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"
Celebration of the Lizard" is an epic performance piece written by
Jim MorrisonJames Douglas "Jim" Morrison was an American musician, singer, and poet, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band The Doors...
, frontman of
The DoorsThe Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
. Composed as a series of poems, they include musical sections, spoken verse, and passages of allegorical storytelling.
Poems
- Lions in the Street
- Wake Up!
- A Little Game
- The Hill Dwellers
- Not to Touch the Earth
"Not to Touch the Earth" is a 1968 song by The Doors from their album Waiting for the Sun. It stems from Jim Morrison's poem, "Celebration of the Lizard". A recording of the complete poem was attempted at the sessions for the album, but only the musical passage Not to Touch the Earth was deemed fit...
- Names of the Kingdom
- The Palace of Exile
Description
The poem was supposed to be a full side of a vinyl record or album, but the other members of the band thought that the extended poetic sections and overall length of the piece made a complete recording impossible. The band did attempt to record the full piece several times, but abandoned the idea when they were dissatisfied with the results. One musical passage from "The Celebration",
Not to Touch the Earth"Not to Touch the Earth" is a 1968 song by The Doors from their album Waiting for the Sun. It stems from Jim Morrison's poem, "Celebration of the Lizard". A recording of the complete poem was attempted at the sessions for the album, but only the musical passage Not to Touch the Earth was deemed fit...
, was put onto their third studio album
Waiting for the SunWaiting for the Sun is the third studio album by the American rock band The Doors. It was released in 1968 and became the band's first and only number one album and spawned their second US number one single, "Hello, I Love You". It also became the band's first hit album in the UK, where it peaked...
of 1968, the rest of the poems were published in the liner notes of the album.
"Celebration" was performed in its entirety at a handful of Doors shows. A performance of "Celebration" can be heard on the band's 1970 live album
Absolutely LiveAbsolutely Live is the first live album released by American rock band The Doors in July 1970. Many shows were recorded during the 1970 tour to create the "Absolutely Live" album. The Doors producer, and long time collaborator Paul Rothchild painstakingly edited the album from many different shows...
. The first recorded version wasn't released until the 2003 best-of album
Legacy: The Absolute BestLegacy: The Absolute Best is a two-disc compilation album by The Doors released in 2003. This compilation includes the uncensored versions of both "Break on Through " and "The End"...
.