Today we will tell you about one of the greatest guitarists Jimi Hendrix:
(Photo: David Redfern)
Here are facts about the guitar legend:
1. He was born on November 27, 1942, in Seattle, Washington, while his father fought in Europe during World War II. The name given to him at birth was John Allen Hendrix.
2. His mother was a Cherokee Indian.
When his father returned from the war in 1945, Hendrix changed his name to James Marshall Hendrix.
4. The first instrument Hendrix learned to play on was the ukulele.
5. Jimi started playing the guitar at age 15, when his father bought him his first guitar (acoustic) for only 5 $.
6. Hendrix was self-taught. He taught himself to play and could not read notes.
7. Jimi admitted that the artist who influenced him the most in guitar playing was Muddy Waters.
8. He was left-handed, but instead of buying a special left-handed guitar he just turned the guitar upside down.
9. After being caught stealing cars he was brought in front of a judge that let him choose between two options: go to jail or enlist in the army. Hendrix chose the latter option and in 1961 he was enlisted in a parachuted unit in the U.S. Army.
(Photo: US Army)
10. He broke his ankle in his 26th parachute.
11. Rumor has it that he was dropped out from his unit after being caught masturbating while he was supposed to be on guard.
12. Before becoming famous he was performing under the name Jimmy James. He was a studio session player and contributed his talent to many artists, including Ike And Tina Turner, Sam Cooke, "The Isley Brothers", Little Richard, and more.
13. The stage name Jimi Hendrix was given to him by bassist Chas Chandler from "The Animals" in 1966, after he brought him to England with him. Chas also later became Jimi's first manager and was the one who helped him form "The Jimi Hendrix Experience".
14. His band's first album "Are You Experienced" was inducted into the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry as one of the pioneer albums in US history.
15. Jimi forgot half of the master recordings of his second album "Axis: Bold As Love", in a taxi cab. This forced the band to re-record them.
16. Jimi admired the members of "Cream" and agreed to come with Chas Chandler to England, only after he promised him that he would meet Eric Clapton. Chas kept his promise and Hendrix got to take the stage with members of the band "Cream" during a performance that took place on October 1, 1966, just a week after he arrived in England. This one-time meeting left the band members, especially Eric Clapton, in utter shock from the performance of the young 24-year-old guitarist.
17. Jimi used unconventional playing techniques, such as playing with his teeth, behind his back, without touching the strings, etc., and could play with both the right and left hands.
(Photo: Public Domain)
18. Hendrix was mostly identified with his "Fender Stratocaster" guitar, but he also played "Gibson SG", "Les Paul" and "Gibson Flying V."
19. He defined his music as an "electric church." He wanted it to be like a religion that would bring people together and be a refuge for them.
20. Jimi was abducted once after a show he gave. The one that was responsible for the abduction was his manager Michael Jeffrey who did so to maintain his place as Hendrix's manager. He made sure a New York gang kidnapped him and released him after two days.
21. In his famous performance at the Monterey International Pop Music Festival in 1967, he took the stage after "The Who". Pete Townshend guitarist smashed his guitar and threw it to the audience at the end of the show and in response, Hendrix set his guitar on fire. He repeated the prank 3 more times during his short career.
22. His playing of the American national anthem "Star Spangled Banner" at the Woodstock Festival, was not a patriotic tribute but an act of protest against the Vietnam War.
23. He was the highest-paid artist at the Woodstock Festival and was paid $ 18,000.
24. On December 2011 "Guitar World" magazine chose his "Star Spangled Banner" performance, at the top of the list of the 100 best guitar performances of all time.
25. During his years of activity from 1966 until he died in 1970, he played in over 600 performances, many of them at festivals.
26. During Hendrix's brief musical career, he released 4 studio albums.
27. However after his death a large number of other albums bearing his name were released, including 13 studio albums, 28 live albums, and 19 compilation albums.
28. Hendrix died in London - on September 18, 1970, from an overdose of sleeping pills that caused suffocation from his vomit. He was among the first to enter the dubious 27th club.
29. His body was flown to the United States and he was buried in Washington near his mother's grave.
30. The tombstone on his grave includes, among other things, an engraving of the Fender Stratocaster guitar with which he was so identified, but the guitar is in engraved upside down from the way Hendrix played it.