There were originally two versions of this album - the U.K. version, which did not include the previously released singles "Hey Joe"/"Stone Free," "Purple Haze"/"51st Anniversary," and "The Wind Cries Mary"/"Highway Chile" - and the U.S. version, released six months later, which had the A-sides of the three singles but dropped "Remember," "Red House," and "Can You See Me." My preferred rendition of the album, only available as the CD format came into being, combines both versions in a 17-track homage to one of the greatest, and probably most-talented, guitar-slingers of all time.
This album is widely regarded as perhaps the best debut album of the rock era, and it's a testament to the artist that many of the tracks sound as fresh today as they did in the Summer of Love. Compared to the other "great" album of 1967, The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which is interesting as a snapshot of the times but sounds dated, Are You Experienced? blazed a trail that, whether they know it or not, every rock guitar band since has followed.
Considering the fact that Hendrix's recording career barely lasted four years, and that he was a black American musician in the 1960s that had to move to England to get noticed, his lasting influence and continued commercial success is truly astounding. His amazing instrumental virtuosity and creativity have been rarely duplicated.
2 comments:
Never liked Jimi until you made that tape for me so many years ago. I still can't just listen to it. I have certain songs I like, but it's never something I really choose to listen to. I usually hear it when it's your turn to pick the cd when we're riding.
Okay. This isn't your top ten, you know.
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