Collage of Jim Morrison from one of his most iconic photographs (left) and Jimi Hendrix from an album cover for Electric Ladyland (right)

(3) JIM MORRISON & JIMI HENDRIX

Mr Mojo Risin’ and the Voodoo Child.

And here we are at the apex of mojo.

The Doors with their “dark, theatrical blues-influenced psychedelic rock”, led by the poetic lyrics, deep silky voice and charismatic persona of Jim Morrison “aka Mr. Mojo Risin’ aka The Lizard King”. And Jimi Hendrix – “one of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century” and “arguably the greatest instrumentalist in the history of rock music”.

But hold on Stark After Dark, I hear you say – aren’t they your apex of mojo…in music?

Well, yes they are – which is why I’m giving them special mention here, similarly at god-tier ranking, for their lyrical content.

Of the two of them, Morrison leads for his lyrical content. Obviously I like Hendrix but his lyrical content – and for that matter his vocal performance – was eclipsed by his virtuosity of performance on electric guitar.

As the vocalist of The Doors, Morrison was all about lyrical content, vocal performance and onstage theater – the latter showcased by the sprawling trippy Oedipal epic performance of The End, not unlike the Greek drama that inspired it.

As for lyrical content, at the suggestion of Morrison their very name came from the title of Aldous Huxley’s The Doors of Perception, itself taken from William Blake – “When the doors of perception are cleansed, man will see things as they truly are, infinite” (from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell).

And I stand by L.A. Woman – both album and its titular single – as one of the great lyrical poems of the twentieth century. The title track song has so much mojo that it famously features the refrain of Mr. Mojo Risin’, an anagram of Jim Morrison no less, in the song’s break with its rising crescendo of unmistakably sexual rhythm (and a figure I’ve adopted into my own pagan mythology – I believe in L.A. Woman and Mr. Mojo Risin’).

Mr Mojo’ Risin’, Mr Mojo Risin! Whoa yeah!

RATING: 5 STARS*****

S-TIER (GOD TIER)