Yet the band’s full significance is buried beneath layers of mythology and folklore.
In Roadhouse Blues, Bob Batchelor presents an epic tale of one of rock’s (and America’s) most significant periods, as the Age of Aquarius gave way to a new age of mayhem, presidential misdeeds, and murder. Batchelor combines cultural history, musical and lyrical analysis, and a broad stroke of pop-culture mythos to give fresh perspective on a pivotal time.
Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, Roadhouse Blues is a biography of a man, a band, and an era that set the tone for the contemporary world. Beyond the mythology, the hype, and the mystique around Morrison’s untimely death, this book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride, examining the impact the band had on America as the nation veered from decadence to debauchery.
“We’re gonna have a real good time!”
