Jimi Hendrix

[ITW 2012]

Jimi Hendrix used his guitar like a paint brush, or video camera, to bring the narratives in his songs to life. That's what separates him from all other guitar players, in my opinion. He's got the most spiritual and otherworldly sound of any rock musician, before or since.

Edited June 16, 2010 by ITW 2012

[American Psycho]

He is god

[moreblack]

he had his moments, like most great players.

[Zint]

Jimi Hendrix used his guitar like a paint brush, or video camera, to bring the narratives in his songs to life. That's what separates him from all other guitar players, in my opinion. He's got the most spiritual and otherworldly sound of any rock musician, before or since.

Innovation...

Few have the ability to raise the bar,instinctivly,naturally.

[Guest Len B'stard]

Exhuberance. There is a tangible palpable joy to what he does, you can see it in his face, in Monterrey especiall, he has high fallutin ideas about the music and its possibilities.

Also, i think he had a huge cock. No really, thats a really theory of mine, good guitarists have huge dicks. It's where the reassured swagger and confidence comes from!

[WhazUp]

The reason is simple for me:

You can TELL when Hendrix is playing guitar within 3 seconds of the song. His tone and style is unique and every note he plays is golden.

[Guest deleted_19765]

Jimi Hendrix used his guitar like a paint brush, or video camera, to bring the narratives in his songs to life. That's what separates him from all other guitar players, in my opinion. He's got the most spiritual and otherworldly sound of any rock musician, before or since.

I think you answered your own question better in the incoherence of this attempt than in its content. I could argue that anyone "used his guitar like a painbrush" or had the "most spiritual and otherworldly sound" and depending on who I was referring to you might or might not agree with me or see where the characterization is coming from. Hendrix's quality is just one of those unnameables. What's important is your premise, and understanding that he is in fact the best. I know its subjective but Hendrix as the best guitar player ever is the only musical case I find myself arguing for whenever I can. I have a sense of justice when it comes Jimi's legacy that I don't have elsewhere, and I consider this a weakness, even if it only testifies to the power of that great individual.

But anyway, I would say that Jimi had his pulse on the times (he was the times) and had mastered American music to a greater extent than any of his peers. This put him at a huge advantage. But still, he needed that extra "it" to be who he was.

[kevdo242]

Exhuberance. There is a tangible palpable joy to what he does, you can see it in his face, in Monterrey especiall, he has high fallutin ideas about the music and its possibilities.

Also, i think he had a huge cock. No really, thats a really theory of mine, good guitarists have huge dicks. It's where the reassured swagger and confidence comes from!

Theres a clay mould of his cock somewhere. Some groupies had a 'hobby' of making moulds of rock stars dicks, and Jimi was supposedly the first one. Unfortunately for him, being the first, they didn't perfect the art and took out half of his pubes.

Oh yeah, point being that his cock was actually kinda big. Too much information?

Edited June 17, 2010 by kevdo242

[wasted]

To me it's the experimentation with a guitar. He's the first guy to do it, and become well known.

But I alway listen to him for the songs like Hey Joe, Manic Depression...I didn't think of it as experimentation, I just liked how it sounded but in the 60s it must have been mind blowing, maybe still is.

[Cdlove]

Exhuberance. There is a tangible palpable joy to what he does, you can see it in his face, in Monterrey especiall, he has high fallutin ideas about the music and its possibilities.

Also, i think he had a huge cock. No really, thats a really theory of mine, good guitarists have huge dicks. It's where the reassured swagger and confidence comes from!

Theres a clay mould of his cock somewhere. Some groupies had a 'hobby' of making moulds of rock stars dicks, and Jimi was supposedly the first one. Unfortunately for him, being the first, they didn't perfect the art and took out half of his pubes.

Oh yeah, point being that his cock was actually kinda big. Too much information?

No, not at all.....you can keep going if you want.

[dalsh327]

To me it's the experimentation with a guitar. He's the first guy to do it, and become well known.

But I alway listen to him for the songs like Hey Joe, Manic Depression...I didn't think of it as experimentation, I just liked how it sounded but in the 60s it must have been mind blowing, maybe still is.

Les Paul is more the pioneer when it comes to "firsts" in guitar experimentation. He saw Hendrix pre Experience.

When Hendrix was builting Electric Lady, he consulted Les (among others) on mic placement tips. But I think if you look at black guitarists in the 50s and 60s, they HAD to be the best, but the problem Hendrix ran into was stealing the spotlight from the guy paying him to be a backing musician. I can't even imagine what it would've been like had he stayed with Ike and Tina Turner, but Ike prob. threatened to punch him upside the head.

But to me they should come up with a detailed account of his time in the "chitlin' circuit" which was more or less R&B artists touring the bible belt in America.

Would've been cool had he lived to see what kind of work he would've done... without a doubt he would've collaborated with all sorts of people.

[ITW 2012]

Hendrix was the biggest loss musically of all the rock stars who died early. He would've done some interesting stuff had he lived. First Rays of The Rising Sun was shaping up to be a killer album. Can't help but listen to that album and wonder what it would have sounded like had he finished it. Hey Baby, Room Full of Mirrors, Dolly Dagger, and Ezy Rider are amazing as is even. A studio version of Machine Gun would have been gold.

Edited June 17, 2010 by ITW 2012

[Vincent Vega]

Hendrix is very overrated imo. His style descends far too often into noise or a choppy style to his solos. Sometimes this noise works, when it's symbolic--for example the clashes of noise in the Star Spangnled Banner at Woodstock were mean to symbolize machine guns and bombs and screaming. That's fine, I get that. However it seems like every single sound descends into discordant noise, and noise for the sake of noise imo isn't really artistic. He has moments of melodic or jazz/bluesy flow with a hint of funk, but it's almost as if he was trying to play lead and rhythm parts at the same time and thus each part comes off half full. There's only one major guitarist I know from that era who was both a great rhythm and lead player and that's Jimmy Page.

I mean there's only really 4 songs that Jimi did that are more than just average imo, the Star Spangled Banner of course, Purple Haze, All Along the Watchtower, and Foxy Lady---All of his most well known songs basically. I've never really gotten what's so great about his other stuff or his guitar style. He comes off as sloppy with little moments of greatness.

I'd say Jimi's style is comparable to Robin Finck's. Both expeimental and both loved to clash melody with noise, to often disastrous results.

MERGE WITH OTHER THREAD PLEASE. MY BAD.

Edited June 17, 2010 by MetalForever

[Estranged Reality]

I'd say Jimi's style is comparable to Robin Finck's.

Take it back.

[Rock_And_Roll_Over]

He was just an innovator in all aspects. He was one of the first to bring personality and feeling into the guitar, you could tell by his performance that that guitar was an extension of himself. He experimented, his music wasn't "vanilla". He had stage presence and seemed to be enthralled with his instrument.

His lyrics are so underrated as well.

[Guest Len B'stard]

Hendrix is just the fuckin man, period. I can't imagine what his music must've sounded like in 196 (i forgot the year, forgive me, 67, 68?) when he landed in England and took the music industry by storm. I mean just listen to Hendrixes guitar player and listen to guitar playing before that. It's just not the same thing, all that feedback and effects and outer spacey sounding shit, fuck, all those acid heads must've thought a fuckin martian had landed.

To me Hendrix is just the fucking king. Everytime i hear him play or see a documentary on him i remember why i wanna play the guitar so bad, he was just an amazing performer and...speaking about the Expierience here, a three piece band and they sound so fucking epic, so...broad, it just doesn't sound like a three piece, he covers so many bases, slipping out of rhythm into lead, back to rhythm and all his funky little riffs, his ability to play all these different fucking style, to meld them together all in one piece of music, the man was just fucking phenomenal. You gotta remember this is an age before learn to play DVDs and youtube tutorials and fuckin...any yahoo with all the sense God gave a gopher can play the guitar now...Hendrix was just fucking amazing, the shit is so beautiful to me, i just can't explain what it means, its...uplifting, its energizing...he makes it look so fuckin easy that i immediately go pick up my guitar and try to immitate (when i can't even play Blitzkrieg Bop without flubbing) and end up realising within seconds why he's Jimi Hendrix and i'm me.

This music will stand the test of time, when all the Bucketheads and Satrianis and Eddie Van Halens of this world are LONG fuckin forgotten, motherfuckers will know Johnny Allen Hendrix, simply put, the man was God.

The guy had no fuckin hang ups, he'd take on blues, soul, jazz, Curtis Mayfieldesque funk, anything and everything...

He just seemed so loose too when he was playing, coaxing reactions out of the audience, talking to them, making gestures towards them, doing solo's with a look on his face like the musics got a hold of him and made him frozen and turgid with a note here or a lick there just getting into his marrow and making him move...and other time he had a look of glee on his face, of joy, he was just fucking amazing and i deem it my fuckin hard luck that i never existed on the same planet as that man...LEGEND LEGEND LEGEND LEGEND LEGEND!! It begins and ends with Jimi Hendrix.

Edited June 17, 2010 by sugaraylen

[Guest deleted_19765]

There's only one major guitarist I know from that era who was both a great rhythm and lead player and that's Jimmy Page.

I think Jimi Hendrix was probably the greatest rhythm guitarist ever. Listen to him bang out "Rock Me" at Monterey. I mean, who played like that? The really major ones tend to be ignored as rhythm players. I feel its the same case with EVH.

[bucket13]

Innovation.

Also his improvisation live was unbelievable. Incredible live act.

:krider:

[GUNSNROSES513]

Innovation.

Also his improvisation live was unbelievable. Incredible live act.

:krider:

No one beats Duane Allmans ability to improvise and play whats right. Its hard to understand what i mean by playing just the right thing, but if your a fan then you'd know exactly what i mean.