Wild Things

Published on

September 10, 2018

The 16-date UK package tour kicked off on 14 November 1967. Thirty-one shows in 16 cities, the tour featured The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, The Move, Nice, and Amen Corner who all played two shows a night and at each gig, the headlining Hendrix was allotted exactly 40 minutes. The Move, who preceded Hendrix onstage, had just half an hour, and Pink Floyd was allowed between 15 and 20 minutes. Tickets cost from 7/6 to 15 shillings (37.5p to 75p).

Touring the UK in 1967 would’ve been no picnic. Forget the luxury sleeper bus or five-star hotels today’s stars are accustomed to. These guys would’ve been travelling in small vans or cars with inadequate heating (we didn’t have air-con in British cars then), and staying in basic city hotels.

Hendrix was on his way to becoming a major star; his first three singles, ‘Hey Joe’, ‘Purple Haze’, and ‘The Wind Cries Mary’, had all been top ten hits. His debut album released in May of that year was sitting in the top 20 where it stayed for 33 weeks. Pink Floyd had also seen chart action with both ‘Arnold Layne’ and ‘See Emily Play’ reaching the top 20. The Move had also had three top ten hits including ‘Flowers In The Rain’ and Amen Corner were just about to score what would become their biggest hit so far, ‘Bend Me, Shape Me’.

The tour was faced with some interesting challenges. After the two performances in Blackpool, the equipment of all the bands, including guitars and amplifiers, was left on the stage overnight. When they returned the following morning to pack it away, they found intruders had broken into the venue during the night and had smashed some of the guitars and amplifiers.

Pink Floyd was having a few problems with their founding member, Syd Barrett, who was not enjoying the tour. Arriving in a new town, Syd would go for a walk, and not get back to the venue until just a few minutes before Floyd were due onstage. He’d play the show, go off again, and come back hours later, in time for the second performance. But one night, he didn’t turn up at all, resulting in Davy O’List (of The Nice) to stand in for him.

During the tour Hendrix commonly wore a glimmering, pale blue, crushed velvet suit with flared trousers. His set was packed with dynamic numbers, enabling the guitarist and his band to show off not only their amazing playing skills but also deliver a show full of great showmanship. The set included ‘Hey Joe’ and ‘Purple Haze’ as well as a version of the Beatles’ ‘Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band‘ and The Troggs ‘Wild Thing‘.

During one performance at the City Hall, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Hendrix was having equipment problems and in his frustration rammed his Gibson Flying V into his speaker cabinets. Like an enormous arrow, the guitar became stuck in the amplifier, which the audience greeted as if it all was part of the act.

Reviews from the tour were all focused on the headline act. A review in the Coventry Evening Telegraph said: “More than 3,000 youngsters attended two houses at the Coventry Theatre. He [Hendrix] can play the guitar with his teeth, lying on the stage, or behind his back – and do it better than most in a more conventional position. The result was a stunning, completely individual performance, which included hits like ‘Hey Joe’, ‘The Wind Cries Mary’ and ‘Purple Haze’ and the wildest version yet of ‘Wild Thing’. But the teenagers who stood on their seats for Jimi Hendrix were unmoved – and I guess somewhat bewildered – by the Pink Floyd, a group for whom the new wave is more of a spring tide.”

The 16-date tour took Hendrix to Belfast for two shows at Whitla Hall, Queens College. It was Jimi’s 25th birthday and before the shows, the guitarist was given a birthday cake by the promoters. This was to be the only concert that The Jimi Hendrix Experience ever played in Ireland.

The following month, on the final night of the tour at Green’s Playhouse, Glasgow, Jimi Hendrix had the curtains closed on him halfway through his set, after the management at the venue regarded his movements with his guitar as having sexual overtones. And that was it, tour over the end of what undoubtedly must rank as one of the best package tours to tour the UK.

Important Dates In The Life Of Jimi Hendrix:

