Thirty-three years ago today, Jimi Hendrix boarded his magic carpet and disappeared in search of Electric Ladyland. Not quite six months old at the time, I didn't fully appreciate the magnitude of our loss. My uncle Bob spent the day sitting in his car by the Charles River, staring numbly at the Boston skyline and listening to the tributes on WBCN. As anyone who has visited Hendrix's grave can tell you, the vigil for this genius will continue in perpetuity. To mark the day this year, I have decided to informally review my all-time favorite album.
Electric Ladyland blessed our collective turntable in September of 1968, marking the Jimi Hendrix Experience's third U.S. album release in a year. More than in his other works, the various Hendrix styles intersected on this double album; not coincidentally, Hendrix had arrived at a creative crossroads that year as he sought to expand on the hard-nosed, power trio sound that fueled Are you Experienced? and, though to a lesser extent, Axis: Bold as Love.
Both a mosaic and a melting pot, Electric Ladyland is a place where widely divergent styles form a cohesive world of sound. Legendary tunes dot the Ladyscape, especially the last two tracks.
"All Along the Watchtower"; is a cover so profound that Bob Dylan "gave" the song to Jimi (the affection was mutual; Hendrix often introduced a grammied-up Noel Redding as "Bob Dylan's grandmother." With its incomparable guitar work and a prominent bass line, "Watchtower" is an up-tempo composition that nevertheless radiates foreboding and soulful resignation.
"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" starts with a razor sharp hook and fires into rock's most blazing guitar work--all in the opening seconds. Hendrix, who was part Native American, was imagining an omnipotent Indian chief when he sang, "I stand up next to a mountain, and I chop it down with the edge of my hand." Indeed, Jimi's hands are just as powerful. Piercing guitar work throughout brings the song back near to its opening crescendo.
Both songs transgress genre boundaries even now. They are so expressive that they frequently surface in movie soundtracks.
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
Excellent Chris, really captures both the music and the cultural import, thanks!
2 - Chris Arabia
Thank you.
3 - Domenico
Hendrix was, is and will always be the best