[3] Morris showed his eclectic knowledge of musical forms in writing for Rolling Stone about Uprising, the last album that Bob Marley released in his lifetime.
[5] For the same magazine, he returned to the realm of reggae and African popular music in covering the 1984 tour co-starring Black Uhuru and King Sunny Adé.
[6] In addition, Morris was senior writer for Billboard in Los Angeles, where he worked from 1986–2004, writing a weekly column about independent music for 12 years.
Meanwhile, he continued to serve as a DJ under the "Indie 103.1" format of KDLD, hosting a show devoted to roots music called "Watusi Rodeo".
In 2011, while he was working for Scion Radio 17, Morris hosted a panel discussion at the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live as part of the Cleveland Confidential book tour.
[12] As an authority on L.A.'s indie scene, Morris was chosen to write liner notes for several compilations and reissues of works by pivotal bands and artists of the era.
They included: An especially colorful example of his words may be found in the liner notes for Pigus Drunkus Maximus (1987), the only album from Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs, another band central to that scene.
He also held a number of full-time jobs in publicity, and one of his assignments came from Skouras Pictures, distributor of another X project, the documentary X: The Unheard Music.
"[21] A few years later, another American Songwriter piece by the same columnist led off a series about "Favorite Bob Dylan Books" with an in-depth examination of Together Through Life that focused on the "informed passion" of Morris and his distinctive approach to the subject.
In addition, Morris appeared on screen providing insights in two documentaries: He was chosen to write the essay accompanying The Criterion Collection's edition of Border Radio, a film that also sprang from the L.A. indie scene and featured rockers in acting roles.