Decisive · Sixties Classic & Psych
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
London-based trio, 1966–1969. Hendrix used feedback, wah, and studio guitar effects as lead tools on Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland. Monterey and Woodstock are the main filmed live documents.
Landmark
Purple Haze · 1967
1967 single; tritone riff with fuzz and effects as lead color.
Opened
Feedback, wah, and studio guitar effects used as lead vocabulary in a power trio; Monterey and Woodstock as filmed peaks.
01 / 06
From chitlin’ circuit to London trio
Hendrix treats amp feedback, wah, fuzz, and studio mixing as part of the lead guitar line, alongside blues phrasing and bends. Chandler’s London move and the Redding–Mitchell trio left space: Mitchell’s jazz-influenced drums and Redding’s bass support without dense chord stacks. Early Track singles and Are You Experienced set the template.
02 / 06
Monterey and The Monkees
After ten months in Europe, Hendrix returned for Monterey Pop with The Who and Grateful Dead—widely circulated film of the guitar-burning set. The Experience also opened for The Monkees on a US tour. Micky Dolenz later described Hendrix playing Foxy Lady while the crowd cheered for The Monkees; after eight shows the support slot ended under protest.
03 / 06
Purple Haze
Released as a single in 1967 and included on Are You Experienced. Opening tritone riff; fuzz and octave colors on the guitar; Mitchell fills around the vocal. UK Top 3 with the album; later the track that first put Hendrix on the US charts after The Wind Cried Mary and Burning of the Midnight Lamp had already been UK hits.
04 / 06
Electric Ladyland and Watchtower
Electric Ladyland (1968) reached UK #6 and US #1 (US sleeve changed from a nude group cover to a less contested psychedelic design). Smash Hits carried All Along the Watchtower—Dylan rebuilt with layered guitars, US Top 10. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) is the wah-led riff track from the same album period; it hit UK #1 after Hendrix’s death.
05 / 06
After the Experience: Woodstock and Band of Gypsys
Last Hendrix–Redding–Mitchell show: Denver, June 1969. Redding formed Fat Mattress; Mitchell stayed for Woodstock with Gypsy Sun & Rainbows—Larry Lee (guitar), Billy Cox (bass), Juma Sultan and Jerry Velez (percussion). That lineup fed Band of Gypsys: Hendrix, Cox, and Buddy Miles, documented on the live Band of Gypsys album (1970).
06 / 06
1970 and after
Isle of Wight, August 1970 (David Gilmour among those involved in the mix, per the book). Death in London, 18 September 1970. The Cry of Love (1971) reached Top 3 in the US and UK; later archive sets include Valleys of Neptune (2010). Later hard-rock and metal leads often treat feedback, wah, and controlled amp noise as melodic tools. Pete Townshend’s line in the book: what Hendrix did was miraculous.
01 / 06
From chitlin’ circuit to London trio
London-based trio, 1966–1969. Hendrix used feedback, wah, and studio guitar effects as lead tools on Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland. Monterey and Woodstock are the main filmed live documents.
Lineup versions
Experience trio
Peak1966–1969
Hendrix guitar/vocals; Redding bass; Mitchell drums through Denver, June 1969.
- Jimi HendrixVocals, Guitar
- Noel ReddingBass
- Mitch MitchellDrums
Gypsy Sun & Rainbows (Woodstock)
1969
Woodstock closing set; percussionists Juma Sultan and Jerry Velez also on that stage.
- Jimi HendrixVocals, Guitar
- Mitch MitchellDrums
- Billy CoxBass
- Larry LeeGuitar
Band of Gypsys
1969–1970
Live album Band of Gypsys (1970).
- Jimi HendrixVocals, Guitar
- Billy CoxBass
- Buddy MilesDrums, Vocals
Quotes
“Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.”
— Jimi Hendrix, 1969 · Attributed remark · quote wall
“What he did was miraculous.”
— Pete Townshend, 1970 · Quoted in Rock Chronicles on Hendrix
Scenes
| Year | Track | On stage | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Purple Haze1967 single; tritone riff, fuzz/octave colors, Mitchell fills. UK Top 3; later US chart entry. | Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell | |
| 1967 | Foxy LadyFrom Are You Experienced. Book notes Hendrix playing it while opening for The Monkees—crowd pushed back after eight shows. | Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell | |
| 1968 | All Along the WatchtowerBob Dylan cover; US Top 10. Layered studio guitars on Electric Ladyland–era sessions. | Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell | |
| 1968 | Voodoo Child (Slight Return)From Electric Ladyland; wah-led blues-rock riff. UK #1 single two months after Hendrix’s death. | Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell |