# Jimi Hendrix - What makes him so great?



## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Jimi's vocal and guitar styles are still distinct after all these years. What makes him so great and hard to impersonate? Has anyone come close?


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## marcos (Jan 13, 2009)

To me, SRV was a better all around player and signer. There was something about his tone that really made him the iconic musician signer he was. Dont get me wrong, i'm a big Jimmy fan but just prefered SRV overall.


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

Jimi _created_ a new style of playing and was an incredible showman for being such a "shy guy".
He wrote and recorded a vast amount of amazing material and toured to every corner of the globe in a very,very short period of time.
Everthing attempted in Jimi's style after the fact is just emulation.
IMHO
Cheers, doug
and the price was right!









http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m570/loudtubeamps/DSC03879.jpg


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Maybe this?

View attachment 1426


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## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

marcos said:


> To me, SRV was a better all around player and signer. There was something about his tone that really made him the iconic musician signer he was. Dont get me wrong, i'm a big Jimmy fan but just prefered SRV overall.


I total agree about SRV but being a piano player for many years and guitar player for a few years, I don't understand guitar as well as would like to. When I hear the first few notes from Jimi's guitar on a song, I know it's him playing and singing for that matter. Why don't more people copy his style or do they and I just don't know about it.


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

There are lots of players have taken bits and pieces from Jimi over the years.
Trower-SRV-Mayer-Frank Marino.....................................
I don't have enough time right now to start naming names, but I bet others will start the process and the list _will_ be long.
Cheers, d.
jimi hendrix wannabe - Google Search9kkhhd

jimi hendrix reincarnation - Google Search

:smilie_flagge17:


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Maybe this?
> 
> View attachment 1426


"<Why is it that Noel and Mitch still have their shirts on?>"

This could turn into a kinda' like a "Knock -Knock" joke I suppose??!!

BTW, the lady on the right, please and thanks.


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## Guest (Aug 25, 2012)

I remember watching Tony Springer in the 80's. 
He emulated Jimi pretty well back in the day.

[video=youtube;9jHRubGY9oI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jHRubGY9oI&amp;feature=related[/video]


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I never thought I'd see nudity on this forum haha.

The one one the right for sure.


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

Jimi was an innovator. His playing and music influenced a lot of players, SRV being one of his biggest fans. We have to look at Hendrix within the context of the time he was playing in, which was in the late 60s. That's almost 50 years ago. There was not a lot of people who played the guitar the way he did back in those days. Even Clapton, Page, et al... were all astonished when they first saw Jimi played. It's easy to say he's not as technically good as most of the guitar players these days but you also wonder where these guitar players would be now if not for these guys in the 60's who started the renaissance of guitar in the music world.


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Maybe this?
> 
> View attachment 1426


Thing with this photo is, if you think about it these women must be in their 70's now. LOL


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

[video=youtube;d9AaQQbvT4M]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9AaQQbvT4M[/video]


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

Robert1950 said:


> [video=youtube;d9AaQQbvT4M]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9AaQQbvT4M[/video]


This shows what I was talking about in my earlier post. This video was way back in '69. I don't know of many guitar players at that time who played the way he did.


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## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Chito said:


> Thing with this photo is, if you think about it these women must be in their 70's now. LOL


Yes but if the've both put on weight, maybe the guys would be pickin the one on the left.


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## 335Bob (Feb 26, 2006)

Like Chito said. He was all that they say he was and more, in that period. And most great guitarists today revere him. Stevie Ray owed a lot to Hendrix and many of the "old guard" blues guitarists. You can't take away their achievements because of what SRV or any other latter day guitarist accomplished. Hendrix was just one of many who kicked down the door. Others have been walking through ever since. But then again, there will always follow, another door to kick in....


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

Chito said:


> Thing with this photo is, if you think about it these women must be in their 70's now. LOL


Please , don't go there, I might!
d
LOLlargetongue


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## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

imo, what made hendrix great was experience. not "the" experience. he played sideman with alot of big names for a long, long, time. he came to know his craft, and put his mark on it. being on stage every night, night after night, with top shelf players, over and over and over again did that to him. he developed that hard wired link between his fingers and his imagination. he created new sounds never heard before. he took alot of acid, and like a true ultra modern bluesman, promoted the image of a hoochie-coochie man. or maybe that's actually who he was. either way, he gets the *BAMF* lifetime achievement award.


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## fredyfreeloader (Dec 11, 2010)

cheezyridr said:


> imo, what made hendrix great was experience. not "the" experience. he played sideman with alot of big names for a long, long, time. he came to know his craft, and put his mark on it. being on stage every night, night after night, with top shelf players, over and over and over again did that to him. he developed that hard wired link between his fingers and his imagination. he created new sounds never heard before. he took alot of acid, and like a true ultra modern bluesman, promoted the image of a hoochie-coochie man. or maybe that's actually who he was. either way, he gets the *BAMF* lifetime achievement award.


I think cheezyridr said it best he created new sounds never heard before and most probably his brain, hands and imagination were hard wired together.


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## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

I think it's called "feeling".


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## aftermidnight (Oct 11, 2009)

And he was able to do what he did ....... playing a guitar upside down ...... without TAB off the internet .... amazing ...... why do some people insist on thinking outside the box?

He would never make it to-day though ......... and probably starve as a musician ...... the MBA'a at recording companies would insist he emulate Nickelback's sound because that's what sells.

(Actually, I don't mind Nickelback ..... a few good tunes ....... it just seems they are a popular whipping post these days.)


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## prodigal_son (Apr 23, 2009)

I am not from the time when Jimi was alive (born in 75) but I know enough to have a decent opinion. He was really good at span of consciousness improvisation and was an innovator like no other at that time. His vocals were not that great but his playing and tone was killer. I do think though that he is a bit over rated at times seeing as he died at a young age and all.


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## fredyfreeloader (Dec 11, 2010)

washburned said:


> I think it's called "feeling".


Some of what he did was done with great feeling and some was just plain shit. There were times when he didn't know w.t.f he was doing nor did he care. He was playing some imaginary music brought on by long acid trips, then he would come back to reality and continue with the piece he had started playing. Was he good? Yes most of the time, but some of the time it was just noise. To bad so much talent got blown away by drugs so early in life.


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## rockinbluesfan (Mar 3, 2008)

He is and always will be one of my guitar heroes. We are talking the 60's here - drugs and sex were the norm then so he had to fit in. On top of that being a pioneer to a new realm of music he probably felt like he was walking on thin ice, but in his heart he knew what he wanted to play. He probably had promoters wanting him to play what sells (monkey's, beatles etc.) but he stuck to his guns so yea he was high alot but I don't blame him for that, being so young. Having said that, I think what he did in such a short period of time was amazing and affected thousands of musicians ever since - not a bad resume!


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## captainbrew (Feb 5, 2010)

I'd just like to point out that he was also one of the first guys to use a multiple pedal setup. He'd usually have a wah, univibe, fuzz face and an octavia. Sometimes other random stuff too. He almost single handedly popularized the pedal world as we know it. Think about how many wahs, fuzz face, octavia and uni vibe clones have been sold over the years. Probably wouldn't have happened without Jimi.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

Good point about the pedals Shaun.
Could you imagine what Jimi would be stomping on if he were around today?

Jimi and Chuck Berry are two of the only guys that I'll tolerate their guitars out of whack, from time to time.

Ya, I doubt that someone can have such a short career, be such an influence, and be overrated.


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## RobQ (May 29, 2008)

A lot is said about Jimi's lead playing, but for me what really stands out about Jimi is his rhythm playing. Very distinctive, very liquid and funky at the same time.


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## Rugburn (Jan 14, 2009)

What make's him so great?!! This, for one. I will never judge Jimi's playing on the basis of some off live performances he couldn't have dreamed would ever see the light of day. His great live work is some of the most open and free guitar playing I've ever heard. His studio work was groundbreaking. His songwriting was/is stellar. Honestly, as far as R&B, funk, blues, and rock are concerned, I think anyone who believes he's "technically" lacking is out of their minds.

[video=youtube;9rVosGsts8g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rVosGsts8g[/video]


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

Jeez, that phrasing!!! I think it's partially that Jimi understood music as a language, not just a thing that made people dance. He had something to say, and he said it - quite well.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

I can't define what made Jimi great.

But it seems sort of self evident. I knew he was great from the first sixteen bars.

