ALBUMS: The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Axis: Bold as Love (1967); Electric Ladyland (1968); Band of Gypsies (1970); Smash Hits (1968); Midnight Lightning (1975); Odds and Ends (1973);
MVC Ratings: Axis 5.0/$$$$$; Gypsies 4.5/$$$$$; Ladyland 4.5/$$$$$; Smash Hits; 5.0/$$$$$; Midnight Lightning 4.0/$$$$; Odds and Ends 3.5/$$$$
People fall into two camps with Jimi Hendrix — and maybe a third if you don’t call it a cop-out.
Group 1: Loves Hendrix. Thinks he’s the best guitarist ever in the world.
Group 2: Pretty much can’t tolerate Hendrix, says music sounds like so much noise.
Group 3: Admires his ability and innovations but just can’t listen to a lot of the psychedelic, feedback sound he created .
True Hendrix, who was the definition of counterculture at the time, could make some noise. He could do things with distortion and feedback that people had never heard.
At Woodstock, he played the National Anthem on guitar, a scorching version in which he actually made the sound of whistling bombs exploding during the ‘Rockets red glare … and bombs bursting in air’ part.
Another song, Machine Gun, he created the sound of the rapid fire gun with his guitar.
I believe I would be correct if I said Hendrix is probably listed as the top guitarist most best-of lists.
That’s not to say there’s not some good argument.
Above link at Debate.org, there’s lots of rational arguments on both sides of this subjective debate. One naysayer wrote: “There is no denying how innovative the man was. Saying he was the best is just too final of a statement to me. The best guitar players are typically jazz players or metal heads. The former using scales rock and blues dudes never touched; the latter using micro scales like Robert Johnson used to.”
Kind of amazing. Hendrix came out of session music for up and comers at the time like Tina Turner, Sam Cooke, B.B. King, and the Isely Brothers.
These session guys and gals were some of the top players in the game. Hendrix, self-taught, came out blazing. He was an African – American super hippie from Seattle with a guitar ability no one had seen.
For those on the fence, that third group, maybe even some of the second group, I’m going to link to five songs that will attempt to change your mind about Hendrix and his ability. I grew up with the idea that Hendrix was the best and untouchable at No. 1 guitarist that I’m hard pressed to move off of that stand. Hendrix died of Asphyxia due to aspiration of vomit in 1970 at 27 years old. If you are going to get one album with the big hits, get ‘Smash Hits’ or the first album, Are You Experienced. They have Purple Haze and Foxy Lady.
