JIMI HENDRIX

Hendrix was the real deal. Blues man promoted to pop icon the way God intended. We'd seen enough African American virtuosos acheive local fame and then die tragically. The books would get written much later and interest would swell. Forty years later of course. A day late and a dollar short.

Hendrix was world famous while he was still alive. There was a lot of hype about this wild man who could do amazing things with a guitar, but he could back it up. He played guitar like his hair was on fire leaving the current line up of guitar greats to shake their heads in befuddlement and disbelief.

The British guitar heroes were considered Gods by the time Jimi came along, but they were merely 3rd and 4th generation Blues fans who were lucky enough to get their hands on a few recordings of Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, BB King, and Buddy Guy. By the time Hendrix arrived in England he had already played with these people. Hendrix had been to school and graduated with honors. He paid his dues the hard way by touring on the grueling Chitlin' Circuit with the likes of Little Richard, BB King, Albert King, and later with Ike Turner and the Isley Brothers. He not only played on the curcuit, he excelled on the circuit and found himself to be one of the most employable guitarists of that time and place. He toured a lot, jumping from band to band until he ran out of bands to play with. This brought him to New York where he finally decided to do his own thing and fulfill his own artistic vision. He was ready for the world like an exploding birthday cake.

All he needed was an opportunity. That opportunity would come in the form of Keith Richards' girl friend Linda Keith, and Animals Bassist turned manager Chas Chandler.

When Hendrix arrived in England with Chas Chandler he was on a mission from God. Kick ass and take names. Yeah, he gave the impression of being shy and humble but that was just a tactic. The same tactic he used on John Hammond Jr back in his Greenwich Village days to give him the impression that he could learn to play the Blues from him. Hendrix was smart. A wise man walks with his head bowed.

By the time he arrived in Greenwich Village he already had it together. He had toured throughout the South playing too many Blues, Soul, and R&B shows to get lessons from John Hammond Jr. He was playing the shy novice in the hopes of getting a record deal from his father. His Father, John Hammond Sr, was famous for discovering big talent and had discovered people like Billie Holiday and later Bruce Springsteen.

In England he played that same game. But he wasn't so shy and humble that he couldn't ask to sit in with The Cream. This historic event gave Clapton a complex he would never get over. Jimi's explosive rendition of "Killing Floor" blew some people's minds that night. This was not only something new, this was one foot in the Blues tradition and the other foot stepping into the future of Rock guitar. Move over rover, let Jimi take over. And he did.

London provided him with the social and artistic freedom he had always craved. Historically, Europe had always been a refuge for African American artists to escape racism and artistic under appreciation. Many Jazz musicians and writers had moved to Paris. London afforded Hendrix the opportunity to be himself and to sample the clothes, the music, and the women. Free from bondage as a sideman in someone elses band, Jimi was able to be wild and upfront.

Now he had the opportunity to use all the famous stage moves that he was known for. This same showmanship was performed by people like T Bone Walker years earlier. Hendrix took it up a notch. These were the same moves that got him fired from a few bands in the States. Some of the performing bands he was in required that the back up musicians remain subserviant and in the background. They were not allowed to bring attention to themselves. Just play the part, wear the correct matching outfits, and remember the steps.

In London, Hendrix's in your face showmanship was an asset that would make him famous and later be an albatross around his neck.

Chas Chandler and Jimi Hendrix put a band together. They found drummer Mitch Mitchell and guitarist turned bassist Noel Redding. A band great enough to move his ideas along, and with the right look so as not to exclude the pre-hippy/pre-psychedelic record buying public. With the fusion of Mitch Mitchell's Elvin Jones style Jazz drumming, Noel Redding's rock steady anchoring bass lines, and Hendrix's robust psychedelic Blues and admiration for Bob Dyan, The Jimi Hendrix Experience would be the band that would allow Hendrix to create and serve his musical vision on a silver platter.

The interracial make up of the band and the fact that Jimi Hendrix was African American gave the British press a lot to write about. They called him "The Wild man of Borneo." He was wild on stage and pulled out all the stops. This was 1966, and seeing a Black man on stage flicking his tongue in and out seductively in the direction of young and impressionable teenage white girls as he sexually stroked the neck of his guitar, put a few people off and drew others in.

Despite some gross untruths that were written about him in the press, the band discovered that there is no such thing as bad publicity, and milked it for all it was worth. It was early Rock marketing at it's finest. During all the hoopla, The Experience continued to write songs and tour. Hendrix used his experience as a former R&B rhythm guitar sideman and implemented it as the backbone to the music he was creating. The music grooved which was in stark contrast to the rhythmically stiff British sound of the time. Adding personal experience (Jimi's Blues), extended American Blues songwriting forms, and the influence of The Beatles and Bob Dyan, The Jimi Hendrix Experiece created a formula for success.

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