RAINBOW BRIDGE

This album is made of real Hendrix material, but was terribly released as the OST of that Hippy-drippy nonsense movie Rainbow Bridges where Jimi is seen interviewed for something like 5 minutes, while the rest is more or less garbage or mumbo jumbo. While the pictures on the gatefold are rather charming (the movie was shot in Hawaii) and it's busy making a link with Hendrix, the music on it is brilliant and IMHO better than on Cry Of Love and more professional than on War Heroes, the other legit posthumous music releases. However; Hendrix was in Hawaii touring for the Cry Of Love tour.

Again with Jimi and drummer Mitchell, the bass is most likely played by Jimi, but attributed to either Redding or Cox. The first side is of normal typical Hendrix-penned tracks like Roomful Of Mirrors or the good Dolly Dagger, but also the killer Earth Blues and New Rising Sun, and on the average I find these quite superior to Cry Of Love, that is too predictable. The flipside is made of two longer tracks, the slow and wild Hear My Train Coming, another killer blues that has only Voodoo Chile to look up to, the other being Look Over Yonder and its funky guitar heroics.

This great vinyl-only is not to be confused with another album, the semi-legit "Full Rainbow Bridges Concert" CD-only issue. This is the only Hendrix album (posthumous or not) not to have seen a legit CD reissue along with the rare Nine To The Universe, the latter being understandable due to the sound quality. But Rainbow Bridges, despite its misleading title is an excellent album, much worthy of Ladyland and better than either WH or CoL.