Jimi Hendrix | Artist

Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 at the age of 27, tragically joining that illustrious group of brilliant yet ill-fated artists known as the "27 Club"

James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter born 1942 in Seattle, Washington. His rock star career lasted only 4 years, yet he is regarded as one of the most influential and emulated electric guitarists of the 20th century. Hendrix started playing guitar at 15 and after a short stint in the army worked as a backing musician in small clubs behind artists such as Wilson Pickett, Sam Cooke, Ike & Tina Turner and Little Richard. He began to be noticed when he worked for the Isley Brothers, with whom he made his first recording "Testify" in 1964. In 1966 Hendrix moved to New York City and got a residency at Cafe Wha? where he began to develop his characteristic vocal/guitar sound. It was at a gig in NYC that he was spotted by Keith Richards' girlfriend Linda Keith, who invited him to London to meet future manager Chas Chandler, former bass player for The Animals. Within months of moving to London in 1966 Hendrix had recorded three UK top ten hits: "Hey Joe", "Purple Haze" and "The Wind Cries Mary", with his band The Experience which comprised Hendrix and Englishmen Noel Redding (bass) and Mitch Mitchell (drums). The Experience broke up in June 1969 and Hendrix formed his new support group the Band of Gypsys, with Americans Billy Cox (bass) and Buddy Miles(drums). Hendrix's four studio albums: Are You Experienced (1967), Axis: Bold as Love (1967), Electric Ladyland (1968) and Cry of Love (1971), and one live album Band of Gypsies (1970), all recorded between 1967 and his tragic death in 1970, are masterpieces. There has also been excellent live and archival material released posthumously, including BBC Sessions (1998), The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Box) (2000) and Woodstock (1999). Hendrix was also a dynamic live performer, who will always be remembered for his incendiary sets at Monterey Pop, Woodstock, and the Isle of Wight festivals, all three of which are well documented on film. Regarding his guitar technique, left handed Hendrix mainly played right-handed guitars that were turned upside down and restrung. He popularised the previously undesirable sounds of amplifier feedback and was one of the first guitarists to make extensive use of sound distortion effects units in mainstream rock, such as fuzz, wah-wah and stereo phasing effects. Holly George-Warren of Rolling Stone wrote: "Hendrix pioneered the use of the instrument as an electronic sound source. Players before him had experimented with feedback and distortion, but Hendrix turned those effects into a controlled, fluid vocabulary every bit as personal as the blues with which he began". The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes hendrix as "arguably the greatest instrumentalist in the history of rock music." Jimi Hendrix died on September 18, 1970, due to accidental asphyxiation caused by alcohol and sleeping tablets, at the age of 27.

Artist Website: jimihendrix.com

Featured Albums: Jimi Hendrix

Related Artists: Fat Mattress, Buddy Miles, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Band of Gypsys

Collections: Music Visionaries, 27 Forever