I love Little Wing, And the Wind Cries Mary, Watchtower, Voodoo Child et cetera, et cetera, et cetera

He had a distinctive touch.


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## Roryfan (Apr 19, 2010)

loudtubeamps said:


> There are lots of players have taken bits and pieces from Jimi over the years.
> Trower-SRV-Mayer-Frank Marino.....................................
> I don't have enough time right now to start naming names, but I bet others will start the process and the list _will_ be long.
> Cheers, d.
> ...



+1 on Trower

Would also like to suggest replacing Mayer with KWS.


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## bolero (Oct 11, 2006)

I think Chito summed it up pretty good:



Chito said:


> Jimi was an innovator. His playing and music influenced a lot of players, SRV being one of his biggest fans. We have to look at Hendrix within the context of the time he was playing in, which was in the late 60s. That's almost 50 years ago. There was not a lot of people who played the guitar the way he did back in those days. Even Clapton, Page, et al... were all astonished when they first saw Jimi played. It's easy to say he's not as technically good as most of the guitar players these days but you also wonder where these guitar players would be now if not for these guys in the 60's who started the renaissance of guitar in the music world.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

What made Jimi great is the same thing that made Charlie Christian great. He came into some technology that permitted more than the status quo, wondered "Hmm, I wonder what's around _*that*_ corner?", and went around it, unencumbered by the burden of precedence.

He did have some sources to draw on, like Curtis Mayfield, and maybe even Link Wray, but he made good use of the freedom he had to go well beyond.

Just consider how many of us here, or or many other forums, are obsessed with what we can do or buy, or tweak, to sound *just like so-and-so*. Jimi came along early enough in the game that he didn't have that constraint. Same thing with Charlie Christian.

These are but a few of the reasons why one of my all-time favourite quotes is from composer Charles Ives, himself a groundbreaker like Hendrix, who declared: "Everyone should have the opportunity NOT to be overinfluenced".


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

My favourite Jimi tune times 2. When _*it's live*_ and sounds _this good_ from back then ...........................nuff said!
Band of Gypsys - Power of love on Vimeo

Jimi Hendrix - Power to love - Band Of Gypsys 1970 - YouTube


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## Krelf (Jul 3, 2012)

I was in my last year of High School when I first heard of Hendrix. I had a friend from England who was really into music and he had a JHE 45 rpm, The Wind Cries Mary" the English type with the funny double hole in the middle. He told me "You'll soon hear about this guy." 

A month later he literally exploded on the scene. Everyone had the "Are You Experienced LP." Kid were dancing to it at parties. And this was the age when Clapton, Beck, Page, Green, Townshend, were universally known.

It was the sound, the style of music and the voice all rolled into one unique psychedelic package unlike anything anyone had heard before. The album jacket said it all... "Be forewarned..."

Chas Chandler did everything right. He recognized a talent playing as a solo act in the Cafe Whaa, took him to England and directed his talent and persona into an image and style that would hit the current trends like an arrow into a bullseye. And with all that going for him, he still had to bribe British deejays to play his records.


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## 4345567 (Jun 26, 2008)

__________


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## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

Krelf said:


> Chas Chandler did everything right. He recognized a talent playing as a solo act in the Cafe Whaa, took him to England and directed his talent and persona into an image and style that would hit the current trends like an arrow into a bullseye. And with all that going for him, he still had to bribe British deejays to play his records.



the way you speak of his emergence into commercial success comes across (to me) as if to suggest a lack of credibility. of course it was manufactured. every one of them (rock stars, i mean) is. because he is considered the king of the guitar gods people seem to find some distaste in any part of him being commercial. i don't really think that works in the real world. so what if he was a johnny bravo on some level? he paid his dues, he had the chops, he lived according to his own rules. you could say all the same things about prince, for example, and no one doubts his cred OR his ties to pop. and prince, bad-ass though he is, doesn't have the resume' that hendrix did. not to mention that he owes most of his existence as a personality and a guitarist, to jimi.


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## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Well it seems that this thread that I started has run it's course. I've learned a lot that I should have known about Jimi. I was there, but I think I was playing bubble gum music at the time. I was a little surprised that there wasn't more discussion about Jimi's tone. That indistinguishable tone, but he was obviously about a lot more that just tone. Thanks to all that participated.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

Has anyone been to his memorial in Seattle?










