Relaxing Ambient, Inner Peace Music.

John Watt

Member
I'm finding it hard to believe myself, what I just when through for this song.
The first "relaxing, ambient inner peace" music I thought of was "Drifting" by Jimi Hendrix.
It's not on YouTube, and the original album, cassette or CD isn't for sale on jimihendrix.com.
I listened, or started to listen to, many covers from all around the world.

This version, by the London Symphony Orchestra with Steve Vai on electric guitar is the best.
But it's not all the way there, say... giving it a six out of ten.
It's atmospheric, just not as atmospheric as Jimi.
The vocals aren't as casual sounding, or have as much personality and depth as Jimi.
He also hits a high note Jimi never sang that sounds out of place, fixating the vocal.
Jimi also sang along with the chords, when this singer is more about the words.

Steve Vai might be my last pick of any major California rock star to come out of the CD era.
Jimi uses a feedbacking guitar for his solo, but he's sliding it around and gets his most violin sounding tone,
like it's being bowed, and the lead guitar is what sounds likes it's drifting, rising up like a wave and falling again.

Sure, you can say Jimi Hendrix became a rock star, and is an electric guitar driven three-piece band onstage.
But his overdubbed recordings are minor symphonic masterpieces, something no-one else has accomplished.
That's another criticism of this recording, you aren't hearing any stereo movements of the sound.
If only Steve Vai had played the original lead guitar, and I'm sure he could, but he's just messing with it.
I'd give his performance here a three out of ten.
If I had the London Symphony Orchestra with this arrangement behind me, I'd be as Jimi as I could be.
And I would have gotten an r'n'b singer who could imitate what Jimi did with the vocals.

This is a beautiful video to watch, and it's definitely worth listening to.
Maybe the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, with all their seriousness, can do a better version.
I can see them borrowing the sheet music from London and getting a better lead guitarist and singer.
During the Viet Nam war era that dominated everything about America, Jimi found a new kind of musical peace.
Drifting along with it all... drifting for us all... he built a musical lifeboat where I found a place just for me.

 
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