Jimi Hendrix vs. Stevie Ray Vaughan

[John Watt]

This thread hurts. I guess no-one read my Hendrix postings here, when I saw him in Toronto, quitting high school to get a steel factory job, buying a '64 Strat (in '69) and ordering a Marshall from England, with all the effects I could find. Later, I was a music columnist and reporter, so it's well edited and as concise as music lets me be. Yeah, it hurts.

I'll say it again. Hendrix was not about drugs. A Canadian judge agreed. He had an incredible amount of musical, studio and broadcast components onstage to duplicate album sounds, with roadies watching him, moving big home-made knobs for the double miked everything, so that the sound was stereo side to side, front to back, over your head, gently swirling around, or like a mild hurricane. You can only get the musical insinuations, trailings, the background chatter, the bass tones with chords and lead, by using your fingers and all six strings. Sure, the artificial fret boost and enhanced harmonics are electronic, making softer transitional sounds possible, what critics described as "Jimi having a conversation with himself" or "Jimi's guitar talking back to him", only 'cause no-one could flow with him, or erupt as magnificently. His example has inspired me to be a musician and even invent a patentable new semi-solid-body redefinition of Strats. Pictures as proof, with the love of Mr. Magle's domain making me reveal them here first as an international debut, are still in the gallery. A real Hendrix fan would be looking and commenting on the new and untried. I haven't had one response yet. Free for the world like my ancestors inventions. It hurts again.

Jimi was a well established and feared presence onstage as a chitlin beginner. You can only admire his resolve for maintaining his incredible musical ear while learning the business. The fact he went from "obscurity" to be an international pop star overnight only proves how prepared and methodical he was. Have you ever listened to Electric Ladyland on headphones in the dark? That's Jimi there for you. Please see my concert review in concert reviews.

You wanna get into it with someone who played, and sang, Hendrix, when Hendrix was alive? Someone who was able to grab the Star Spangled Banner in one afternoon, in 1970? Talking about him with everyone who ever saw or played or recorded or produced with him? Ask Sting, if you need a more intelligent reply.

And I don't care what anyone just says about Jimi, because we are hearing his hand-made phasing and flanging and echoing and shades of stereo mixing all around us as modern studio production values, now just digital samples. His sound lives on everywhere. If someone can post the Johnny Carson show Jimi was on, to hear the comments of Johnny and his Hollywood studio players, you might hear what interested Miles Davis.

I think Jimi would be getting into some tabla right now, after the joyful and exhuberant success of Slumdog Millionaire, and the American arrival of the influence of that happy culture, not all crack and coke and meth addled, pushing buttons to make beats and hammering rock drums. Why tabla? Because it would be a gift from musicians from India, coming to America, wanting to meet Jimi Hendrix. Belly Button Window could use a few tabla thrum slides. Ba-do-ba do-ba, ba-do-ba do-ba,
doimp-doimp!

Please, I am more than willing to be an earthly source of Hendix technique, not worship. Standardization is next to idolization. Cherishing is next to vanity. Hendrix worked up one universal musical sweat for all of us. He was The Axis: Bold as Love, and he knew it. His reputation is only going to grow as long as this wattage flows.
And I do say this as a descendant of Doctor James Watt, down from the Highlands, now living across overseaslowlands.
You let me get my plug in, I'll show you how to wire the wire.

[Railton2]

I love both guitarsits. But my favorite is definatly Jimi Hendrix

[John Watt]

Yeah, I wish I had a dollar for every hour I spent listening to Jimi at night in high school.
But let me clarify something.
I'm always going on about listening on headphones, and I see them all around now.
In 1968 I bought Koss Lightweight Studio Headphones, what a local recording studio recommended.
I had to order them and go to Hamilton to get them.
As recording headphones, they were made to block exterior noise as much as pumping it straight in,
so that made it easier to float away in one of Jimi's musical atmospheres.

I could never ride my bicycle and use headphones, ear buds, whatever,
and that's not just because I'd want to hear everything around me outside.
I just know I'd be riding along some day, getting into some guitar playing,
and I'd be jamming along in my mind... gripping the handlebars like I'm soloing,
and turn myself into the path of a school bus.

Probably a charter bus of inner city youth going to Jimi Hendrix Park.

[methodistgirl]

Believe it or not, Jimi Hendrix was influenced by Churk Berry's
style of playing during the 50s. Stevie Ray Vaughn was influenced
by Jimi Hendrix's. There are not many left who are alive except
Eric Clapton, David Gilmore, Steve Vei, and Joe Satriani.
judy tooley

[teddy]

Clapton was influenced by Muddy Waters who mentored him.

teddy

[John Watt]

I ;gotta say, just today I was at Brock University,
and a young man was sitting playing acoustic in the courtyard,
and I got asked to do a song.
I played and sang "Little Wing", Jimi style, as best I could, cold,
and got a lot of nice reactions, even from female students.

I'm still alive.

[White Knight]

Beautiful, John, right on!

[John Watt]

Bein'alive! That's what keeps me happy as a Hendrix fan. If it was just me looking at lots of old stuff, what I gave away a long time ago,
I'd just be an old Hendrix freak.
But everyone in music seems to get off on Jimi, the constant artistic renewals of his artwork and image,
even when he was alive everyone who was putting out Hendrix stuff looked like they were having fun with it,
everything from t-shirts and books to "Jimi's Package" by Gibson Guitars.

So it's still nice and more than psychedelic now, being into Jimi.
As a matter of fact, Jimi's musical presence is still so strong,
his psychedelic is already supporting the online psychotic,
and for sure, Jimi would B-rate the haters, and sing about it too.

[White Knight]

John, absolutely spot on!

[John Watt]

Thanks for the encouragement, white knight. At least we're here to get into it.
It's sad that this thread is about two guitarists who died too young.
When Jimi was alive I was in a long, long shadow of sound and sights.
Now there isn't anyone looming over me musically, and it's a quieter and emptier life.

[White Knight]

John, absolutely; he left a gap which will probably never be adequately filled by anyone.

[teddy]

When are we going to hear you John

teddy

[White Knight]

When are we going to hear you John

teddy

I'll join in that request as well.

[John Watt]

I'm living to finally finish my guitar, build a new backdrop and make some videos.
It's more than just gratifying to catch some interest from you, in this domain.

If there's one thing about me that I still don't understand, it's my limited use of music.
I've played full time, travelling across Canada and living in major cities,
but I never cared to record and saved my songs and riffs for myself.
I'll be sixty this May 1st, but I can qualify for band contests as a non-recording artist.
I know, I know, but in my mind I'm just starting out all over again.
My new guitar, my new style and songs, singing better, enough to feel some new nerves.

Too bad you're not around! I'd say let's jam!

[White Knight]

John, please trust your gift and RUN WITH IT! I'll be sixty a couple of months after you, and I just know we both have a lot of life and things to share with the world left in us, especially a talented musician such as yourself.
I hope you don't choose to deprive the rest of us of your obvious abilities.
Peace--white knight











ohn, GO WITH IT! I'll be sixty right after you. WE still have a lot of life left in us.