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God of guitar
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Jimi Hendrix's histrionics made as much news as his music
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Excuse me while I kiss the sky
A self-taught southpaw strumming a right-handed Fender Stratocaster upside down... , more superlatives were showered on James Marshall Hendrix than any other rock guitarist in music history.
Influenced by southern blues exponents Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Robert Johnson and rockers Chuck Berry and Eddie Cochran, Hendrix started off in school bands before enlisting as a paratrooper in the 101 Airborne Division. In the army he hit it off with Billy Cox, a bass player and future collaborator in Hendrix's future schemes.
Big break
Discharged in 1961 after parachuting injuries, including a broken ankle, he backed his idol King, Little Richard and the Turners, Ike and Tina in New York. Four years later, he formed Jimmy James and the Blue Flames, doing the rounds of Greenwich Village coffeehouses, where Chas Chandler spotted him. Overawed by the youth's extraordinary talent, The Animals' bassist took him to London and arranged the Jimi Hendrix Experience featuring Noel Redding on the bass and Mitch Mitchell on drums.
The trio's first single, Hey Joe, reached No. 6 on the U.K. charts that was followed by Purple Haze. The latter track carried his classic line, `Scuse me while I kiss the sky' and showcased Hendrix's guitar pyrotechnics. Are you experienced, their debut album went double platinum in 1967 making Hendrix a rage in England.
The audience was electrified not only by his amazing musical skill but by his visual display as well, as he played the guitar with his teeth and behind his back. Hendrix signed off by burning the instrument on stage, a scene replayed on music channels to this day. The frail figure clad in colourful attire and framed by long wiry hair symbolised the rebellion of the age, making him a poster boy for generations to come.
His subsequent albums, Axis:Bold as love and Electric Ladyland turned him into a superstar.
His stage presence was marked by sobriety on his second tour of the U.S. in 1968, shedding the extravagance of his past acts. This didn't go do down too well with the fans, forcing him to retreat to the safer confines of studios and clubs. It also led to the construction of Electric Lady, his own studio in New York. (to be concluded)
A. GEORGE ANTONY
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