Description James Douglas 'Jim' Morrison (December 8, 1943 July 3, 1971) was an American singer, songwriter and poet best remembered as the lead singer of The Doors. Due to his songwriting, baritone voice, wild personality and performances, he is regarded by critics and fans as one of the most iconic and influential frontmen in rock music history, and, due to the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and death, in the latter part of 20th century he was one of popular culture's most rebellious and oft-displayed icons, representing generational gap and youth counterculture.[3] He was also well known for improvising spoken word poetry passages while the band played live. Morrison was ranked number 47 on Rolling Stone's list of the '100 Greatest Singers of All Time',and number 22 on Classic Rock Magazine's '50 Greatest Singers In Rock'. Ray Manzarek said that Morrison 'embodied hippie counterculture rebellion...' Morrison sometimes referred to himself using other monikers, such as 'Lizard King' and 'King of Orgasmic Rock'