# Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock: His Guitar and Setup



## JasO (Nov 11, 2010)

Hi -- This is my first day here, and already I like what I see. By way of background, I grew up near Windsor and was an editor for Guitar Player magazine, 1978-1997. I've also written some books about heavy metal and blues, and co-authored "My Son Jimi" with James "Al" Hendrix. I've loved guitar all of my life. 

In recent years I've noticed fewer and fewer magazines are doing the kind of in-depth journalism we did during Guitar Player's "glory days," when the interviews and articles were long and in-depth. But I've always believed in that style of journalism, so I've started a blog featuring this kind of writing. It features complete interview transcriptions both historic (such as Jerry Garcia, Rory Gallagher, and John Lee Hooker) and new (Eric Johnson, Gretchen Menn). 

Anyway, I thought I'd share a couple of samples if anyone wants to check it out. Who better to start with than Jimi? 

In honor of the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, I've written two articles. This first one traces what was going on Jimi's life leading up to and including Woodstock, from his bust in Toronto to the disbanding of the Experience to his escape to Africa to Woodstock itself: 

Jimi Hendrix From Toronto to Woodstock

This companion piece details his Woodstock gear setup and traces the extraordinary history of Jimi's Olympic White, 1968 Fender Stratocaster, Serial No. 240981, which is now the world's most prized celebrity-owned guitar:

Jimi Hendrix Woodstock Setup


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## J S Moore (Feb 18, 2006)

I just found your site and bookmarked it the other day. There's a lot of great stuff on there. I've just been reading through the interviews about Duane Allman and the Hendrix pieces are next.


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## mario (Feb 18, 2006)

Hey Jas,

Great stuff and thank you for starting the thread. FWIW....I thought Guitar Player was a better mag back in the day when you were there.


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## bobb (Jan 4, 2007)

Jas,

Welcome to GuitarsCanada. Just like Mario, I miss the days when you were at GP. Those were the glory days for the mag.


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## rhh7 (Mar 14, 2008)

Welcome to the forum! Really looking forward to reading all of your articles.


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## jcayer (Mar 25, 2007)

Welcome to the forum Jas sdsre :food-smiley-015:


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## Shark (Jun 10, 2010)

Interesting blog! Welcome to the forum, too.


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## Hamstrung (Sep 21, 2007)

I was wondering why your name rung a bell! I still have the copy of Guitar Player from '82... "Randy Rhoads Remembered". I saw him play about a month before he died (my first concert!) and it influenced my desire to play guitar from then on. I must have read and re-read that article a hundred times! 
Welcome aboard!


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

good to see you here Jas-
ive seen you at another forum recently, and it made me think- 
you were one of the guys responsible for my interest in guitar, and your articles in GP were one of the few links i had to the guitar playing world when i was a kid.
thanks for that Jas- and also thanks for the link to this article, and others youve put up lately!


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## Kenmac (Jan 24, 2007)

Welcome to the forum Mr. Obrecht. I used to buy GP magazine every month. As a matter of fact the very first issue of GP I bought was in 1984 and it featured Stevie Ray Vaughan on the cover. I'll be checking out your blog later this evening. Oh, BTW the Pete Townshend quote in my sig came from a Guitar Player magazine interview.


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## John Watt (Aug 24, 2010)

I'm gonna get right into it, reading this thread, and thinking of Guitar Magazine, Guitars, Guitar World, etc, etc.
The glory days, as described here, were the end of the baby boomer generation.
What happened next, Steve Vai etc, was pages and pages of philosophical and technical discussion that was either irrelevant,
for live performances, or extremely vain, becoming fatuous, like Steve Vai's "Fathead" headstock shim, yes, an actual product.

But, I am one of the ultimate Jimi Hendrix fans, seeing him in Toronto and dropping out of school to work at Atlas Steel,
to order a Marshall from England and buy the first Stratocaster sold in my home town, before I knew barre chords.
It was amazing to grow up and learn to play guitar with a Stratocaster and Marshall with effects.
Jimi was great in magazines, talking about equipment and his travels, so definitely, the best of times for lead guitarists,
before synths, coming into analog, way before digitals' tiny tinny sounds, compared to wide and strong magnetic tapes.
Tone! Tone to the bone!
And, Mr. Obrecht, sir, if you're into what's new and truly unknown, the semi-solid-body, take a peek or watch.

John Watt Home

I'm not hot on computers and can't do pictures here, so my domain offering is a compromise, for here.
And you are reading from someone who still wins bets about playing something you've never heard before.


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## ezcomes (Jul 28, 2008)

very nice!
i look forward to reading thru these and more!!


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## John Watt (Aug 24, 2010)

ezcomes! That's more than nice, for a user name. I was thinking of neveradultmoment for here,
but now I'm thinking ezgoes. I hope you don't mind.


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## Sneaky (Feb 14, 2006)

Thanks for that Jas. I almost saw the Toronto show, but my dad wouldn't take us when he heard about the drug bust.

The Hendrix Woodstock guitar was used last week by KWS on Jimmy Fallon. I missed it, but I'll bet there is a youtube of it out there somehwere.


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## John Watt (Aug 24, 2010)

I never heard about anybody taking it apart to see if it was customized.
It's still hard to believe Jimi never got a lefty made.
You can see the difficulty he has, holding his wrist and arm way out,
bending his wrist to hold the pickup towards the strings,
because the right-handed tremolo was hanging down in his way.
That's one thing I don't think Jimi got into, using palm muting,
especially the way Andy Summers (The Police) brought out that technique.
Jus'relayin'.


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