On this day in music

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17 Sep 2011 The estate of Jimi Hendrix gave the go-ahead for another round of archival releases nearly 41 years to the day after the singer's death. The four new products included an expanded version of his landmark Winterland concerts in 1968, a revamp of a 1972 live compilation, an upgraded DVD of his final U.K. festival gig, and a DVD reissue of some old talk-show appearances.
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5 Jun 2010 Led Zeppelin were officially voted the nation’s favourite band by the BBC’s ‘I’m In A Rock ‘N` Roll Band’, coming ahead of both The Beatles and Queen in a phone-in vote. The show also featured Best Singer, Guitarist, and Drummer live phone-in votes which saw Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Bonham all nominated in their categories. John Bonham was crowned top drummer ahead of Dave Grohl and Keith Moon, whilst Jimmy and Robert were runners up to Jimi Hendrix and Freddie Mercury respectively.
27 Jan 2009 Road Chef, the Watford Gap UK Motorway services operator, paid £1,000 at an auction for a collection of celebrity signatures, which were collected by former employee, Beatrice England. The book included signatures of Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, the Eagles and Dusty Springfield. The Blue Boar services as it was once known received so many famous guests in its 50-year history that Jimi Hendrix mistook it for a London nightclub as it was mentioned so often by his contemporaries.
12 Nov 2008 Mitch Mitchell, the British drummer with the Jimi Hendrix Experience was found dead in his US hotel room aged 61. As a teenager, he starred in a children's television programme, Jennings and Derbyshire, and starred in a leading role in the 1960 British film Bottoms Up with Jimmy Edwards. Mitchell had been working with Georgie Fame & the Blue Flames when in 1966 he was invited to audition for a new band being formed to back Jimi Hendrix. In December 1968, Mitchell played with the Dirty Mac, an all-star band assembled for The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (with John Lennon, Eric Clapton and Keith Richards).
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4 Sep 2008 The first guitar torched on stage by Jimi Hendrix sold for £280,000 at an auction of rock memorabilia. The Fender Stratocaster was burned at the end of a show at the Astoria in Finsbury Park, north London, in 1967. The sale held in London also included The Beatles first management contract, signed in 1962 by all four members of the group and manager Brian Epstein, sold for £240,000.
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26 Jun 2008 Total Guitar magazine voted Celine Dion’s rendition of the AC/DC track ‘You Shook Me All Night Long’ as the world's worst cover version ever. In the best cover versions list, Jimi Hendrix was voted into first place with his version of the Bob Dylan song ‘All Along the Watchtower,’ The Beatles rendition of Twist and Shout (first recorded by the Top Notes), was in second place, followed by the Guns N' Roses version of the Wings song ‘Live and Let Die’.
8 Jun 2008 Rolling Stone magazine published a list of the Top 50 guitar songs of all time. No.5 was 'Brown Sugar' by The Rolling Stones, No.4 , ‘You Really Got Me’ by The Kinks, No.3, ‘Crossroads’, by Cream, No.2 ‘Purple Haze’, by Jimi Hendrix and No.1 ‘Johnny B Goode’, Chuck Berry.
28 Feb 2008 Drummer Buddy Miles, who played with Jimi Hendrix in his last regular group, Band of Gypsys, died aged 60 at his home in Austin, Texas after struggling with a long-term illness. Born George Allen Miles in Omaha, Nebraska, Buddy's nickname was a tribute to his idol, jazz drummer Buddy Rich. Rich also played with The Delfonics, The Ink Spots, Wilson Pickett, Electric Flag, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, Muddy Waters and Barry White. In the 1980s, he achieved a certain amount of notoriety in the US as the vocalist on the celebrated claymation California Raisins commercials.
30 Nov 2007 During a Christies Rock & Roll auction held the Rockefeller Plaza, New York City a collection of 276 ticket stubs compiled by a rock journalist who covered many rock concerts at New York City venues sold for $2,000. The tickets included concerts by: Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa, The Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, The Allman Brothers Band, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Grateful Dead and Bruce Springsteen.
2 May 2007 Almost 2,000 musicians gathered in the Polish city of Wroclaw to play a rock anthem by Jimi Hendrix. The guitarists were aiming to set a new Guinness World Record by gathering 1,876 guitarist's in the city's market square to play 'Hey Joe'. Organisers say it was the biggest guitar ensemble in recorded history.
2 Mar 2007 Jimi Hendrix was crowned the 'wildest guitar hero' of all-time in a poll of music fans for Classic Rock magazine. Hendrix beat Keith Richards into second place, with Stevie Ray Vaughan in third. Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page made it to number four, followed by Dimebag Darrell, who played for several heavy metal bands including Pantera and Damageplan.
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5 Dec 2006 Beatles lyrics handwritten by Sir Paul McCartney to an early version of Maxwell's Silver Hammer sold for $192,000 (£97,000) at an auction in New York. A guitar owned by Jimi Hendrix fetched $168,000 (£85,000), a notebook containing lyrics written by Bob Marley sold for $72,000 (£36,445) and a poem penned by Doors frontman Jim Morrison made $49,000 (£25,500) at the Christie's sale.
26 Mar 2006 Readers of Total Guitar magazine voted the guitar solo by Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway To Heaven' as the greatest guitar solo of all time. The 1971 track was voted ahead of tracks by Van Halen, Queen, Jimi Hendrix and the Eagles. On the 20th anniversary of the original release of the song, it was announced via US radio sources that the song had logged up an estimated 2,874,000 radio plays - back to back, that would run for 44 years solid.
28 Dec 2005 Pink Floyd were voted the greatest rock stars ever in a survey of 58,000 listeners from UK radio station Planet Rock. Led Zeppelin were voted into second place, 3rd was The Rolling Stones, 4th The Who, 5th, AC/DC, 6th, U2, 7th, Guns N’ Roses, 8th, Nirvana, 9th, Bon Jovi and in 10th place Jimi Hendrix. Listeners also named the 1970s as the golden age of rock, followed by the 1960’s.
14 Sep 2005 The newly refurbished Grateful Dead's original tour bus went on display at the Volo Auto Museum in Volo, Illinois. The 1965 Gillig bus, which Jerry Garcia and the rest of the Dead dubbed ‘Sugar Magnolia’ was used by the band on their frequent tours across the US between 1967 and 1985. The ceiling was lined with hundreds of vintage rock posters featuring The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and others who had visited the bus.
13 Sep 2005 The home where Jimi Hendrix grew up in Seattle was saved from demolition after a new location was agreed at the last minute. The James Marshall Hendrix Foundation and the City of Seattle agreed to renovate the building into a community centre opposite the cemetery where the guitarist was buried in 1970.
30 Jul 2005 A new book published to mark the 35th anniversary of the death of Jimi Hendrix claimed the guitarist pretended to be gay so he would be discharged from the army. 'Room Full of Mirrors' by Charles Cross said army records showed Hendrix was discharged from the 101st Airborne Division aged 19 in 1962 for "homosexual tendencies."
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27 May 2005 Robbie Williams was voted into first place beating Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix and David Bowie to be named the best live solo artist. A UK nation-wide survey of 5,000 people saw the former Take That star beat music icons including Madonna, Michael Jackson and Bob Dylan. U2 were named best live band, ahead of Queen and Oasis, in a poll by Carling to celebrate the UK's live music scene.
5 Mar 2005 A commemorative plaque for the The Jimi Hendrix Experience was unveiled in Loisin-sous-Lens. Hendrix had appeared at The Twenty Club when it opened in 1967. It was his first European tour where he was totally unknown. Club owner Rikki Stein stated: 'The place was packed and at the end of ’Wild Thing’, his first number, there was total silence. The entire audience just stood there, open-mouthed. They’d never seen or heard anything like it in their life'.
