THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE - ARE YOU EXPERIENCED @ 55

 

 

May 12 marks the 55th anniversary of the UK release of the debut LP by The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced, which was issued on this day in 1967 (the US release followed on August 23). It remains one of the most critically and commercially successful debuts by a rock artist and not only redefined the parameters and direction of psychedelic rock, but became a touchstone in the development of hard rock and heavy metal while also staking out an entirely new landscape for blues and R&B music.

 

By 1966, Jimi Hendrix was going nowhere in his career as a backup guitarist on the US R&B circuit, but that would all start to change when he caught the attention of Linda Keith, who was dating Rolling Stones guitarist, Keith Richards at the time. She saw something there and started introducing him to various managers and industry people. Eventually this lead to a meeting with Chas Chandler, who was just coming off a stint managing The Animals. Chandler brought Hendrix to the UK and London, where he set about recruiting a new backing band for him to work with, finding guitarist Noel Redding, who took on bass duties, and drummer Mitch Mitchell.

 

With a group in place, they started hitting the studios over the course of a five month period between October 23rd, 1966 and April 4, 1967. It took a total of 16 sessions to record all the material for his debut LP, which was done at three studios: De Lane Lea, CBS and Olympic. The shifts between studios were in an effort to improve sound quality as the initial sessions at De Lane Lea were not entirely satisfying to Chandler, so they moved to CBS and later Olympic, which had the best quality equipment and latest technology.

 

Because of budget constraints, most of the pre-production work was done at an apartment Chandler was sharing with Hendrix at the time. Chandler also ensured that the creative autonomy remained squarely with Hendrix, deliberately limiting the input from from Redding and Mitchell in order to avoid having to deal with the usual politics of band relations and compromises. It was Jimi’s show and that was made clear from the get-go. Besides, Hendrix had all the details of his songs worked out in his head anyway, so there was little need for additional input.

 

Recording of the album was interspersed between live gigging throughout the UK and Europe. Things were initially a little tense in the studio as the technicians struggled to record Hendrix at the screaming loud volume he insisted upon. The volume of his twin Marshall stack was so loud that it was causing audible rattling throughout the studio, which was getting picked up by the mics. When Chandler insisted on him turning the level down, Hendrix threw a tantrum and threatened to head home to the US. Chandler responded by placing his passport and travel papers on the mixing console and telling him to “piss off”. Hendrix laughed it off and said, “Okay, you called my bluff.” He then adjusted the levels (slightly) and got back to work.

 

Hendrix was far from confident as a vocalist compared to his prowess on guitar. He hated having anyone around when he did his vocals and, at Olympic Studios, had a privacy booth constructed to try to get isolated from the engineers, but this was problematic for them, particularly with the low lighting as it made it difficult to communicate with him and give him the correct cues while recording. The volume wars continued on at Olympic as well with nearby neighbors regularly complaining about the noise coming from the studio.

 

The studio also had to struggle with the distraction of fans showing up, especially the girls. Hendrix wasn’t exactly discreet and had no qualms about blabbing to fans where they’d be at any given time of day, which resulted in a lot of unwanted guests at the studio. Studio staff were tasked with keeping them at a safe distance so that work could continue, but later Chandler commented that he had worked with The Beatles, Stones and Led Zeppelin and none of them had caused such chaos with their followers. However, other than the quibbling about volume, Hendrix himself was generally easy going and not difficult to work with, it’s just that a bit of discretion from him would have been helpful for recording.

 

The songs for the album covered a wide range of genres from R&B to free jazz with each track possessing its own distinct personality. Yet they were all inseparably bound together by the strength of Hendrix’s style and personality, which ignited each like he would set fire to his guitars on stage. And his band, while kept on a short leash in terms of creative contributions, nonetheless stepped up to the task of supporting such a dynamic and distinctive guitar player. Cream may have invented the concept of the “power trio”, but The Jimi Hendrix experience took the “power” knob and added “11” to the dial.

 

The cover for the album had two variations with the UK version coming first, but proving unsatisfactory to Hendrix as he felt it looked to drab given the music it contained. He subsequently commissioned the US label to come up with something more reflective of the content. The UK version featured a muted color palette with only the album’s title on the front, oddly omitting the band’s name. For the US edition, noted graphic designer and fashion photographer Karl Ferris was recruited. His fashion background was put to use in helping to select the group’s wardrobe and he used a fish-eye lens and an infrared technique of his own invention which combined color reversal with heat signature manipulation. Upon listening to the band’s music, the designer had conceptualized the shot as a "group traveling through space in a Biosphere on their way to bring their unworldly space music to earth.”

 

Upon its release, the album was an immediate commercial success in both the UK and US and received rave critical reviews. Since then it’s gone on to become recognized as one of the most significant debut albums of all time. Hendrix’s influence on the world of rock music and the evolution of guitar playing is incalculable as he can lay claim to having an impact on everything from heavy metal to funk to industrial music. Anyone who’s picked up a guitar in the last half century and wanted to do something more with it than strum a few chords eventually has to look to Hendrix as a pioneer and inspiration. His debut LP could not be a more perfect representation of that talent.

THE ROLLING STONES - EXILE ON MAIN STREET @ 50

 

Released on the 12th of May, 1972, The Rolling Stones’ Exile On Main Street celebrates its 50th anniversary today! Considered one of the bands all time best albums, it marked a creative peak for the long running band.

The album was a bit of a hodgepodge of songs recorded over an extended period going back as early 1969 during sessions for Sticky Fingers. This resulted in it sprawling into becoming the band’s first double LP set by the time the dust settled. Much of it was recorded in mid-1971 using their mobile studio at the rented villa Nellcôte in the South of France. At the time, the band were living abroad as tax exiles, thus inspiring the album’s title and the collage graphics on its cover, which Mick Jagger described showing the band as “runaway outlaws using the blues as its weapon against the world". The sessions in France were noted as being something of a chaotic shambles with them going basically all night, every night. Unlike previous album sessions, the discipline was lacking as band members tended to show up at irregular intervals, with not everyone being present each day. Part of this had to do with Keith slipping into a daily heroine habit by this time. Bill Wyman simply didn’t like the atmosphere at the villa and sat out many of the sessions there. Yet from all that madness, the band somehow managed to stitch it all together into something that made sense once all the pieces of the puzzle were in place. Final overdubs and mixing were done in LA in March of 1972. This is where most of the vocals and guitar overdubs ended up being recorded.

Other than the regular band members, the sessions in France also featured a large rotating array of guest musicians popping in and out for sessions throughout their time there. These included the likes of pianist Nicky Hopkins, saxophonist Bobby Keys, drummer Jimmy Miller and horn player Jim Price. The resulting musical stew cooked up by all these players crossed boundaries between blues, rock and roll, swing, country and gospel, while the lyrics explored themes related to hedonism, sex and time. Many of the songs contained on the album ended up becoming concert staples for years after the album’s release. It spawned the hit songs "Happy", which featured a rare lead vocal from Keith Richards, country music ballad "Sweet Virginia", and worldwide top-ten hit "Tumbling Dice".

Upon the album’s release, while it shot to the number one chart slot in the UK, US, Canada and other countries, the critics were initially mixed in their reaction. Some found the song quality inconsistent, something to be expected given the fact it was recorded over so many years. Also, as a double disc set, it tended to meander through its palette of genres. But as time has given context to the album, it quickly took on the perspective as one of the band’s greatest achievements and, for some, the high watermark of their career.