12 Responses to Happy Birthday Hendrix

1. Jason Rosenbaum November 27th, 2009 at 12:09 pm 1

   If he were still alive, would he still be touring? Like the Stones and such?

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2. Elliott November 27th, 2009 at 12:35 pm 2

   In response to Jason Rosenbaum @ 1

   hmm, at least special performances

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3. ubetchaiam November 27th, 2009 at 1:17 pm 3

   Really? ; who knows what he would be doing. He was moving on musically when he died. Watching him play the star spangled banner as the sun rose at Woodstock is one of the most memorable moments in my 60 years.

   OT but The Who are going to be the band at halftime of the next super bowl.

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4. ART45 November 27th, 2009 at 4:25 pm 4

   Hendrix was a supreme talent but, I believe, a shooting star.

   IMO, he did what he had to do artistically, and then died.

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5. Loo Hoo. November 27th, 2009 at 5:34 pm 5

   Happy Birthday, Jimi!

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6. cinnamonape November 27th, 2009 at 11:17 pm 6

   Jimi couldn’t hold onto band-mates. The Experience was an ensemble that constantly changed composition , and Band of Gypsys was put together for one tour. Usually they lasted about a year before they got tired of the failure of Jimi to show up on time to rehearsals, missed gigs, and the whole chaos of his performance style. Most musicians couldn’t even follow his leads, and those that could actually had jazz training. How much of this had to do with drugs and how much his idiosyncratic personality is a matter of dispute, but I suspect that he’d have likely just drifted into the studio and not tour.

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7. stratocruiser November 27th, 2009 at 11:23 pm 7

   Sometimes, to see how people think, I ask them who were the 5 most revolutionary people in modern (post-war) popular music. My answers
   1. Frank Sinatra, for wresting star, front man status from the band leaders.
   2. Elvis Presley, who unified white and black music.
   3. The Beatles, who unified England and America (and according to PBS created the wave of free thinkers that brought down the USSR).
   4. Bob Dylan, who brought lyrics and poetry to rock.
   5. Jimi Hendrix, who took the instrument of rock, the guitar, to places it has never been before or since. Not only did he color outside the lines, he made us forget why the lines were ever there in the first place.

   (notable absent in here is any mention of Rap/Hip-hop as an art form.)

   If he had not died, I think that the direction he was going was a spare, stripped down, clean and precise style. Some of his later stuff, like New Rising Sun or side three of Electric Lsdyland was built of beautifully complex melody without all the fireworks and distortion of his earliest work.

   Metallica, traveled the same road until after Black and Load. I think after then, fan pressure forced them to regress. Songs like Nothing Else Matters or Mama Said or Unforgiven, show a maturing talent and stage in life that it would have been wonderful to watch Hendrix grow through.

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8. mafr November 28th, 2009 at 4:55 am 8

   His death… one of the biggest disasters of twentieth century music.

   Hendrix, still featured on and in almost every guitar magazine.

   I remember the first time I heard the music, snaking at me across the room in a record store, grabbing me.

   Maybe cause of his brilliance as a player, his songwriting, is under appreciated.

   For me, his lyrics, which really are poetry that stands on its own, are among the best there are.

   Anger he smiles tow’ring in shiny metallic purple armour.
   Queen jealousy, envy waits behind him.
   Her fiery green gown sneers at the grassy ground.
   Blue are the life giving waters taking for granted,
   They quietly understand.

   Once happy turquoise armies lay opposite ready,
   But wonder why the fight is on.
   But they’re all, bold as love.
   Yeah, they’re all bold as love.
   Yeah, they’re all bold as love.
   Just ask the Axis.

   No one before him, or after him did what he did with a guitar. no one is even close.

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9. cbl November 28th, 2009 at 7:04 am 9

   In response to mafr @ 8

   he was the Charlie Parker of rock

   as to his unique talent
   my favorite story in the Hendrix pantheon is one Eric Clapton tells of going with Paul McCartney to see this then unknown guitar sensation – and halfway through the show gets up to phone Pete Townsend to tell him they need to find a new line of work

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10. cbl November 28th, 2009 at 7:23 am 10

    p.s. in my dotage, it is always a hoot to turn young musicians on to him – the guitar players always report seeing God upon hearing Axis Bold As Love

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11. cbl November 28th, 2009 at 7:34 am 11

    In response to stratocruiser @ 7

    oh and one more thing –

    Strat, I agree with many of your conclusions – except for Rap/Hip Hop, there is a there there – try some early Tupac

    and who doesn’t love this ?

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12. mafr November 28th, 2009 at 8:31 am 12

    In response to cbl @ 9

    he was the Charlie Parker of rock

    100 percent correct.

    two musical geniuses never equaled.

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