17 Feb 2005 A 1965 Fender Stratocaster guitar belonging to Jimi Hendrix sold for £100,000 at an auction in London. Other Hendrix items sold included a poem written two weeks after his appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival which went for £10,000 and the first Jimi Hendrix Experience's single 'Hey Joe', signed by all the band sold for £2,000.
28 Jan 2005 English drummer and singer songwriter Jim Capaldi died of stomach cancer aged 60. He co-founded Traffic with Steve Winwood who had the 1967 UK No.2 single 'Hole In My Shoe'. Capaldi also had the solo 1975 UK No.4 single 'Love Hurts'. Capaldi also worked with Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and George Harrison.
2 Oct 2003 A pair of trousers worn in 1984 by the late Queen star Freddie Mercury were sold to the Hard Rock Cafe for £4,230 at a Christie's auction of pop memorabilia held in London, England. A wooden sculpture of a cupboard, designed by John Lennon, claimed the highest price of the day, £28,200. Hundreds of items related to The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Jimi Hendrix also went under the hammer at the sale.
26 Aug 2003 Rolling Stone Magazine named Jimi Hendrix as the greatest guitarist in Rock history. Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Chuck Berry Stevie Ray Vaughan and Ry Cooder also made the top 10 list.
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11 May 2003 Jimi Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding died at his home in Ireland aged 57. Redding played on the classic Hendrix albums 'Are You Experienced', 'Axis: Bold as Love' and 'Electric Ladyland,' Right up until his death, Redding had been taking legal action against the Hendrix estate for payment estimated at £3.26 million for his part in recordings and for ongoing royalties. Had also been a member of Fat Mattress and formed The Noel Redding Band.
17 Apr 2003 Earl King the New Orleans Blues guitarist died aged 69. King wrote the classic song Come On, (Let The Good Times Roll), covered by Jimi Hendrix.
21 Jun 2001 John Lee Hooker, American blues singer and guitarist died in his sleep aged 83. Had hits with 'Boom Boom', 'Dimples' and 'I'm In The Mood'. His songs have been covered by many artists including Cream, AC/DC, ZZ Top, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Van Morrison, The Yardbirds, The Doors and The White Stripes. He appeared and sang in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers.
29 Jan 2001 A New York based data company issued a chart listing sales of posthumous albums. The idea came about after radio stations wanted to distinguish between proper recordings when the artists were alive and CD's released after they died. Mike Shalett founder of SoundScan said there was only one problem. What to call the chart. The Top 5 chart had The Doors at No.5, Eva Cassidy at 4, Jimi Hendrix at 3, Bob Marley at 2 and 2Pac at No.1.
17 Oct 2000 A flat in Montagu Square London, which was once owned during the 60s by Ringo Starr went on the market for £575,000. The two bedrooms, two-story property was also home for Jimi Hendrix, John & Yoko and Paul McCartney during the 60s.
20 Dec 1999 Readers of UK Guitar magazine voted Noel Gallagher the most overrated guitarist of the millennium. Jimi Hendrix was voted guitarist of the millennium with Nirvana's 'Nevermind' winning best album.
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29 Nov 1999 American singer and bandleader Curtis Knight died aged 54. Jimi Hendrix had been a member of his band in the 60s. Though Hendrix wasn't in the group very long, he was featured on over 60 songs, 26 studio and 35 live recordings some of which have been released on record.
4 Oct 1999 It was reported that the sister of Jimi Hendrix was planning to exhume her brothers body and move it to a pay-to view mausoleum. Other plans for the new site included a chance for fans to buy one of burial plots around the guitarist's new resting-place.
19 Jan 1998 American singer, songwriter Carl Perkins died aged 65 from throat cancer. He wrote the classic rock & roll song 'Blue Suede Shoes', the first record on the Sun label to sell a million copies. His songs were recorded by Elvis Presley, The Beatles Jimi Hendrix and Johnny Cash. Paul McCartney claimed that "if there were no Carl Perkins, there would be no Beatles."
14 Sep 1997 Over 2000 fans watched Pete Townshend unveil a English Heritage Blue Plaque at 23 Brook Street, Mayfair London, to mark where Jimi Hendrix had lived in 1968-69. Hendrix was the first pop star to be awarded with the plaque.
17 Jul 1996 Chas Chandler died aged 57 at Newcastle General Hospital, England, where he was undergoing tests related to an aortic aneurysm. He had been the bass player with The Animals and manager of Slade, Nick Drake and Jimi Hendrix.
5 Apr 1995 Monika Dannerman, the one time girlfriend of Jimi Hendrix committed suicide, two days after losing a court battle with another of the guitarist's ex-lovers.
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4 Nov 1991 Bobby "Blue" Bland, Booker T. & The M.G.s, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, The Isley Brothers, Sam & Dave and The Yardbirds were all elected to the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
26 Oct 1991 Legendary Rock concert promoter Bill Graham was killed when the Bell 206B JetRanger III helicopter he was riding in struck the top of a Pacific Gas and Electric transmission tower near Sears Point, northwest of Vallejo and exploded. The crash, which left the helicopter's wreckage dangling near the top of the towering structure, killed Graham, his girlfriend Melissa Gold and pilot Steve Kahn. Graham had founded the Fillmore theaters in San Francisco and New York and had played key roles in supporting such bands as The Who, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Janis Joplin, The Band, Bob Dylan, The J. Geils Band, The Allman Brothers Band and The Rolling Stones.
18 Aug 1991 Rick Griffin, died after being forced off the road by a van he was attempting to pass on his Harley Heritage Softail motorbike. One of his best known album covers was for the Grateful Dead's 'Aoxomoa' LP, and the legendary "Flying Eyeball" poster he designed for a series of concerts in San Francisco featuring the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Albert King and John Mayall.
16 Jun 1991 English singer Vicki Brown died of breast cancer aged 50. She is best known for her membership of both The Vernons Girls and The Breakaways, and as one of the UK's most enduring backing vocalists. She appeared on many hits including The Jimi Hendrix Experience version of 'Hey Joe', Petula Clark's hit, 'Downtown', The Who's Tommy – film soundtrack, George Harrison's Cloud Nine. She was the first wife of singer and musician Joe Brown and mother of the singer Sam Brown.
28 May 1990 Mitch Mitchell former drummer with The Jimi Hendrix Experience took out a High Court action against Private Eye magazine over an allegedly defamatory item.
25 Apr 1990 The Fender Stratocaster that Jimi Hendrix played at the Woodstock festival was auctioned off for a record $295,000. His two-hour set at the 1969 festival became the longest of his career.
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15 Mar 1988 Mick Jagger opened his first ever solo tour, his first ever performances in Japan and his first full concerts since 1982, with three shows at Osaka's Castle Hall in Osaka, Japan. The show was mostly made up of Rolling Stones songs, including songs not performed by the Stones for a long time, including 'Bitch', 'Gimmie Shelter', 'Ruby Tuesday' and 'Sympathy For The Devil' as well as the Jimi Hendrix song 'Foxy Lady'.
12 Jul 1983 Former Traffic member Chris Wood died of liver failure after a lengthy illness. He also played with Jimi Hendrix in 1968, appearing on the Electric Ladyland album and worked with Free, John Martyn and the Small Faces.
30 Jan 1982 Blues singer, songwriter, guitarist Sam Lightnin' Hopkins died of cancer aged 70. In 1968, Hopkins recorded the album Free Form Patterns, backed by the rhythm section of the psychedelic rock band 13th Floor Elevators. Hopkins influenced Bob Dylan, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix. R.E.M. recorded a song named after him on their Document album.
21 May 1980 A thief broke into Electric Lady Studios in New York City, the recording studio built by Jimi Hendrix and stole five Hendrix gold records for the albums ‘Are You Experienced’’, ‘Axis: Bold as Love’, ‘Cry of Love’, ‘Rainbow Bridge’ and Live at Monterey.
20 Jul 1977 Gary Kellgren studio engineer at the Los Angeles Record Plant studio drowned in a Hollywood Swimming pool. Kellgren had worked with John Lennon, George Harrison, Jimi Hendrix, Barbra Streisand and Rod Stewart.
