JIMI HENDRIX

Ah, just so intimately Hendrix!

If you thought - like myself - that you've already heard just about every note Jimi has ever played, then brace yourself for a pleasant surprise here. All the tracks sound familiar, yet very different to the "originals". Indeed, some here are the never before released originals and not one bit inferior to known versions.

This is not a compilation of boring outtakes, or underdeveloped tunes, but rather serious music that back in 1969 would have had limited chance to score on the "ah so important" Pop charts.

After 44 years, most of the tracks sound as relevant and almost fresh as they would have back then. A couple of inclusions here like "Mojo Man" with a horn section would have better been left out, but generally the selection is excellent.

A footnote. Contrary to the details provided on PA, this is not a sole Jimi Hendrix Experience line-up, but features numerous other musicians, incl. Billy Cox and Buddy Miles amongst others on different tracks. Surprisingly, the album has a natural flow and doesn't at all appear to be just songs heaped together.

More please! (And try to come up with a better title as this one is rather poor.)

"Electric Ladyland" is an essential Jimi Hendrix album, one of the most discussed and revered in rock history. One glance at the track listing will provide a reason, as it boasts some of the Hendrix classics such as the bustling rhythmic 'Crosstown Traffic', the extended 'Voodoo Chile', both versions simply blaze and smoulder with infernal power, the psych rock of 'Burning of the Midnight Lamp', and wonderful lead guitar standard, the blues drenched Dylan penned 'All Along the Watchtower.' This last song is essential Hendrix, with some amazing guitar interplay with the poetic lyrics such as the infamous, "there must be some way outta here, said the joker to the thief." The wah-wah guitar lead is hugely influential and well known by guitarists.

It is also an album with some incredible psychedelic bursts such as the floating, trippy '1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)' clocking just under 14 minutes. After a haunting slow start it moves into an improvised percussion segment and some chilling celestial atmospherics, with minimalist guitar and heartbeat bass. 'Voodoo Chile (slight return)' is brilliant, and a staple for guitar enthusiasts that has blasted the radio airwaves ever since it saw the light of day. The lead break is quintessential Hendrix, with slices up and down the frets and soul chilling sustained string bends that pierce like arrows. 'Burning of the Midnight Lamp' has a recognizable guitar signature and Hendrix' voice is saturated with Acid influenced venom. There are also weird experimental pieces such as '...And the Gods Made Love' and 'Moon, Turn the Tides... Gently Gently Away' that are more confounding then welcome additions.

Some of the lesser known songs are the ultra bluesy 'Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)', uptempo fast riffer 'Gypsy Eyes', blues rocker 'Come On (Part 1)', saxophone, Hammond and guitar driven cruiser 'Rainy Day, Dream Away', the sizzling riffing Bolero rhythm influenced 'House Burning Down', and the jazzy, simmering 'Long Hot Summer Night'.

It is the last studio release for Hendrix and came out at the peak of the flower power counterculture era, 1968. The album became the soundtrack for the Vietnam War that was raging strong, and it was the album to play as one was ingesting hallucinogenic psych drugs. This was an era of immeasurable change; Man was about to land on the moon and Woodstock on Yasgur's Farm was still in its planning stages. The front cover was banned in some countries, and photographer David Montgomery's artistic license was not embraced by Hendrix who expressed embarrassment at the naked women adorned all over the cover leering at the music buying public with enticing delight. This cover was quickly replaced with the original design of Hendrix singing in close up, but of course it is the "naked ladyland" cover that everyone remembers and that appears in album cover books.

Overall, the album is a showcase of all that made Hendrix great and as a double album of considerable length, over 75 minutes, it delivers quite a bang for the buck. It features some incredible musicianship from members of Jefferson Airplane and Traffic among others. The extended improvised jam session features Steve Winwood burning gloriously on his keyboard, and there is a massive drum solo, as well as Hendrix taking control with blues power finesse, and a lot of congratulatory cheering and applause. It is moments as these that make the album a milestone of classic rock. Hendrix connoisseurs herald it as one of the best of 1968, and it has gone down in history as an essential rock treasure.

