Morrison Hotel (sometimes referred to as Hard Rock Cafe from the title of the first side of the LP, whose second side is titled Morrison Hotel) is The Doors' fifth album. It was released in 1970. After their experimental work The Soft Parade was not as well received as anticipated, the group went back to basics and back to their roots. On this album, there is a slight steer toward blues, which would be fully explored by the band on their next album, L.A. Woman. The strategy worked; even though no major hit singles were drawn from the album, Morrison Hotel reestablished The Doors as favorites of the critics, peaking at #4 on the US album chart, and when they followed with L.A. Woman the next year, they were rewarded with two more US Top 20 hits. The album also became the band's highest charting studio album in the UK, where it peaked at #12.

The recording of the album began while lead singer Jim Morrison was on holiday in France. The song "Down on the Farm" was allegedly already written at the time of the recording of the previous album[citation needed], but Morrison did not want to include it, for reasons unknown[citation needed]. According to Manzarek, some of the songs had been rehearsed with Morrison before he left for Paris. The three remaining members of the band regrouped and released the album in October three months after Morrison's death. Keyboardist Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger took Morrison's place as lead singers.

The Doors乐队于1965，在洛杉机成立，乐队成员是歌手JimMorrison、键盘手Day Manzarek、吉他手Robbie Krieger和鼓手John Densnore。乐队的倡导者Morrison为乐队取了“The Doors”的名字。同年，The Doors因为Morrison的《末日》而结识了Love乐队的歌手Arthur Lee, 由他引荐给了Joc Holzmen的Elektra唱片公司，并签约于该公司。 1967年1月，乐队首张专辑《The Doors》推出，立即在歌坛上引起了强烈的反响，不仅很快打入排行首，并且停留121周之久也为之罕见，专辑中《燃起我的心火》和《结束》两首主打歌曲更是精妙之作，充分展示了乐队乐手精湛的技艺及Morrison非凡的创作才华。7月，《燃起我的火》，精炼后又作为单曲发行，100多万张的销量使The Doors乐队成为世界一流的摇滚乐队.

Moody and mesmerizing, An American Prayer is an interesting album of Jim Morrison reading his poetry over the Doors' music. An American Prayer was finished by the remaining members of the Doors after Morrison's death and finally released in 1978 (it was remastered and re-released in 1995 with bonus tracks). Those familiar with the lyrics of the Doors will not be surprised, but others may be put off because Morrison is unafraid to use crude imagery and talk unabashedly about taboo topics such as sex and religion. Although many dismiss his poetry as simplistic random musings, Morrison is a gifted lyricist with a vivid imagination. The album also demonstrates how the other musicians in the band create a mood that breathes life into Morrison's dark, twisted visions. The music excerpts of "Peace Frog" and "Wasp (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)" provide a welcome air of familiarity, and the definitive live version of "Roadhouse Blues" in the middle of the album provides a nice respite from the barrage of stories and metaphors. However, An American Prayer must be listened to in one sitting to be fully appreciated, preferably at nighttime when one is alone and can devote full attention to the listening experience. This album is not for everyone, but is a must-own for Doors completists and fans of Jim Morrison's poetry.

1967年9月25日，乐队推出第二张专辑Strange Days，借着第一张专辑的气势，这张专辑在2周后就上升Billboard榜的第4位，在以后几周内，The Doors的两张专辑都在排行榜的前10位。这张专辑中仍延续了第一张专辑的风格。充满幻想意味的Moonlight Drive以阴沉介绍式的低呤开头，节奏明快的Love Me Two Times，都是The Doors的名曲，最后一首又是长达11分钟的歌曲When the Music´s Over 。Jim Morrison幽暗地唱到，当音乐结束时，一切都已结束。不再有宏大的舞台，不再有欢呼的人群。不再有诗歌，不再有迈阿密姑娘。不再有凯鲁亚克和金斯伯格，不再有兰波和魏伯伦。不再吸毒，不再酗酒，不再乱交。因为我已进入死亡之门。通过这首歌曲就可以看出对于Jim Morrison来说摇滚代表的就是诗歌，而诗歌却与生命相连。