5 Mar 1973 The former US manager of Jimi Hendrix Michael Jeffrey was one of 68 people killed in a plane crash in France. Jeffery was en-route to a court appearance in London related to Hendrix.
13 Jul 1972 During a North American tour The Rolling Stones played the first of two nights at the Cobo Hall, Detroit, Michigan. The Doors, Aerosmith, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Bruce Springsteen and Kiss have all appeared here.
21 Sep 1971 The first edition of the new BBC TV music show 'The Old Grey Whistle Test' was aired. Presented by Richard Williams, the show included; film clips of Jimi Hendrix from Monterey Festival playing 'Wild Thing', Bob Dylan playing 'Maggies Farm', plus America and Lesley Duncan 'live' in the studio. The influential show went on to enjoy a run from 1971 to 1987. According to presenter Bob Harris, the programme derived its name from a Tin Pan Alley phrase from years before. When they got the first pressing of a record they would play it to people they called the old greys—doormen in grey suits. The songs they could remember and whistle, having heard it just once or twice, had passed the old grey whistle test.
14 Sep 1971 During a US tour Led Zeppelin appeared at Berkley Community Theatre, Berkley, California. Countless major acts have appeared here, including Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Van Morrison, The Kinks, Bruce Springsteen, Genesis, Elvis Costello, The Clash, Iggy Pop and David Bowie.
11 Mar 1971 Jim Morrison of The Doors arrived in Paris booking into The Hotel George's. The following week he moved into an apartment at 17 Rue Beautreillis in Paris. Morrison lived in Paris until his death on July 3rd 1971, (two years to the day after the death of the Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones, and approximately nine months after the deaths of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin).
21 Nov 1970 Two months after his death Jimi Hendrix was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Voodoo Child (Slight Return)' the closing track on Electric Ladyland, the third and final album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. This was the guitarist's only UK No.1 single. Hendrix's solo on the track was named the 11th greatest solo of all-time in Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos.
1 Oct 1970 Jimi Hendrix was buried at The Greenwood Cemetery at the Dunlop Baptist Church, Seattle. Among the mourners; Miles Davis, Eric Burdon, Johnny Winter and members of Derek and the Dominoes.
18 Sep 1970 Jimi Hendrix was pronounced dead on arrival at St. Mary Abbot's Hospital in London at the age of 27 after choking on his own vomit. Hendrix left the message 'I need help bad man', on his managers answer phone earlier that night. Rumors and conspiracy theories grew up around Hendrix’s death. Eric Burdon claimed Jimi had committed suicide, but that’s contradicted by reports that he was in a good frame of mind. In 2009, a former Animals roadie published a book claiming that Jimi’s manager had admitted to him that he arranged the murder of Hendrix, since the guitarist wanted out of his contract.
16 Sep 1970 Jimi Hendrix joined Eric Burdon on stage at Ronnie Scotts in London for what would become the guitarist's last ever public appearance.
11 Sep 1970 NME’s Keith Allston interviewed Jimi Hendrix in England. The interview turned out to be Hendrix's last; he died a mere seven days later. During the interview, Hendrix talked about a new musical phase, with planned collaborations with Miles Davis and Paul McCartney.
6 Sep 1970 Jimi Hendrix made his final live appearance when he appeared at the Isle Of Fehmarn in Germany. The guitarist died 12 days later on 18th Sept 1970 after choking on his own vomit.
26 Aug 1970 Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix, (his last ever UK appearance), Donovan, Jethro Tull, Miles Davis, Arrival, Cactus, Family, Taste, Mungo Jerry, ELP, The Doors, The Who, Spirit, The Moody Blues, Chicago, Procol Harum, Sly and the Family Stone and Free all appeared over three days at the third Isle Of Wight Festival. Weekend tickets, £3.
26 Aug 1970 A party was held to celebrate the official opening of 'Electric Ladyland' studios in New York City, New York. Artists who went on to record at the studio include: Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon, AC/DC, David Bowie, Stevie Wonder, Frank Zappa and Guns N' Roses.
26 Jul 1970 Jimi Hendrix played in his home town of Seattle for the last time when he appeared at Sicks Stadium.
8 Dec 1969 On trial in Canada on drug possession charges, Jimi Hendrix told a Toronto court that he had only smoked pot four times in his life, snorted cocaine twice and took LSD no more than five times. Telling the jury that he had now 'outgrown' drugs. They found the guitarist not guilty.
4 Sep 1969 The film 'Easy Rider' starring Jack Nicholson Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper opened at The Classic in London England. The movie's soundtrack featured The Band, The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Steppenwolf.
17 Aug 1969 The final day of the 3 day Woodstock Festival took place at Max Yasgur's farm in Bethel, New York. Acts who appeared included Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Ten Years After, John Sebastian, Sha Na Na, Joe Cocker, Country Joe and the Fish, The Band, Ten Years After, Johnny Winter and Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Over 186,000 tickets had been sold but on the first day, the flimsy fences and ticket barriers had come down. Organizers announced the concert would be a free event, prompting thousands more to head for the concert.
15 Aug 1969 Woodstock Festival was held on Max Yasgur's 600 acre farm in Bethel outside New York. Attended by over 400,000 people, the event featured, Jimi Hendrix, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Santana, The Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Canned Heat, Joan Baez, Melanie, Ten Years After, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shanker, Country Joe and the Fish, Blood Sweat and Tears, Arlo Guthrie, and Joe Cocker. During the three days there were three deaths, two births and four miscarriages.
2 Jul 1969 Bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell quit The Jimi Hendrix Experience after completing the three-day Denver Pop Festival. Hendrix and drummer Mitch Mitchell would later team with bassist Billy Cox to form the short-lived Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, who played at the Woodstock Festival.
20 Jun 1969 The first of a three day Festival in Newport, California, featuring: Ike and Tina Turner, Marvin Gaye, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Byrds, The Rascals, Steppenwolf, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Janis Joplin, Johnny Winter, Eric Burdon and Love. A three day ticket cost $15 (£8.80). Jimi Hendrix received $125,000 for his appearance. At the time it was the highest fee ever paid to a rock act for a single appearance.
3 May 1969 Jimi Hendrix was arrested by police on his way to Toronto for possession of hashish and heroin. Hendrix claimed the drugs had been planted on him.
24 Feb 1969 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their last British performance when they appeared at the Royal Albert Hall, London. During the encore of 'Purple Haze' and 'Wild Thing' the stage was invaded by fans, police, bouncers, floor managers and practically the entire audience.
13 Feb 1969 A launch party was held for the release of Mary Hopkin's album Postcard at the Post Office Tower in London. Guests included Jimi Hendrix, Donovan and Paul McCartney with his new girlfriend Linda Eastman.
3 Jan 1969 Appearing live on The Lulu show on UK TV, The Jimi Hendrix Experience were booked to perform two songs, 'Voodoo Child', (which was performed in full), then Hendrix stopped performing his new single 'Hey Joe' after a verse and chorus and instead launched into a version of the Cream song 'Sunshine Of Your Love' as a tribute to the band who had split a few days earlier. Hendrix then proceeded to continuing jamming, running over their allocated time slot on the live show, preventing the show's host Lulu from closing the show properly.
28 Dec 1968 The three day Miami Pop festival took place, the first major rock festival held on the East Coast of the US, with The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Chuck Berry, The McCoys, Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac, Marvin Gaye, The Turtles, The Box Tops, Steppenwolf, Three Dog Night, Pacific Gas and Electric, Procol Harum, Canned Heat, Iron Butterfly and Grateful Dead.
28 Dec 1968 Pink Floyd appeared at the two day festival Flight To Lowlands Paradise II, Margriethal-Jaarbeurs, Utrecht, The Netherlands, (replacing The Jimi Hendrix Experience). Other acts appearing included Jethro Tull, Jeff Beck, The Pretty Things and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.
