Hendrix

Saturday night was the Hendrix Experience show at Fox Theatre downtown with Susan. A one month, 19 city tour that ends in Jimi's hometown of Seattle WA. Jimi's late father, Al Hendrix, was the original event organizer, with a goal of preserving Jimi's musical legacy.

I don't even know where to start with this one. Jimi Hendrix has always been one of my all time favorites, for his pioneering funk\blues\rock style, the amazing improvisational guitar licks and the sheer power in every one of his songs. No one ever knew where Jimi was going to take you in a live performance. His Jam sessions were truly legendary.

What better way to pay tribute to one of rocks biggest legends than to assemble the top tier of the world’s greatest guitarists and put them on the stage together playing their own interpretations of Jimi's songs. That just begins to describe the evening’s performance.

From the experience Hendrix tour website:

Featured artists who will be performing music written by and associated with Jimi Hendrix include blues giant Buddy Guy, contemporary guitar greats Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Eric Johnson, Cesar Rojas and David Hidalgo of Los Lobos as well as Aerosmith’s Brad Whitford.

Hubert Sumlin, the Mississippi-born guitarist who worked with both Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters as well as the Memphis-based Eric Gales, Mato Nanji of Native American roots band Indigenous are also part of the tour as is Chris Layton, the legendary Double Trouble drummer who rose to fame backing Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Most remarkably, Mitch Mitchell (drums) and Billy Cox (bass), the same Jimi Hendrix Experience rhythm section that played behind Hendrix at such landmark rock festivals as Woodstock and the Isle of Wight will return again to celebrate the guitarist’s enduring legacy.

The entire night was just overwhelming. The show kept getting better as the night went on. Bigger and bigger guitar greats kept showing up on stage laying down Hendrix songs one after another in just absolute jaw dropping performances. They would put down one or two solo songs then play together in various combinations trading off on lead guitar, with some piano solos thrown into the mix. It would be impossible for me to try and characterize the night or bring special attention to a given performance. They were all truly outstanding performances, not a single down moment the entire night, and unlike Jimi’s performances which were often plagued with technical difficulties like blown amps and busted strings, the night went off flawlessly.

Just to name a few, there was Doyle Bramahal II with a very mellow and clean set. Eric Johnson with his characteristic technical and flowing style. Johnny Lang, who just absolutely shredded one song for 15 minutes non stop then set down his guitar and walked off the stage. KWS elevated his playing to a performance level like I've never seen, just non stop, taking each song higher, and every time you though he was done, he'd go on for another twenty minutes and pick up the intensity level another notch, turning in a truly notable Voodoo Child to finish off his set. There was the showmanship and immense musical talent of Buddy Guy, always a crowd pleaser. Another one of Jimi’s original influences Hubert Sumlin laid down a Hendrix track like no 90 year old I’d ever seen before, this guy could barely walk.

This really only scratches the surface of the nights performances, I really would'nt even know where to begin with this one, only to say that it was absolutely awe inspiring to see so much musical talent on the stage in one evening, clearly all performing at their highest personal levels, paying special musical tribute in their own way to one of the greatest rockers of all time.

The final song of the night was Hey Joe, performed by KWS and Buddy Guy. This was the final song played by Hendrix at Woodstock, and it would be hard to describe the impact on the crowd. You could just feel that the crowd knew it was the last song of the night and the final highlight of the evening.

After witnessing Saturday night’s performance, it was clear that all of the performers on stage felt truly honored be a part of such a special tribute to Hendrix, and in the presence of so many other world class performers. I would imagine that it's a big honor to be a part of this tour, and I really sensed that the performers knew it and brought their 'A' game. They all gave praise to Jimi for his pioneering style and for the influence he cast in their own musical journey, all except for Buddy Guy. Buddy would say in a round about way that he taught Jimi everything he knew, and watching his performance Saturday night, I believe him. How a man that age can light up a stage and a crowd like he did I'll never understand. Saturday night really is as close as I'll ever come to the Hendrix Experience, and I was truly grateful to have the opportunity to see Buddy Guy perform one more time.

Thinking back on the night, it would be hard to find an analogy to describe the legacy and style that Hendrix has left on modern music. His songs seem as relevant, powerful, original and entertaining today as they ever were. There is transcendence in his music that is still alive and well today. That said, I really wish I could have seen Hendrix perform at Woodstock..

From what I can tell, Hendrix visited Detroit twice. Very cool Concert Review here, providing interesting perspective on the music scene of the 60’s and 70’s .