Friday, August 12, 2011

Jimi Hendrix


Hi everyone here is my latest blog that I have been working and this is about rock's greatest and influential guitarist who had put a stamp in rock history and has been a creator of what the use of rock guitar is all about. No its not Eddie Van Halen, or Stevie Ray Vaughan or Terry Kath or even Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page and Jef Beck. All these cats are great players and have put a stamp on their writings of rock guitar but the one who had the most inpact is a left handed genuis and his name is James Marshall Hendrix also known to the world as Jimi Hendrix.
He was born in Seattle, washington on November 27, 1942. He was influenced by the
likes of Muddy Waters, BB King, Chuck Berry and Buddy Guy and was a self taught player. H e was also the guitar player for little Richard and the Isley brothers before turning to a big rock legend by coming to England and being managed by former Animals bassist Chas Chandler and would form a power trio a la Cream, simply called The Jimi Hendrox Experience.
Hendrix was a genius in experimenting sounds and creating the art of rock guitar and has created an army of guitar players who were influential to their careers such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Ritchie blackmore, Joe Satriani,John Mayer, Terry Kath, Steve Vai, even his contemporaries like Eric Clapton have alot of respect for his musicality. He can play with his teeth and behind his back and would use feedback and can pull out his whammy bar with cathartic results.
Whether you are a fan of his music or not , you cannot say that he sucks as a guitar player cause he doesn't .You don't have tpo be an expert of guitar player the film footages proves his great showmanship and musicality. Songs like "Purple Haze",
"Foxy Lady" , "Manic Depression" showed why he was a true guitar hero.
I grew up listening to Jimi's music from my uncle's record collection , he saw Jimi live back in the 1960's and it was the Band of Gypsies record which shows the other side of Hendrix as protesting trhe turbulent Vietnam War with "Machine Gun" or the assassination of Dr. King, he gave a cathartic performance which reflects the turbulent times of an arrangement of Franic s Scott Key's "Star Spangled Banner", which became the highlight of Woodstock.
Hendrix was one of the pioneers of heavy rock music which has transcended for many hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin, Blue Cheer, Cream, Black Sabbath, Mountain,
Creed to name a few and even got blues players like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Kenney Sheperd, and John Mayer . He can even play the blues like "Red House" or be the Voodoo Priest in "Voodoo Chile".
Drugs got the best of him on September 18, 1970 when his life tragically ended in his London flat at the tender age of 27.41 years later, he still remains a big influence and his body of work is still vibrant and alive after all these years. Hendrix remains as the #1 rock guitarists and tops in all polls and to al;l who have seen him live and the recordings and films says it all.

Jimi Hendrix Experience performing "Purple Haze" May 1967




"Stone Free" 1967




"Fire" 1969 Stockholm, Sweden




"Foxy Lady" Rainbow Bridge 1970




Hendrix doing his most memorable performance reflecting the turbulent 1960's with "Star Spangled Banner" showing his catharces here and the feedbaclk showing the bombs throwing and his stance on the war which forever change america





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