page_title: Jim Morrison
section_title: July 3, 1971: Death
hierarchical_section_title: Jim Morrison / Biography / July 3, 1971: Death
caption_attribution_description: English: Jim Morrison's Apartment Building in Le Marais, Paris, France
context_page_description: James Douglas Morrison was an American singer, songwriter and poet, who served as the lead vocalist of the rock band The Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, his widely recognized voice, unpredictable and erratic performances, and the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and early death, Morrison is regarded by music critics and fans as one of the most iconic and influential frontmen in rock history. Since his death, his fame has endured as one of popular culture's most rebellious and oft-displayed icons, representing the generation gap and youth counterculture.
  Together with Ray Manzarek, Morrison co-founded the Doors during the summer of 1965 in Venice, California. The band spent two years in obscurity until shooting to prominence with their number-one single in the United States, "Light My Fire," taken from their self-titled debut album. Morrison wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including "Light My Fire", "Break On Through", "The End", "Moonlight Drive", "People Are Strange", "Hello, I Love You", "Roadhouse Blues", "L.A. Woman", and "Riders on the Storm".
context_section_description: After recording L.A. Woman in Los Angeles, Morrison joined Pamela Courson in Paris in March 1971, at an apartment she had rented for him at 17–19, rue Beautreillis in Le Marais, 4th arrondissement, Paris. In letters, he described going for long walks through the city, alone. During this time, he shaved his beard and lost some of the weight he had gained in the previous months. He died on July 3, 1971, at age 27. He was reportedly found by Courson in the bathtub of the apartment. The official cause of death was listed as heart failure, although no autopsy was performed, as it was not required by French law. It has also been reported, by several individuals who say they were eyewitnesses, that his death was due to an accidental heroin overdose. 
  His death came two years to the day after the death of Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones and approximately nine months after the deaths of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin — all of whom died at the age of 27. Three years after his death, Courson also died at the age of 27.
caption: Morrison's apartment
  in Le Marais, Paris
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