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                        Jimi Hendrix

   Seattle, WA has had a large effect on American music in general.   Most people largely assume Seattle's only musical legacy is the  Grunge sound of Nirvana and the like, or Hip Hop's Sir Mix-A-Lot      (best known for 'Baby Got Back' and 'Jump On It').  Notable as those  examples are, they are far from the only ones.  Ray Charles began his  professional career after relocating to Seattle, Quincy Jones was born  and raised in Seattle and Wes Montgomery and his 2 brothers spent a  large amount of time living and working in the area.  Perhaps the best  known native son musician of  Seattle is Jimi Hendrix.
 
 Born to Al Hendrix and Lucille Jeter Hendrix on November 27, 1942,   Buster (as he was nicknamed, after the character Buster Brown) grew  up a shy and sensitive boy.  At age 4, Al legally changed his  son's name from Johnny Allen Hendrix to James Marshall Hendrix.  The remainder of his troubled childhood, he'd be known as Jimmy or James.  Young James was deeply affected by two milestone events of his youth.  At age nine his parents were divorced and in 1958 his mother was called home.
 
Jimi's first musical influences were Elvis Presley and Little Richard.  He was exposed to the blues through someone who rented a room from his Father.  The tenant always played the music of Lightnin Hopkins, Muddy Waters and others.  Another profound influence for the legendary guitarist was western movie and TV character Johnny 'Guitar' Logan.  The character was known for helping people, rather than a pistol, his weapon of choice was a guitar.
 
Hendrix got his very first guitar around age 14, literally retrieving what another kid had tossed out.  The instrument was was in bad shape to say the least, being battered beyond belief,  it only had one string.  However, as it was his, Jimi wore it on his back with pride, much like his hero Johnny Guitar.  This very guitar was also what caused Jimi to learn how to experiment with sound.  Later, his father bought Jimi his first electric guitar, a white Supro Ozark.  Jimi would  flip over and reversed the strings so he could play it as a left-handed guitar.  The guitar-great learned many playing techniques by listening to and watching the stylings of T-Bone Walker and Chuck Berry.
 
His first band was a silver-lining of sorts.  Hendrix' first gig went slightly less than well.  He was fired between sets at an area synagogue.  However from the experience came the formation of his band,  'The Velvetones.'  The band played numerous shows at the Yesler Terrace Neighborhood House.  The venue also held the dubious distinction of being where his Supro Ozark was stolen.  Al then bought Jimi a Silvertone Danelectro guitar, which Jimi promptly painted red and had the name of his High School sweetheart, Betty Jean, printed on.
 
Hendrix's next band would be 'The Kasuals,' was composed of stations at Fort Campbell (Kentucky).  Less than a year later Jimi was discharged.  He and bandmember Billy Cox then moved to Clarksville, TN and reformed their group with the name 'The King Kasuals.'  Eventually the group moved on to Nashville, TN where Hendrix experienced his first studio session in November 1962.  That was another, less than progressive, 'first' for Jimi as his parts were cut because people were not ready for his wild style of playing.
 
Over the next 3 years Hendrix toured the 'Chitlin Circuit' with The King Kasuals, Chuck Jackson, Slim Harpo, Tommy Tucker, Sam Cooke and Jackie WIlson.  Due to the hardships and racism of the South's Chiltin Circuit, Jimi left for greener pastures in New York.
 
January of 1964, Hendrix moved to Harlem, where he instantly met girlfriend Lithofayne Pridgeon and the Aleem Twins.  Through Pridgeon and the twins, Hendrix was introduced to the Harlem scene and was able to develop a graceful way of dealing with political groups like the Black Panthers.  A month later, Hendrix won Amateur Night at The Apollo Theatre.  However, despite that accomplishment and the connections it provided, Jimi still had difficulty breaking into the NY music scene.
 
His experience in the Black capitol of Amerika wasn't all bad, though, while there he earned a place as guitarist for The Isley Brother's national tour.  This would lead to Hendrix's first successful studio session, playing on the Isley Brother's hit 'Testify.'  Once the tour hit Nashville, Jimi left to tour with Gorgeous George Odell.  Once in Atlanta, Hendrix was then hired by Little Richard to play as a member of The Upsetters, Richard's backing band.  Due to personality clashes between the two legendary rock stars, Jimi joined Ike and Tina Turner's band. His time with them was brief, though as he was fired and rehired by Little Richard.  However that too was illfated as it was not long before Hendrix was banned from the band.
 
In the fall of 1965 Hendrix joined Curtis Knight and the Squires.  Jimi later took 2 months off from the Squires to tour with Joey Dee and the Starlighters.  In October of that year, Hendrix signed a contract with Ed Chalpin, earning him a royalty of $1 and 1% on records with Curtis Knight.  Around this time Hendrix moved from Harlem to Greenwich Village in search of a more receptive audience.
 
The move to Greenwich Village brought the formation of his band Jimmy James and the Blue Flames.  They gained local fame playing all over NYC.  It also gave him access to bigger named members of the music industry, such as: Frank Zappa (who as legend as it, introduced Jimi to the wah-wah pedal effect), Les Paul Chas Chandler and several members of the Rolling Stones' organization. Chandler whisked Jimi off to London, signing him to a management and production contract with Chandler and fellow ex-Animals' manager Michael Jeffery.  The Jimi Hendrix Experience was then formed.  The effects of which are too much classic material to mention here.
 
In 1970, Electric Lady Studios was opened in NYC by Jimi and Michael Jeffery.  It was meant to have a stable and appealing environment for Hendrix to work in, without incurring astronomical studio costs.  A concern recognized during the making of the 'Electric Ladyland' album.  Hendrix only recorded in Electric Lady for weeks, though.  Among those final sessions of his life was the recording of the song 'Slow Blues.'
 
 September 18, 1970 James Marshall (Johnny Allen) 'Jimi' Hendrix was found dead in the basement flat of Samarkand Hotel in London.