16 Nov 1968 The Jimi Hendrix Experience went to No.1 on the US album chart with their third and final studio album Electric Ladyland. The double album included ‘Crosstown Traffic,’ ‘Voodoo Chile’ and a version of Bob Dylan's ‘All Along the Watchtower’. Hendrix expressed displeasure and embarrassment with this "naked lady" cover which was banned by several record dealers as "pornographic", while others sold it with the gatefold cover turned inside out.
12 Nov 1968 UK book and record chain W.H. Smiths refused to display The Jimi Hendrix Experience album 'Electric Ladyland' due to the naked girls featured on the sleeve. The album was then made available as two albums with changed artwork after the complaints.
25 Oct 1968 The double album 'Electric Ladyland' by the The Jimi Hendrix Experience was released. It was also made available as two albums with changed artwork after complaints about the naked women who were pictured on the sleeve. The female models were each paid £5 for the photo shoot and another £5 if they posed completely naked.
2 Sep 1968 Jimi Hendrix Experience released a cover of the Bob Dylan song 'All Along the Watchtower', nine months after the original version hit the airwaves. The song became Hendrix’s biggest hit in the US, landing in the Billboard Hot 100’s Top 20, and, later, would influence Dylan’s live renditions of the song. In a 1995 interview with South Florida’s Sun Sentinel, Dylan described hearing Hendrix’s version: "It overwhelmed me, really. He had such talent, he could find things inside a song and vigorously develop them. He found things that other people wouldn't think of finding in there."
23 Aug 1968 During a North American tour The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at Singer Bowl, Flushing Meadow Park, New York. Also on the bill was Soft Machine and Big Brother and the Holding Company.
19 Jul 1968 Pink Floyd played the second of three nights at the Boston Tea Party, Boston, Massachusetts. Opened in January 1967 as a psychedelic club, many many famous artists, including Grateful Dead, Neil Young, The J. Geils Band, Frank Zappa, Cream, Fleetwood Mac, The Allman Brothers Band, Led Zeppelin, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Jeff Beck, The Who, Santana, Taj Mahal, Ten Years After and Sly & the Family Stone all appeared.
8 Jul 1968 Pink Floyd kicked off their first 20-date North American tour at the Kinetic Playground in Chicago. The club became a driving force in the music business, hosting famous rock acts such as The Doors, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Byrds, Janis Joplin, The Mothers of Invention, Grateful Dead, MC5, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, Iron Butterfly, Fleetwood Mac, Muddy Waters, Vanilla Fudge and Jefferson Airplane.
6 Jul 1968 Woburn Music Festival, Woburn Abbey, Bedfordshire took place. A two-day affair featuring Donovan, Fleetwood Mac, Pentangle, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Alexis Korner, Family, Taste, Tim Rose, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Duster Bennett and Tyrannosaurus Rex, two-day tickets were priced at £2.
5 Jun 1968 The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared on the Dusty Springfield TV show 'It Music Be Dusty', filmed on ATV, in London, England. Hendrix performed 'Stone Free' and 'Voodoo Chile' and then played a version of 'Mockingbird' with Dusty Springfield.
18 May 1968 The first Miami Pop event took place with an estimated 100,000 people attending the concert, which was promoted by Richard O'Barry & Michael Lang (later famous as the promoter of Woodstock). Bands featured at the festival included Steppenwolf, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Mothers of Invention, Blue Cheer, Chuck Berry, The Blues Image, Pacific Gas and Electric, Three Dog Night and the Crazy World of Arthur Brown.
3 May 1968 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded 'Voodoo Chile.' It was featured on the 'Electric Ladyland' double album and became a UK No.1 single on 21st November 1970 two months after the guitarist's death. Hendrix's solo on the track was named the 11th greatest solo of all-time in Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos.
28 Mar 1968 Pink Floyd recorded a performance for the BBC 2 TV Omnibus - The Sound of Change show from Barnes Common, London, England. The special, which was produced by Tony Palmer, also featured performances by The Who, Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience. The show was later broadcast in September of this year.
21 Jan 1968 Jimi Hendrix recorded his version of the Bob Dylan song 'All Along the Watchtower' at Olympic Studios in London. Rolling Stone Brian Jones (percussion) and Dave Mason from Traffic (twelve-string guitar) both played on the session. The track was released in the US as a single in 1968, peaking at No.20.
5 Jan 1968 Jimi Hendrix was jailed for one day in Stockholm, Sweden on drink charges after going berserk and destroying everything in his room at the Goteberg Hotel.
22 Dec 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, The Who, Keith West and Tomorrow, Eric Burdon & The Animals, 1984 (featuring future Queen guitarist Brian May) and Soft Machine all appeared at The Olympia, London at an all night festival 'Christmas On Earth Continued'. The DJ was John Peel plus the venue featured a paddling pool, light shows and a movie theatre, tickets £1.
5 Dec 1967 This was the final night of a 16-date UK package tour with Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice, The Outer Limits, The Erie Apparent and Amen Corner at Green's Playhouse, Glasgow. All performances had two shows per night, in this case at 6.15pm, with the second at 8.45pm. Jimi Hendrix had the curtains closed on him halfway through his set, after the management at the venue regarded his movements with his guitar as having sexual overtones.
4 Dec 1967 This was the penultimate night of a 16-date UK package tour, on which Pink Floyd joined The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Move, The Nice, The Eire Apparent, The Outer Limits and Amen Corner to play at the City Hall, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. Jimi Hendrix was having equipment problems and in his frustration rammed his Gibson Flying V into his speaker cabinets. Like an enormous arrow, the guitar became stuck in the amplifier, which the audience greeted as all was part of the act.
1 Dec 1967 Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, Nice, Outer Limits and Amen Corner played at the Central Hall, Chatham. The Chatham Standard later reported: ‘Hendrix opened his act with the Beatles’ number Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and the three-piece group made as much of an impression as a studio full of musicians. He did several of his own numbers, including unfaultable versions of 'Hey Joe' and 'Purple Haze' and The Troggs 'Wild Thing'.
1 Dec 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience released their second studio album Axis: Bold as Love. Hendrix expressed dismay regarding the album cover art, which depicts him and the Experience as various forms of Vishnu, incorporating a painting of them by Roger Law, from a photo-portrait by Karl Ferris. Hendrix stated that the cover would have been more appropriate had it highlighted his American Indian heritage.
27 Nov 1967 The 16-date UK package tour with Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice, The Outer Limits, The Eire Apparent and Amen Corner travelled to Belfast to appear for two shows at the Whitla Hall, Queens College. It was Jimi's 25th birthday and before the shows, the guitarist was given a birthday cake by the promoters This was to be the only concert that The Jimi Hendrix Experience ever played in Ireland.
26 Nov 1967 This was the 10th date on a 16-date UK package tour that Pink Floyd played alongside The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Move, The Nice, The Eire Apparent, The Outer Limits and Amen Corner. Tonight's date was at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, and as with all of the dates, there were two shows per night.
23 Nov 1967 A 16 date UK package tour played its 7th night at the Sophia Gardens Pavilion, Cardiff. Featuring The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice, The Outer Limits, The Eire Apparent and Amen Corner, the entourage performed twice nightly. In 1974, Pink Floyd returned to the venue, which has since been demolished, to be replaced by the 'Really Welsh Pavilion'.