Electric Ladyland is Jimi Hendrix at his creative peak. It features Jimi's most experimental and innovative music recorded in his lifetime, as well as some of the best. This 75 minute journey will send you somewhere else, somewhere beautiful and strange. On this album, Jimi isn't just a guitarist and singer, he's the director, he's mastermind, he's the artiest extraordinaire. It's also Jimi's most diverse and eclectic album, exploring and mastering so many sonic pallets; psychedelia, pop, blues, gospel, soul, rock, funk, and progressive rock; it's all there! Electric Ladyland does have it's weak points, most notably the title track, but most double albums do.

Best picks: "Crosstown Traffic", "Voodoo Chile", "Gypsy Eyes", "Burning of the Midnight Lamp", "1983 (a Merman I Should Turn to Be)" and "All Along the Watchtower"

FOXYYYYY!!!...only a whisper, but the most famous in rock history

If we consider the relevance of the debut album of Jimi Hendrix Experience in music history, five stars are too few...we need a galaxy.

Nevertheless I think some songs are aged a little badly. Many years have passed since the "Flower Power Technicolor Dream", and some songs like, for example, 3rd Stone From The Sun, Love Or Confusion and I Don't Live Today are definitely too tied with those times. After many plays I also started to lose some interest in other songs, particularly in The Wind Cries Mary, Highway Chile and the famous Purple Haze.

However the charme of the album remains unchainged. Hendrix's guitar style makes a clean sweep of everything heard before, with a revolutionary use of feedback, echoes and reverberations. The soft May This be love, the amazing 9/8 hard rock waltz Manic Depression and the psychedelic Are You Experienced? are timeless masterpieces.

The hard numbers are really powerful indeed. How can we forget the guitar fury that marks Stone Free, Can You See Me and Fire? And Foxy Lady...a little thing maybe, but really enjoyable.

More classic blues derivated songs are Red House, with a great solo in the middle, and the legendary cover of Hey Joe.

In my opinion the second album "Axis: bold As Love" is better; However, this debut is essential if you are a fan of classic rock.

Highly recommended. Final rating 8/10.

Best song: Manic Depression

This is one of the better Jimi compilations out there. Before I had this when it first came out, the only other release I had from him was the US version of his first album. To most people this would be about all the Jimi they would need. You get all his most famous songs as well as his version of "Wild Thing" from the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival (the same festival where he famously lit his guitar on fire) and his version of "The Star Spangled Banner" from Woodstock. The collection leads off with Jimi's most famous reinterpretation: Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower." His version of "Hey Joe" is included but generally his own songs are much better. A few of the selections here are not really essential; some of them are more mediocre while others (like "Wait Until Tomorrow" featuring Robert Wyatt on backing vocals) are much better.

For prog fans, you are better off getting Electric Ladyland instead. Or even his first two albums. The influence of Hendrix spread far and wide across the rock music landscape, and not just his guitar playing innovation but also his studio innovations. He was one of the first to think of the recording studio as an instrument in itself. Not until New Wave and Disco ruled the airwaves in the late 1970s did people stop caring about Hendrix; but in the 1980s everyone from metal bands to Stevie Ray Vaughn kept his spirit alive. You may not think he had an influence on prog but there are few prog guitarists not influenced by him in some way. In fact, not only guitarists but people like Keith Emerson were influenced by Jimi's sense of showmanship; in some ways Emerson almost wanted to be the Hendrix of the Hammond.

Nothing very proggy here but a consistent collection with a lot of songs. It's like a Jimi jukebox as the songs are not in chronological order. You get all the songs played to death on radio plus some songs that are just as good but not as overplayed. Still, his albums are the way to go if you want to understand what this guy was about. A nice sample of Hendrix, good but not essential. 3 stars.

