Jimi Hendrix - 'He wasn't that special'

skinnyl · 5 Apr 2006 at 15:32

Well Hendrix has been and will always be my favourite guitarist, I’ve still never really seen anyone own the guitar like he did, esp in 'Power To Love' - The Band of Gypsys album. Easily my main influence on meh guitar playing.

While I appreciate the Vai/Satch are 'technically' better that doesn't really mean much when it comes to writing tunes, you can be the worlds best shredder and still write crap. Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive Satch fan and I’m not saying either of them can't write tunes. Although I do have issues with Vai, but that neither here nor there..

If you watch the Satriani Live in San Francisco DVD he says

"Every time I do a show there has gotta be 100 times in the show where I think about Jimi Hendrix.." nuff said, Jimi is God.

Weak sound? :confused:

never crossed my mind, try listening to the tune i mention above i'd say it was far from weak.

It's simplicity of the sound i love, guitar > wah > axis fuzz > octavia > uni vibe > amp. As opposed to this crap http://guitargeek.com/rigview/259/.

Going back to when hendrix was around, unless someone wants to correct me, he WAS the fastest and the (if not one of the) most technically able guitarists around. His playing is still very fast in places, notably some of the Voodoo Child runs.

check John McLaughlin or Ollie Halsall, both faster than hendrix almost to satriani style.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 15:46

skinnyl said:
"Every time I do a show there has gotta be 100 times in the show where I think about Jimi Hendrix.." nuff said, Jimi is God.

Jimi is God? Just because Satriani likes him? That isn't much of an arguement.

skinnyl · 5 Apr 2006 at 15:57

tTz said:
Jimi is God? Just because Satriani likes him? That isn't much of an arguement.

well it shows his effect on modern music, granted i shoulda left out 'Jimi is God' buts it was hard..

aceface57 · 5 Apr 2006 at 16:26

For me hendrix was "The" man, he is my god in the guitar world he did so much for music. He inspired me to start playing guitar and i can say that none of todays top guitarist like steve vai or joe satrini have inspired me as much as hendrix did. I know many people would disagree with me here but i don't think todays top guitarist are a patch on hendrix, i think hendrix plays straight from the heart. Today it's all about technical skill, sure it's impressive but hendrix never had a lesson and there was no music like his when he started doing it? If you ask many people when they start playing guitar who would they like to play like i bet most will say hendrix. But music is your own interpretation.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 16:41

aceface57 said:
Today it's all about technical skill, sure it's impressive but hendrix never had a lesson and there was no music like his when he started doing it? If you ask many people when they start playing guitar who would they like to play like i bet most will say hendrix. But music is your own interpretation.

Most people say Hendrix because of all this hype around him, so they think 'Yeah, I want to be like him' because he's a household name, more than trying to emulate his playing. And today is definitely not about technical skill...just look at the music in the charts, for example. Not much technical skill there.

And as for there being no music like his, well, maybe no one quite put it together like he did, but all the individual components were there, so he might not have been all that original, he just put the pieces together. That said, setting your guitar on fire for the hell of it is probably an original Hendrix trick.

SexyGreyFox · 5 Apr 2006 at 18:11

Mr Bulbous said:
LOL

Apart from starting this very thread called ...

Jimi Hendrix - 'He wasn't that special' To stir things up of course.

So, you were waiting for the dust to settle or see a suitable contrary opinion to argue with?

So you reckon Marc Bolan was the guy now? Fair enough, you are the dude and scholar of Rock concerts, who are we *nobody's* to reckon with you m8?

OK. I'll be back in about 3 months ... If I can be bothered.

What the hell is up with you?
Once again you are completely taking my words out of context.
The title is a reference to what a bloke said at work yesterday and we all thought he was a complete ****.
I thought he was about 36 but he is actually 40.
Hendrix to me is an absolute genius and one of the greatest innovators ever of modern rock guitar but I missed him because of my age.
Marc Bolan meant more to me in my youth and nowhere did I say Marc Bolan was better then Hendrix.
I've grown to appreciate what Hendrix gave to the world which is a million times more than Bolan ever did.
I suggest that you read threads before mouthing off.

Apologies accepted.

SexyGreyFox · 5 Apr 2006 at 18:20

tTz said:
Jimi is God? Just because Satriani likes him? That isn't much of an arguement.

G3 : Live In Concert
encore - Red House

G3 : Live In Denver
encores - Little Wing and Voodoo Chile

G3 : Live In Tokyo
encore - Foxy Lady

I think that just about sums Hendrix up.

However I do respect your opinion tTz.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 18:43

We'll just have to agree to disagree then.

