All Along the Watchtower
Hear My Train A Comin'
Red House
Purple Haze
James Marshall Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942 – September 18, 1970) was an
American guitarist, singer and songwriter whose guitar playing continues to be a considerable
influence on rock music.  After initial success in Europe, he achieved fame in the United States
following his 1967 performance at the Monterey Pop Festival. Later, Hendrix headlined the iconic
1969 Woodstock Festival and the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.

Hendrix often favored raw overdriven amplifiers with high gain and treble and helped develop the
previously undesirable technique of guitar feedback.  Hendrix, along with bands such as Cream was
one of the musicians who popularized the wah-wah pedal in mainstream rock which he often used
to deliver an exaggerated pitch in his solos, particularly with high bends and use of legato based
around the pentatonic scale. He was influenced by blues artists such as B. B. King, Muddy Waters,
Howlin' Wolf, Albert King, and Elmore James, rhythm and blues and soul guitarists Curtis Mayfield,
Steve Cropper, as well as by some modern jazz.  In 1966, Jimi Hendrix, who played and recorded
with Little Richard's band from 1964 to 1965, was quoted as saying, "I want to do with my guitar
what Little Richard does with his voice."

Hendrix synthesized many styles in creating his musical voice and his guitar style was unique, later
to be abundantly imitated by others. Despite his hectic touring schedule and notorious
perfectionism, he was a prolific recording artist and left behind more than 300 unreleased recordings.

His career and untimely death has grouped him with Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison as one of
contemporary music's tragic "three J's", iconic 1960s rock stars that suffered drug-related deaths at
age 27 within months of each other, leaving legacies in death that have eclipsed the popularity and
influence they experienced during their lifetimes.

Musically, Hendrix did much to further the development of the electric guitar's repertoire,
establishing it as a unique sonic source, rather than merely an amplified version of the acoustic
guitar. Likewise, his feedback, wah-wah and fuzz-laden soloing moved guitar distortion well beyond
mere novelty, incorporating other effects pedals and units specifically designed for him by his sound
technician Roger Mayer (such as the Octavia and Univibe) with dramatic results.

--
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: January 15, 2009
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimi_Hendrix)
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