If I should choose only one Jimi Hendrix album for a recommendation, I would pick up this double CD. In my opinion it gives a great retrospective of the band's music performed aggressively live in a radio recording studio, containing material from their three first major studio albums and also many fabulous tracks not published on earlier official records. The live performing concept is an ideal observation angle to the music of this group if you seek a psychedelic perspective to it, and it is interesting to listen the balancing of musicians focusing to each other and their own playing same time, producing flow of both chaotic and controlled elements. The sheer power of the sound is an epitaph of psychedelic acid rock. Nearly all of the material here are from year 1967, so taste for late sixties sound is required for maximum enjoyment.

I would personally highlight from this release the wonderful version of Dylan's "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?". The stinging electronic guitar tones bring quite wonderful flow to this composition, and Alexis Korner's introductions are quite fun. I have understood Dylan being on of the encouraging examples for Jimi also to start doing his own stuff, so the tribute's great passion might be explained by this factor. The instrumental jam track Driving South is also just fabulous, guitar and drum freak outing with the help of combining bass guitar. There are three versions of this song on the CD, a loose track borne from one note scale and concluding to a drum solo.

"Fire" is one of the big hits of the group, wild drums driving the tune. I understood Deep Purple's "Speed King" was written with aim to do something similar. After short and funny group interview we get in my opinion the best version ever of "The Burning of The Midnight Lamp". The harpsichord intro of the original studio version is here played with wah-wah guitar, and as a whole the song sounds much more powerful as a live trio playing than form the careful studio sessions, lyrics catching the core of nocturnal solitary moody moments. This October "Top Gear" show had also rootsy "Catfish Blues", containing really fine musical blow-out exploration to the cosmos. Following February "Saturday Club" builds strongly on the hit songs, "Stone Free" which has great very aggressive version presented here, and also "Hey Joe" which is kind of borer for me as you can't escape that song anywhere. "Love or Confusion" is one of the gems from the group's first studio album, and the arrangement of double guitar lines slightly reduces the impact of the song here, though the performance is good and song fantastic psychedelic classic. Next "Top Gear" spins a basic rocker "Hound Dog", and also best version of "Driving South", here pre-defined bridge rises the key for another blow sequence. "Hear My Train A Comin'" goes also to a very high levels, the whirling chaos stays intact is wonderful storm to listen.

Second CD opens with great aggressive version of the stoner anthem "Purple Haze" from March "Top of The Pops", which is the best performance so far I have heard of this hit. I'm not sure if this was aired unlike the following "Killing Floor", which is really a killer, superb fast fuzz-treated scale runs and a wild jam between the verses create a wonderful flower power treatment of this rocker. A joke radio anthem leads to the December's "Top Gear" sessions; Highlights here are truly powerful version of Beatles "Day Tripper" shadowing the original version at least in trippyness and power, and also the "Spanish Castle Magic" is more intimate, impulsive and stronger than the fine studio album version. Following October's "Top Gear" is historically interesting as Stevie Wonder is playing drums in these tracks, which are free open improvisation and "I Was Made to Love Her", both tracks being instrumental. February's "Saturday Club" presents the top hit songs for the radio audience, good versions but also easiest choices and quite over listened songs at least for me. The next excerpt is from BBC "late Night Line Up", wonderful menacing song "Manic Depression", which here lacks little the punch it has on the "Are You Experienced?" album. Last 1967 tracks are yet one more version of "Driving South", being probably a not so well went version from same day as the second version in the end of first CD. The second version of "Hear My Train A Comin'" is quite different than their earlier presented version, this one being a quite hypnotic mantra. Last tracks contain cuts from January 1969 BBC Television show "Happening for Lulu", featured "Voodoo Child (slight return)" being quite trashy but powerful, also being found from video archive sources. Mandatory "Hey Joe" grows interestingly from a chaotic formless blast, this version is also otherwise very relaxed and free. Final song here is a version of Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love", an interesting tribute, though not in my opinion as good as the slow trashy performances of the original group - More like a good willing gesture than carefully thought performance I would think.

