The Doors drummer John Densmore recalled the 'Mr. Mojo Risin" phrase helped to inspire the pace and energy of their iconic song, 'L.A. Woman'.
The late frontman Jim Morrison already knew what it meant but didn't tell them until much later.
The 1971 song is known for slowing down the tempo before speeding up again with the suggestion of a sexual climax.
In a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock Nights, Densmore said, "We slowed it down – 'Cops in cars, the topless bars / Never saw a woman so alone' – so then we take it down and then [Morrison] starts repeating Mr. Mojo Risin', and I thought, 'Oh, well, we're rising here. Let's speed this up, you know, like one would when one gets excited.'"
Listen to the song below.
"I had to, several minutes later, in my mind, increase the tempo back and get it hopefully to the original tempo that's in the first couple of verses. If you compare the two, it's a little faster, but it's the same area."
According to Densmore, after the band finished the song, Morrison wrote down 'Mr. Mojo Risin" on a paper and "takes the letters and starts making arrows and writing the letters all twisted around, and it spells 'Jim Morrison'."
"Oh, my God, this guy's a genius!" Densmore said.
He also explained that Morrison knew of the anagram before they recorded the song, but he didn't tell his bandmates.
