Music, to many of us, is a road map of our lives.

Many songs remind us of a particular stage of life, for better or worse.
A recent prompt at IGWRT is focused on Jim Morrison, one of the very talented musicians of The Doors, who died in his late 20s. He was renowned for his music but Morrison was a talented poet as well. One of my favourite songs by this group was an amazing work of lyrics and instrumentation–Riders on the storm. The poem inspired by this song is pasted below.
Remembering Jim Morrison’s Riders on the storm
Rain filters down while thunder plays in Riders on the storm a song that still haunts me since my high school days In our small town they say that his tune was playing on an 8-track that keeps on going while teenage friends were driving home after scoring a win in the ice hockey game. Seems no one saw that transport careen round the corner on a wet stormy night in November and when the police arrived at the scene Jim Morrison kept on singing though the teen voices were gone And every time I hear that piano rain trickling down in Riders on the storm, I think of Morrison, our long lost friends and his song.
© 2013 Patricia A. McGoldrick
Related articles
- Doors Keyboardist Ray Manzarek (1939-2013) Tells the Story of the Classic Song, ‘Riders on the Storm’ (openculture.com)
- Founding Doors Member Dies (foxnews.com)
- Riders of the Storm (castlemainejazzjammers.com)