The only lack in this record could be that the most wildest experimental songs are not included to the shows, but remain in the studio records. Nevertheless the wild exploration of trio improvisation's boundaries are present strongly in this release. The merits of this group along with implementing influences from jazz and strong psychedelic elements to rock music are in my opinion arguments why this music can be justified as early factor affecting the development of progressive psychedelic and krautrock legacies. You would not have Manuel Göttsching's guitar sound without Jimi's influence as a concrete reference. In addition of the grand master I give great kudos to the magnificent drummer Mitch Mithcell, bringing essential presence to the sound with his jazzy, wild and precise battering. Noel Redding's role was mostly to keep the beat and back up this dominant duo, but he did this supporting fine too. If you wish all-freak out 60's acid rock trio where bass joins the improvisation more stronger, check out the live recordings of Cream from late 60's.

Castle Communications released also a tighter one CD packet of these recordings with name "Radio One", and also a vinyl EP with color print on the vinyl surface. If you want to place the tracks and shows in correct time line, you can program your player or burn own copies of the CD with guidance of informative booklet notes, which contain also essays about the musicians.

Certainly not the place to begin with Hendrix - and it seems unlikely that many people would start here - I do believe that Valleys of Neptune really is for fans only. Despite the rush of excitement that came with this album's release, even for a collection of rarities, it's not all that fascinating. First Rays... and South Saturn Delta are compiled in a similar vein and are far superior.

'Previously unreleased' to some extent, many of the tracks here are alternate or early versions of well-known songs. For the bootleg collector, it is nice to hear the tracks, especially those extremely rare, presented in a higher quality - Eddie Kramer was on board for this project at least.

Mostly recorded around the Electric Ladyland sessions, there are a few highlights in the compilation. 'Hear My Train A Coming' is pretty good stuff and the version of 'Fire' is rough and ready, and of course, the title track is nice enough but probably the real show stealer for me is the closer, 'Crying Blue Rain' which is a loose jam that demonstrates what comes off as the casual genius of Hendrix.

Otherwise the songs don't all offer a lot on their preexisting counterparts. Admittedly, this collection makes for a fine inclusion to the completionist's catalogue, or someone interested in seeing early versions of some of his songs, but if you don't feel like you fall into either category or are looking to start things off, go for the studio albums released during his lifetime or the 90s compilation Ultimate Experience.

Let's go straight to the point:Band of Gypsys is the best live rock n'roll album ever made.To hear a recording of Hendrix' live performances,never doing the same thing twice and still managing to be unparalleled all the time in therms of guitar improvisation,is always a joy.Mitch Mitchell,his Experience drummer,was almost as equally gifted.But the man behind the drum kit in this 1970 new year's eve performances in New York was Buddy Miles,who somehow completed and brought out Jimi's vein in american black music.As a result,what we hear is an absolutly brilliant mixture of blues,funk,soul, and elements of jazz,at least in therms of structure.

Jimi might not have being on a good mood that day,as it is popularly known.His guitar sounds like a demon on acid.By tuning it on the key of D,he managed to bend and vibrate the strings in a ferocious way.Hendrix evoques a napalm bombing out of a stratocaster,and thankfully this recording exists 40 years later to prove why,according to Neil Young,"no one was even in the same building as that guy".The sounds that popped in his head at the spur of the moment,and which he flawlessly gave physical dimention with his fingers,may be one's subject of study for years.And still,not even the most skifull guitarrist will ever be able to plainly reproduce what is heard on record.

Buddy Miles,with his Motown-stile singing,is also a shining star here.His contribution to the setlist,Changes,is a first-class James Brown inspired funk groove.The centerpiece of the album,Machine Gun,is where the spotlights turn completely to Hendrix.In a 12 minute lysergic ritual,we hear his guitar as a force of nature,thundering and roaring through the Marshall amplifiers in a caotic,atrocious,unearthly powerfull way that would never be heard again after he was gone.

This album is truly what rock n'roll is all about,or was at it's best moment in time.Not a proper style of music,but a mixture of many.Hendrix drinks from outside influences to formulate the purest rock brand,wich was his own and 100% original.What makes it a true work of art is the priceless spontaniety of the whole thing, which was definetly in the air in the late 60's,but no one captured as well as Jimi.To go on writing just how disturbingly genious was this man is pointless.All of his albums speak for themselves,and maybe this one does so best of all.