17 Nov 1967 A 16 date UK package tour with Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice and Amen Corner played at the City Hall, Sheffield. A review in the Sheffield Star noted: 'Like an electrified golliwog, Jimi Hendrix threw himself into a live-wire act that featured his intricate guitar interpretation. Quite an Experience'. Pink Floyd also released their third single Apples And Oranges today in the UK.
14 Nov 1967 Pink Floyd were added to a 16-date UK tour with Jimi Hendrix, The Move, The Nice, Amen Corner, The Outer Limits and The Eire Apparent. It kicked off at the Royal Albert Hall, London. The headlining Hendrix was allotted exactly 40 minutes; The Move, who preceded him onstage, had just half an hour, and Pink Floyd, who appeared between after The Outer Limits, were allowed between 15 and 20 minutes per show.
6 Nov 1967 During a three hour session Bob Dylan recorded ‘All Along The Watchtower’ and ‘John Wesley Harding’ at Columbia Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. The Jimi Hendrix Experience later recorded their version of ‘All Along the Watchtower' on January 21, 1968, at Olympic Studios in London after Hendrix had been given a tape of Dylan’s recording by publicist Michael Goldstein, who worked for Dylan’s manager Albert Grossman.
8 Oct 1967 Jimi Hendrix, Arthur Brown and John's Children all appeared at the Saville Theatre in London, England.
6 Oct 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded a session for the UK BBC radio show 'Top Gear.' Stevie Wonder who was also appearing on the show jammed with Hendrix.
16 Sep 1967 Jimi Hendrix's debut LP, Are You Experienced? entered the Billboard Hot 200 album chart, where it stayed for 106 weeks, including 77 weeks in the Top 40. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked it No.15 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and two years later it was selected for permanent preservation in the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress in the United States.
22 Aug 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared on the UK BBC TV Simon Dee show. Kiki Dee and Cat Stevens were also guests on the show.
15 Aug 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played a one night only show at The Fifth Dimension club, Ann Arbor, Michigan. The club is now demolished.
3 Aug 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played the first of five nights at the Salvation Club in New York City. During this period a typical set list included: 'Foxy Lady', 'Hey Joe', 'The Wind Cries Mary', 'Purple Haze' and 'Burning Of The Midnight Amp'.
21 Jul 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played the first of three nights at the Cafe-a-Go-Go in New York City. The club featured many well known acts including: Grateful Dead, Tim Buckley, Joni Mitchell,Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Jefferson Airplane, and Cream who all appeared at the club.
9 Jul 1967 On a US tour supporting The Monkees, The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at the Convention Hall, Miami, Florida. After it became plainly apparent that the group is not suited to teenybopper audiences, the tour’s promoter Dick Clark and Hendrix’s manager Chas Chandler concoct a story saying that the conservative Daughters of the American Revolution group had complained at Jimi’s act and so the Experience left the tour after just six shows.
8 Jul 1967 The Monkees began a 29-date tour with The Jimi Hendrix Experience as support act. Hendrix was dropped after six shows after being told his act was not suitable for their teenybopper audience.
25 Jun 1967 During a north American tour The Jimi Hendrix Experience gave a free afternoon concert in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. They then played another two shows that evening at the Fillmore West.
16 Jun 1967 The three day Monterey Pop Festival in California began. All the proceeds went to charity when all the artists agreed to perform for free, the 'Summer of Love' was born. The festival saw the first major US appearances by The Who, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. Also on the bill: The Byrds, Grateful Dead, Otis Redding, Simon And Garfunkel, The Steve Miller Band, Canned Heat, The Mamas & the Papas, Jefferson Airplane, Buffalo Springfield and The Electric Flag. John Phillips, of The Mamas & the Papas wrote, 'San Francisco, (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)' to promote the festival, which later became a hit for Scott McKenzie.
14 Jun 1967 The Doors appeared at Steve Paul's Scene, New York City, Jimi Hendrix was in the audience to see the show.
4 Jun 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Procol Harum, Denny Laine and The Chiffons all appeared at The Saville Theatre, London. Both Paul McCartney and George Harrison were in the audience to see Hendrix perform the title track from Sgt. Pepper which had been released just three days earlier.
29 May 1967 The Move, Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, Zoot Money, Geno Washington and The Ram Jam Band all appeared at the Tulip Bulb Auction Hall in Spalding, Lincoln, England. Pink Floyd were only a support band and played in a corner of the shed with a white sheet behind them with the coloured oil shining onto it. Tickets cost £1 ($1.70). The poster advertising the show promised a 'Knockout Atmosphere'.
21 May 1967 Jimi Hendrix signed with Reprise Records on the US Warner Brothers label. They released the guitarist's albums Are You Experienced? Axis: Bold as Love and Electric Ladyland.
12 May 1967 Are You Experienced by the Jimi Hendrix Experience was released in the UK. It is widely regarded as one of the greatest debuts in the history of rock music. The album features Jimi Hendrix's innovative approach to songwriting and electric guitar playing which soon established a new direction in psychedelic and hard rock music. The album spent 33 weeks on the UK charts and 106 weeks on the US Billboard Top LPs chart.
9 May 1967 Sandie Shaw was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Puppet On A String'. This week's two highest new entries were Jimi Hendrix with 'The Wind Cries Mary' and The Kinks 'Waterloo Sunset'.
7 May 1967 Pink Floyd appeared at The Mojo Club, Tollbar, Sheffield, England, opened and owned by Peter Stringfellow. Acts who have also appeared at the club include Stevie Wonder, John Lee Hooker, Rod Stewart, Ike and Tina Turner, The Who, Small Faces and Jimi Hendrix.
6 May 1967 Jimi Hendrix, The Walker Brothers, Engelbert Humperdink and Cat Stevens all appeared at the Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, Lancashire, England.
4 May 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared on UK TV's Top Of The Pops, performing 'Purple Haze'. During afternoon rehearsals for the show, Mick Jagger went into the studio to see Jimi Hendrix.
15 Apr 1967 Jimi Hendrix, The Walker Brothers, Cat Stevens and Engelbert Humperdinck all appeared at the The Odeon, Blackpool, England, tickets cost 5 and 10 shillings, ($0.70 and $1.40).
4 Apr 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience,The Walker Brothers, Engelbert Humperdink and Cat Stevens played two shows at Bournemouth Winter Gardens, England. The Jimi Hendrix Experience were also the special guests on the first edition of the UK BBC-TV's 'Dee Time', along with Kiki Dee and Cat Stevens.
31 Mar 1967 Jimi Hendrix set fire to his guitar live on stage for the first time when he was appearing at The Astoria in London, England. It was the first night of a 24-date tour with The Walker Brothers, Cat Stevens and Engelbert Humperdink. The Fender Stratocaster burned on stage by Hendrix sold for £280,000 at a 2008 London auction of rock memorabilia.
30 Mar 1967 During an appearance by Jimi Hendrix on Top Of The Pops a technician put on the backing track of Alan Price's 'Simon Smith and His Amazing Dancing Bear', to which Hendrix responded 'I don't know the words to this one man.'
17 Mar 1967 Jimi Hendrix Experience released 'Purple Haze' in the UK, (US release was June 19). Hendrix had read Night of Light, a 1966 novel by Philip José Farmer. In the story set on a distant planet, sunspots produced a "purplish haze" which had a disorienting effect on the inhabitants. It is thought that Hendrix took this as the idea for the songs lyrics.
2 Feb 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at the Blue Pad Club in Darlington, England which was part of the Imperial Hotel Complex on Grange Road. The show was advertised as "Don't miss this man who is Dylan, Clapton, and James Brown all in one". After the show, as the roadies were loading up a van, one of Hendrix's Fender guitars was stolen.
29 Jan 1967 Jimi Hendrix and The Who appeared at The Saville Theatre, London, England. 20 year-old future Queen guitarist Brian May was in the audience.
