Recently, Florida's lame-duck governor Charlie Crist has said he's considering pardoning Jim Morrison for his 1969 indecent exposure charge, stemming from The Doors' notorious Miami concert in which a drunken Lizard King swore numerous times and proceeded to whip it out onstage. Of course, Morrison died in 1971, so the pardon would come almost 40 years posthumously, so it seems like kind of an empty gesture.
Besides, we have to imagine that if Morrison were still around today he'd have some choice words to offer Crist and his home state. After all, isn't it way more rock and roll to have something like that remain on your record rather than having it expunged? And doesn't this reek of the kind of revisionism politicians are known for, looking to clear the good name of their states against any perceived black marks?
Morrison may have been among the first of the rock stars to expose himself, but he certainly wasn't the last. Here are five more notable examples of musicians gettin' nekkid in public.
5. Erykah Badu Protests "Groupthink" With Individual Nudity: For the filming of her 2010 video "Window Seat," Erykah Badu and her film crew decided on a guerilla-style, one-take shot in Badu's hometown of Dallas. She walked along stripping off her clothes, finally ending up completely naked in Dealey Plaza, where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated 47 years ago this coming Monday. At that point, Badu mimed getting shot at the precise location where Kennedy's shooting occurred, and blue CGI blood was later added in pouring from her head, forming the words "groupthink" on the concrete.
It's not all that surprising that some people considered this inappropriate, particularly some of the passersby who were shocked and chagrined that Badu would dare reveal her shameful, sinful body in front of their children - children, as you know, do not develop sex organs until their 18th birthday. As soon as the director called "cut," the filmmakers and Badu all hauled ass on out of there before the cops showed up.
The Verdict: Badu received plenty of almost-free publicity for the song and her album, which cost her a mere $500 fine and six months' probation for "disorderly conduct" for disturbing the status quo of the day along Dealey Plaza. Didn't exactly prove her point wrong, did we?
4. Matt and Kim Streak Times Square: Erykah Badu herself said she received inspiration for her "Window Seat" stunt from lovable indie twee-pop duo Matt & Kim's video for their song "Lessons Learned," in which the pair walk to Times Square, strip naked, and gaze up into the sky while everyone around them snaps pictures with their camera phones.
Police - supposedly real police officers unaffiliated with the filming - show up and attempt to subdue the pair before Matt & Kim break free and make a run for it... and Kim gets creamed by a bus. We're not sure how much of the folklore surrounding the video we can trust, however: Did the director really get the cops to let them go by claiming to have a permit to film a mayonnaise commercial in that location? Were they really naked under those censoriffic blurs? Only Matt & Kim, and everyone else who was there that day, know for sure.
The Verdict: Like we said: mayonnaise commercial. No charges filed.