The Isle Of Wight concert was one of the last concerts Jimi Hendrix gave for his tragic death. While the show's duration was about 1,5 hour this record doesn't reach even the 40 minutes. The choice of songs for this record is somewhat peculiar, because there are just a few 'hits' on this record, while there were many in the Isle of Wight concert. I do own a compilation of liverecordings of this guitar master with other tracks of the Isle of Wight concert, which did not make this record.

Because of the decision of leaving the hit's of this record this live record mainly exist of new material! So, what about the quality of these songs, which were never released on studio record? The opening track "Midnight Lightning" is an acidic (the record as a whole is Jimi Hendrix at it's most acidic sounding ever!) bluesrock song leaning on the old blues traditions, but acidic.

Foxy Lady is a welknown song and the performance is great. Jimi plays what comes to mind which lead to a lot of guitar experimentation and improvised solo's. "Lover man" is another great track. Acidic hard- rock with a lead guitar accompany to Jimi's vocals. This is quiet a short track with many good ideas carried out. Also "Freedom" is a great acidic hardrock track you should not wanna miss if you're a Hendrix fan.

The live version of "All Along the Watchtower" is near perfect. Jimi's vocals are great and his guitarplay is very tight on this song. This song is more convincing then the studio version, because of the boost of energy released on it. This version has a "Wow! factor"."In from the storm" begins with a drum solo, which duration is perfect: before it get's boring it is over. Another great track.

Critic's have banned this record for having no hit's on it and because of it's short duration. But if we look at the material on it, I cannot find a weak track on this record and some great new material. There are no experimental session which are stretched: this record is full of ideas and leaves you behind with the feeling: I wan't more! This is only the case with really good records!

Some people in documentaries I've seen thought that Jimi might have gone to a more jazzier direction if he hadn't die at young age. This record however shows Hendrix more acidic in sound then ever: a real thick guitar sound, comparable with the debut of Guru Guru. After the Band of Gypsies people might not have expected such a sound! The production is great: while the guitar is heavy and thick also the bass and drums are constantly distinquishable. The best live record of Jimi Hendrix released in the 70's!

Jimi Hendrix - The Jimi Hendrix Concerts (1982, recorded 1968-1970)

Though I am a fanatic guitar player myself, I've never been to fond of legendary Jimi Hendrix. I admire his skills and freedom of expression and the way he influenced some other bands I really like (mainly krautrock groups). I'm not too fond of the muddy sound, the unclear productions, the amateurism of the bands he played in and lack of well produced products (instead there is a long list of nearly acceptable compilations). Still, Jimi Hendrix started an era in which mastery of the instruments of the pop/rock assortment became acceptable and even admirable. This of course had a major influence on progressive rock, which was both blessed and cursed by mastery of the instrument.

On this double lp live set Hendrix plays most of his signature songs whilst leaving enough space for rock guitar experimentation and some blues sensibilities. The style of Hendrix's arrangements is recognized for it's mix of blues, black soul and proto-hard rock. The use of the tremolo, fast pull-offs and inventive use of equipment are all there to expand the guitar vocabulary to extraordinary lengths. The vocals of Hendrix are relaxing, but I can understand why he felt insecure about them. His timing is however great and interplay with the guitar brilliant.

The recordings have a similar sound and style, so the record can be listened to as if it were a single concert. The stadium sound works better then the studio recording for me. The combination of slight muddiness, the 'out there' stadium sound and the reverb on the vocals work quite well. The guitars sound heavy and well amplified and sometimes the combination of sounds create a gothic stadium appeal.

Conclusion. This is a good set of live recordings from Hendrix' prime period. Full of imperfections, but luckily also full moments on which the stratocaster guitar is celebrated as one of the main inventions of the 20th century. Three stars, recommended to fans, early hard rock collectors and seekers of guitar virtuosity.