Do I like the new album From Hendrix?
3/5/13
A new Hendrix album People, Hell And Angels has just been released, including a vinyl option (which is cool).
The entire album is currently being hosted by NPR, so if you want to give it a listen, check it out:
Okay, I'm going to be real honest here - I am not a Hendrix fan. I consider his work "okay" at best. Not groundbreaking. Not incredible. And certainly not perfect. Just "okay".
I am one of those guitar players that believes Hendrix's work wasn't anything life-changing. Why? Because when I hear it, I hear 1960s psychedelic rock combined with some 1970s jazz/funk, but mostly 1960s guitar tone. I also hear his guitar being out of tune a lot (even in the studio recordings) and also hear tons of mistakes.
I have seriously tried to like Hendrix's music. But I can't. It just doesn't do anything for me and never did.
It's interesting to note that while that the album Electric Ladyland did go #1 in the US, absolutely none of his singles ever charted high.
Only one song, All Along The Watchtower, charted decently and peaked at #20 in the US. After that, the next-best was Crosstown Traffic which peaked at #52. Nothing after that charted well. For example, Hey Joe and The Wind Cries Mary didn't even chart at all in the US.
Hendrix's peak popularity was always in the UK and that's where he had his most top 10 hit singles (five of them). But never once did he have a top 10 single in the US. A #1 album, yes, but never a single. And the singles are what matter most.
Like I said, Hendrix to me is just okay. Meh.
Hey, Rich. I'm a huge Hendrix fan but i understand you -i'm your fan as well :)- when you say he is just OK. But you have to admit that Hendrix's version of Star Spangled Banner is utterly insane. Cheers from Brazil.
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No one did the Star Spangled Banner better on guitar than Hendrix, no question there.
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Rich,
I value your opinions and, most of all, your honesty in your opinions. It's nice to hear thoughts that challenge conventional thinking. But I have to say that I'm really disappointed in this post!
Here's why...
Your main reasons for not liking Hendrix are that he was " Not groundbreaking. Not incredible. And certainly not perfect. "
Not groundbreaking?
You hear "1960s psychedelic rock combined with some 1970s jazz/funk" and think, meh.
That's a little like saying you don't like the Beatles because they sound too much like a 60's band! Or Zeppelin or Sabbath sound "too 70's"!
These bands and artists I have mentioned, like Hendrix, have become victims of their own success.
Saying Hendrix sounds like 60's rock, with some blues/jazz/funk is confusing cause and effect. The 60's sound like Hendrix (and the Beatles, and a few others), not the other way round. Listen to what came before and during and not just after.
Regarding chart toppers... that's a really weak argument.
By that reasoning, Justin Beiber and the Spice Girls are truly a gift to music!
I personally think Hendrix was groundbreaking and your assertions that he sounds too much like his decade prove it. I agree though that he was not perfect - far from it. But that's part of the allure as well. He's rough around the edges, raw and passionate.
Isn't that what rock should be?
I can appreciate that not everyone is a fan, but can we at least agree that his music has life, character and vibe that is sorely lacking in the modern day of autotune?
Thank you for your time, and here's your soap box back. ;-)
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