Jimi Hendrix (1942–1970) was the Seattle-born guitarist who rewired what the electric guitar could do. The three Experience albums — Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland, all 1967–68 — are the core, and the posthumous catalog rewards digging. Find Jimi Hendrix vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
James Marshall Hendrix was born in Seattle, Washington on November 27, 1942. After serving in the US Army (1961-1962) and working extensively as a session and backing musician on the Chitlin' Circuit (with the Isley Brothers, Little Richard, and others), he relocated to London in September 1966 at the invitation of former Animals bassist Chas Chandler. The Jimi Hendrix Experience was formed in October 1966 with bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell. Are You Experienced (1967) became a international commercial and critical success. His Monterey Pop Festival performance in June 1967 (where he set his guitar on fire) was his American breakthrough. He played the Woodstock Festival in August 1969 (with his iconic Star-Spangled Banner performance). He opened his own Electric Lady Studios in New York in 1970. He died of asphyxiation from aspiration of vomit due to barbiturate intoxication on September 18, 1970 at age 27, joining the 27 Club. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
Jimi Hendrix's sound combines rock, psychedelic rock, blues rock, hard rock, acid rock, R&B, soul, funk, and proto-metal with his foundational electric guitar techniques (including extensive use of feedback, wah-wah, Octavia, Uni-Vibe, and fuzz effects), the Experience's improvisational approach, and his distinctive vocal delivery. His foundational influence on rock guitar and electric music broadly is widely cited as the most important contribution to the form.
Original Reprise pressings of the 1967-1968 Hendrix catalog are foundational items in rock collecting. Multiple anniversary editions, audiophile reissues (Acoustic Sounds, Mobile Fidelity), and the comprehensive Experience Hendrix LLC reissue program have made the catalog widely accessible.
Listeners new to Jimi Hendrix typically start with Are You Experienced (1967) or Electric Ladyland (1968).