18 Jan 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded an appearance on UK TV show Top Of The Pops performing a live version of "Hey Joe". They also played a show at the Seven and a Half Club in Mayfair, London during the evening.
17 Jan 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded a session for Radio Luxembourg's Ready Steady Radio. The band ran up a bar bill of £2.5 shillings, ($6.21), which they were unable to pay.
13 Jan 1967 Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr both went to the Bag O'Nails Club, London, England to see the Jimi Hendrix Experience.
11 Jan 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded 'Purple Haze' at De Lane Lea studios in London. Hendrix later stated 'The Purple Haze,' was about a dream he had and that he was walking under the sea." In concert, Hendrix sometimes substituted lyrics for comic effect; "'scuse me while I kiss the sky" was rendered "'scuse me while I kiss this guy" (while gesturing towards his drummer Mitch Mitchell).
4 Jan 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played the first of what would be over 240 gigs in this year when they appeared at the Bromel Club, Bromley. (Many of the concerts were two shows per night).
29 Dec 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience made their debut on the UK TV show Top Of The Pops performing 'Hey Joe'.
26 Dec 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played an afternoon show at The Uppercut Club, London, (where he was billed as "The American Top soul Singer - Jimi Hendrix"). Hendrix also wrote the lyrics to Purple Haze in the dressing room on the same day.
16 Dec 1966 The first Jimi Hendrix Experience single 'Hey Joe', was released in the UK on Polydor records, the track had been rejected by the Decca label. It went on to be a No.6 hit in the UK, but failed to chart in America. Chas Chandler, who was now managing Hendrix had seen Folk singer Tim Rose perform the song at the Cafe Wha? in New York City.
13 Dec 1966 Jimi Hendrix made his TV debut on ITV's 'Ready Steady Go!' (Marc Bolan was also on the show). The Jimi Hendrix Experience also recorded 'Foxy Lady' on this day. The United States version of Are You Experienced listed the song with a spelling mistake as 'Foxey Lady' and this is how it is still known among many North American fans.
25 Nov 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience made their UK live debut at the Bag O'Nails Club, London, where they played using the clubs DJ booth. Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, The Beatles, Mick Jagger, Brian Jones, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, The Hollies, and the Small Faces would all hang out at the club.
23 Oct 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded their first single 'Hey Joe', at De Lane Lea studios in London. The earliest known commercial recording of the song is the late-1965 single by the Los Angeles garage band the The Leaves; the band then re-recorded the track and released it in 1966 as a follow-up single which became a hit.
18 Oct 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their first gig as a band supporting French pop star Johnny Hallyday at the Paris Olympia in France.
5 Oct 1966 Having moved to and living in London, England, Jimi Hendrix, Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding played together for the first time - The Jimi Hendrix Experience were formed.
1 Oct 1966 Jimi Hendrix appeared live for the first time in the UK when he jammed with Cream at their gig at London Polytechnic. Hendrix made his official UK live debut a month later on Friday 25 Nov 1966, when the Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at the Bag O'Nails Club, London.
24 Sep 1966 Jimi Hendrix arrived in London with manager Chas chandler on a flight from New York City. With only the clothes he was wearing, Hendrix had sold his other belongings to pay a hotel bill in New York. One of the first things he did after arriving in England was to legally change his name from James to Jimi.
5 Jul 1966 On the recommendation of Rolling Stone Keith Richards' girlfriend, Chas Chandler from The Animals went to see Jimi Hendrix play at The Cafe Wha in New York City. Chandler suggests that Hendrix should come to England, which he does and Chandler became his manager.
13 Mar 1966 Pink Floyd appeared for the first time at The The Marquee Club in Wardour Street, London, England. The Marquee became the most important venue for the emerging British scene and witnessed the rise of some of the most important artists in the 1960s and 1970s, such as Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Manfred Mann, The Who, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Jethro Tull, King Crimson and Genesis.
15 Oct 1965 Jimi Hendrix signed his first recording contract. The 3-year deal with PPX Productions gave him one dollar plus one per cent of his royalties on his records. The deal caused major legal issues in the years to come.
1 Dec 1964 The Who played the first of 22 consecutive Tuesday night gigs at The Marquee Club in London, the band were paid £50 for each gig. The Marquee Club saw the rise of some of the most important British artists in the 60s such as Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Cream, Manfred Mann, The Nice, Yes, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, King Crimson and many others who all appeared at the club.
5 Jan 1964 The Rolling Stones performed at the Ricky Tick club at the Olympia Ballroom in Reading, England. During the 1960s, the club was host to many important acts such as The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and Cream. The Yardbirds were filmed performing in a recreation of the club built at MGM Studios in Borehamwood for Michelangelo Antonioni's 1966 film Blow-Up.
21 Jun 1963 The Rolling Stones played at Ricky Tick Club, Star and Garter Hotel, Windsor, Berks. The influential 1960s rhythm & blues club in Windsor, Berkshire, was the host to many important acts such as The Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and Cream.
24 May 1963 US blues guitarist and singer Elmore James died of a heart attack aged 45. James wrote 'Shake Your Money Maker', which was covered by Fleetwood Mac in 1968. Known as "The King of the Slide Guitar", James influenced Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Keith Richards.
2 Jul 1962 Jimi Hendrix was honourably discharged from the 101st Airborne Paratroopers, after breaking his ankle during his 26th and final parachute jump.
1 May 1962 The Beatles started a month long residency at The Star Club, Hamburg, Germany. American musicians including Ray Charles, Bo Diddley, Fats Domino, Everly Brothers, Bill Haley, Jimi Hendrix and Jerry Lee Lewis also all appeared here. The club had a capacity of 2,000 people, and cinema-style seating was destroyed by a fire in 1987.
13 Feb 1960 Frank Sinatra launched his own record label, Reprise Records, in order to allow more artistic freedom for his own recordings. Hence, he garnered the nickname "The Chairman of the Board."One of the label’s founding principles under Sinatra’s leadership was that each artist would have full creative freedom, and at some point complete ownership of their work. Reprise later became the home of many influential US acts such as Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman and The Beach Boys.
20 Feb 1959 16 year old Jimi Hendrix made his stage debut when he played a show at the Temple De Hirsch Sinai synagogue in Seattle
7 Feb 1959 New Orleans blues guitarist Guitar Slim died of pneumonia aged 32. Born Eddie Jones he is best known for the million-selling song ‘The Things That I Used to Do’. Slim had a major impact on rock and roll and experimented with distorted overtones on the electric guitar a full decade before Jimi Hendrix. He became known for his wild stage act and had an assistant who followed him around the audience with up to 350 feet of cord between his guitar and his amplifier, and occasionally rode on his assistant's shoulders or even took his guitar outside the club, bringing traffic to a stop.
6 Jan 1958 Gibson guitars launched it' 'Flying V' electric guitar. Guitarists who played a Flying V include, Albert Collins, Jimi Hendrix, Marc Bolan and Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top.
2 Jan 1926 The first issue of The Melody Maker went on sale priced at 3d. The monthly magazine was for 'all who are interested in the production of popular music'. In the first issue, Dance Band news, a feature on Ukuleles and how to read music by sight. Advertisements in Melody Maker helped assemble the line-ups of a number of major bands, including: The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Supertramp and The Stranglers.