I'd like to visit Seattle just becasue, but that would be a definite destination.

Years ago, a buddy of mine went there and brought back some dirt in a vial from the site.
At least it smelled like dirt, when we snorted it.

sdsre


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## Rugburn (Jan 14, 2009)

Guitar101 said:


> That *indistinguishable* tone, .



*in·dis·tin·guish·a·ble/ˌindiˈstiNGgwiSHəbəl/ 
*


Adjective:

Not distinguishable; not able to be identified as different or distinct.

Synonyms:
indiscernible - imperceptible

I think you may have had a different word in mind. Also, threads are like kids. They're yours to a point, then you gotta let 'em go. Lol


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## Jim DaddyO (Mar 20, 2009)

The answer....because he was Jimi.....that's it, things just lined up so the world was ready for him.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

Hey, I just found this...

[video=youtube;XTGvVZcfXnQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTGvVZcfXnQ&amp;feature=b-vrec[/video]


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Krelf said:


> I was in my last year of High School when I first heard of Hendrix. I had a friend from England who was really into music and he had a JHE 45 rpm, The Wind Cries Mary" the English type with the funny double hole in the middle. He told me "You'll soon hear about this guy."
> 
> A month later he literally exploded on the scene. Everyone had the "Are You Experienced LP." Kid were dancing to it at parties. And this was the age when Clapton, Beck, Page, Green, Townshend, were universally known.
> 
> ...


I think I still have the pages, clipped from one of the popular frothy music magazines of the day, of pics from the Monterey festival. That summer, I heard a bunch of albums in my friend's basement: the first Country Joe & The Fish album, Butterfield's East-West, The Mothers of Invention Freak Out and Absolutely Free, and _Are You Experienced_. Nearly every cut on _AYE _made an impression on me_. _The sustained fuzz chords and whammy-wiggled feedback notes on _Love or Confusion, _the great drum groove and kazoo tone on _Manic Depression, _the creeping feedback and huge fuzz blast on _Foxy Lady, _and of course the first time in my life I ever heard octave-up fuzz on _Purple Haze. _Jimi's openness to what composer Henry Cowell called "New musical resources" ( http://books.google.ca/books/about/New_Musical_Resources.html?id=BeLDXA-7TdAC&redir_esc=y ) was readily apparent.


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## Rugburn (Jan 14, 2009)

A few more.......

[video=youtube;ixfvdCkYvEs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixfvdCkYvEs[/video]


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## Rugburn (Jan 14, 2009)

[video=youtube;ktjpxrIFOx8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktjpxrIFOx8[/video]


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## Rugburn (Jan 14, 2009)

[video=youtube;aqc1_RQHOKM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqc1_RQHOKM[/video]


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## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Rugburn said:


> *in·dis·tin·guish·a·ble/ˌindiˈstiNGgwiSHəbəl/
> *
> 
> 
> ...


Yes, I wrestled with that word and even looked it up in the dictionary. For whatever reason, I still wanted to use it. Thanks for paying attention to detail.


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## loudtubeamps (Feb 2, 2012)

I love these little tid bits!
When Eric Clapton met Jimi Hendrix - YouTube

Jeff Beck talks about meeting Jimi Hendrix - YouTube

B.B. King and Buddy Guy on Meeting Jimi Hendrix on SIRIUS XM Radio - YouTube

Chris Squire of Yes - Meeting Jimi Hendrix - YouTube


and on and on..................very entertaining!
10 BRIAN AUGER TALKS ABOUT JIMI HENDRIX' FIRST GIG IN LONDON-.mov - YouTube


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## NGroeneveld (Jan 23, 2011)

loudtubeamps said:


> I love these little tid bits!
> When Eric Clapton met Jimi Hendrix - YouTube


I was just about to post the exact same video! I like what Jack Bruce says about Hendrix: "Eric Clapton was a guitar player, but Jimi Hendrix was a force of nature"


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## gtone (Nov 1, 2009)

I challenge anyone to think of a cooler human being to have walked the face of this earth than Jimi Hendrix (Christ or his equivalents notwithstanding). The man had style, funk, groove, playing chops, the ability to write and create on the fly. His torch burned brighter in 4 years than most families' entire lineage does in a millenium.


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