Soul Rider · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:11

tTz said:
That said, setting your guitar on fire for the hell of it is probably an original Hendrix trick.

TUT, TUT, TUT.

Do you not know your musical history and the story of woodstock? Jimi Hendrix only set fire to his guitar because he couldn't do his usual routine. Jimi had espied Pete Townsend from the who smashing up his guitar and incorporated it into his set. When they found out they were both playing woodstock they had a meeting to see who would appear first. Mike what'shisname who put on the woodstock always wanted Jimi to be the last act, so The Who got to destroy their equipment first, and Jimi knew if he did the same he'd be seen as a copier rather than an originator, so he had to come up with something different......

Back on topic, yes I am a big Hendrix fan, also a big Who fan. Yes I rate them as great guitarists, but for one reason and one reason alone, they've got soul.

There music is not about technical perfection, it's about playing from the heart, it's about that whole Jazz ethic, it's about energy, and most importantly it's about enjoyment. They love what they do, it shows in their erformances, and that's why Jimi is so widely regarded, not because he was the most technically competent, he was far from it, but he expressed himself so well.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:15

Soul Rider said:
Jimi knew if he did the same he'd be seen as a copier rather than an originator, so he had to come up with something different......

Exactly, and I credited him for that piece of originality.

Soul Rider said:
but he expressed himself so well.

In your opinion (and apparently, the opinion of many).

Ev0 · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:16

I always remember a story my dad told me about going to see Hendrix in some pub in London.

Apparently as it was a small gig not many people turned up as it was expected to be absolutely rammed, so he saw a cracking show with not many folks there

SexyGreyFox · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:25

Soul Rider said:
TUT, TUT, TUT.

Do you not know your musical history and the story of woodstock? Jimi Hendrix only set fire to his guitar because he couldn't do his usual routine. Jimi had espied Pete Townsend from the who smashing up his guitar and incorporated it into his set. When they found out they were both playing woodstock they had a meeting to see who would appear first. Mike what'shisname who put on the woodstock always wanted Jimi to be the last act, so The Who got to destroy their equipment first, and Jimi knew if he did the same he'd be seen as a copier rather than an originator, so he had to come up with something different......

Apologies to Mr Bulbous but I'm 100% positive this was at Monterey and not Woodstock.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:28

dmpoole said:
Apologies to Mr Bulbous but I'm 100% positive this was at Monterey and not Woodstock.

Actually, yeah, I think you're right, it was Monterey when he set his Strat on fire...because he had the white (mistyped the 'w' as an 's' there first time I typed it

) Strat with the maple neck at that one, and that wasn't the one he set on fire...plus, I've seen the Woodstock DVD and it wasn't on fire there.

elroberto · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:29

While I do think he was over-rated a bit, but alongside Clapton and Page I don't think any other guitarists have had a bigger influence on rock music and each innovated in their own ways. For all the technical brilliance of people like Vai, Satriani and Malmsteen don't have that X factor that marked out these true greats.

Big Kev · 5 Apr 2006 at 19:59

I'm a big Hendrix fan and believe his enthusiasm, emotion (drug fuelled or not) and sheer brilliance makes him the best guitarist of all time.

As others have pointed out, Satch, Vai and maybe others, are technically better, they just lack that something extra that makes a genius and you also have to remember that there wasn't anyone else like him then, but after him, more and more surfaced, often claiming Hendrix as their main influence.

sjt269 · 5 Apr 2006 at 20:13

Big Kev said:
I'm a big Hendrix fan and believe his enthusiasm, emotion (drug fuelled or not) and sheer brilliance makes him the best guitarist of all time.

So you're saying that he's a great guitarist because he was an enthusiastic druggie? Nothing to do with his playing, just because he had a flamboyant personality?

skinnyl · 5 Apr 2006 at 20:32

...he was an 'enthusiastic druggie'. who played guitar and performed really well.

Chronos-X · 5 Apr 2006 at 20:46

He had a truely mesmerising sound and tone - that, for me, was Hendrix. Not his speed or anything else

Big Kev · 5 Apr 2006 at 21:48

tTz said:
So you're saying that he's a great guitarist because he was an enthusiastic druggie? Nothing to do with his playing, just because he had a flamboyant personality?

If you read my post correctly, I did add the words sheer brilliance as well, I didn't think I'd have to explain it, but there you go.

fireblade900 · 5 Apr 2006 at 21:55

Since you're asking us young fellows, if it wasn't him it would've been someone else. I don't like hendrix, don't think anything of his guitar playing and don't like his music.

There are many rock musicans that wrote their best music whilst taking drugs.