7 Comments

Pam Blick

April 13, 2020 at 3:59 pm

Hello, I was a student at Portsmouth Polytechnic 1966-69, and was at the Portsmouth Guildhall gig in 1967. I had eaten hash before the gig and was very aware when Hendrix came on that he had been smoking marijuana. I found his smashing up and setting light to an old guitar at the end annoying and somewhat beneath him. The management probably insisted on it. I thought “come on Jimi you don’t need those tricks”.
I have absolutely no memory of the rest of the bands on that night! Very surprised to see now that Floyd were on too. That’s amazing.
Those certainly were the days for live music ….. I’m so glad I lived through those times.
Pam Blick
Paul Tomlinson

December 23, 2020 at 2:24 pm

saw this tour at the Theatre Royal Nottingham, Hendrix was passing bits of his guitar to a rather nice looking young lady in the box next to the stage :-)
Geoffrey Walker

March 25, 2021 at 7:24 pm

I was also at the Portsmouth Guildhall in 1967. Apart from the other bands mentioned also appearing were Eire Apparent, who were under the same management as Jimi. The compere was Pete Drummond. The other bands were great, especially The Nice and Amen Corner but we were all waiting for Jimi to appear. It was a night to remember but spoilt to a degree by the awful sound quality. Jimi’s guitar was so high pitched it was painful to listen to and most people had their hands over their ears to save their hearing. Jimi apologised but nothing was done to tone it down. I am glad I was there but didn’t enjoy it as much as I should.
Ian Smith

May 5, 2021 at 6:21 am

I was at the Coventry gig with friends from school in Stratford on Avon. My dad took us to a lot of gigs in the midlands but this one always stood out as having an amazing lineup. I’d forgotten about Amen Corner but we were all fans of the Nice, Floyd and Hendrix. My son found this article as it was one I often mentioned (banged on about). It’s was almost a mini festival in a theatre.
Mike Bailey

July 30, 2021 at 10:52 am

I was at the Green’s Playhouse event with my mate George Rae. It was the first of the many gigs and festivals I was to go to over the next 50+ years.
The last gigs I have been to were ELO and Jean Michel Jarre in Manchester. Don’t go to many now but do try to get to my local venue the Met in Bury.
Julie Coultas

July 23, 2022 at 4:15 pm

I saw Jimi Hendrix and the other bands on this tour at the Liverpool Empire November 1967. I was sixteen and working in Liverpool. Someone had a spare 7/6 ticket. I went on my own. I don’t think I knew some of the other bands – I was still going to the Soul clubs in Liverpool. But all these years later I can still remember Hendrix playing the guitar with his teeth. What a performance! Hendrix’s experimentation with rock and roll has never been surpassed.

In terms of experimentation and the other progressive bands – we saw The Nice in 1970 at Philharmonic Hall; that just made me realise what we lost when Jimi died…
Phil Stodart

September 24, 2023 at 10:10 am

Yes, I was there, all bands listed as I remember them, I believe our tickets were 13/6d, which fits the peramiters mentioned in the above article. I remember when the Pink Floyd came on someone threw a newspaper or the like at them, I assumed because the large screen was placed behind the Floyd for their light show, blocking the view for the rear seats.

I think it was the Nice debut.

Memorable days in the progression of UK music.

Phil Stodart.

Wild Things

Important Dates In The Life Of Jimi Hendrix:

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