Forty years ago Jimi Hendrix returned to his native country and, in one fell swoop changed the musical landscape for all time. It was the galvanizing, US debut performance of The Jimi Hendrix Experience at The Monterey International Pop Festival that propelled Hendrix and his band mates, Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding, to the top ranks of international rock royalty. On October 16, for the first time ever, The Jimi Hendrix Experience at Monterey will be released by Experience Hendrix/Geffen/UMe on DVD. It's a remarkable visual and aural document that reconfirms what the Monterey audience bore witness to on June 18, 1967: Hendrix's unbridled talent and flair for showmanship are unparalleled in the annals of music.
The set of songs that the Jimi Hendrix Experience performed at Monterey was introduced by Brian Jones, the Rolling Stones' guitarist whose presence at the festival amounted to a kind of benediction by an acknowledged rock god. He knew full well who he was introducing as Hendrix had moved to London fewer than nine months earlier and achieved icon status in the U.K. in very short order. His conquest of his native land, though, would be achieved almost instantaneously at Monterey.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey offers all existing film footage of that epochal performance presented in its original sequence. The original 16mm camera reversal footage shot by D.A. Pennebaker's Monterey Pop film crew has been transferred to high-definition specs and is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The DVD soundtrack features new 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo mixes by Eddie Kramer, the engineer so closely associated with the Jimi Hendrix and his legacy, from the original eight-track live recordings made at the concert by remote engineer Wally Heider.
Beyond the performance of the band's set, The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey offers numerous bonus features. A Second Look, a unique interactive feature allows the viewer to switch between multiple, previously unseen camera angles to view several of the performances as never before. In addition, American Landing, a new documentary that includes previously unreleased interviews with Mitchell and Redding - and Jimi Hendrix, himself -- is included. There's also Music, Love and Flowers, an inside look at the Monterey International Pop Festival with co-founder Lou Adler. Live performances of "Stone Free" and "Like A Rolling Stone, the two earliest known unreleased Jimi Hendrix Experience performances, shot February 25, 1967 at Chelmsford, England are also part of the package.
Voluminous liner notes by Mitch Mitchell and Hendrix scholar and Experience Hendrix's catalog development director John McDermott, as well as numerous rare and previously unpublished photos of Hendrix, the band and memorabilia of the time are also part of the lavish package that is The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey.
Two companion audio releases, on CD and vinyl, under the same title will also be available on October 16th by Experience Hendrix/Geffen/UMe. All three were produced by Experience Hendrix CEO Janie Hendrix and McDermott, the DVD was directed by Bob Smeaton. His directorial credits include Festival Express, Jimi Hendrix: The Dick Cavett Show; Hendrix: Band of Gypsys; The Beatles Anthology and numerous other music titles.
Coincidentally, a five city concert tour celebrating Jimi's music kicks off on that day at Constitution Hall in Washington, DC. Featured artists participating in the Experience Hendrix Tour include Buddy Guy, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Robert Randolph, Jonny Lang, Robby Krieger, Mick Taylor, Hubert Sumlin, Mitch Mitchell, Billy Cox, Eric Gales, Double Trouble, Indigenous and others. Tour stops include New York, Atlantic City, Waterbury, CT and Hampton Beach, NH.
In related Hendrix news, Jimi Hendrix: An Illustrated Experience, from Simon and Schuster's Atria imprint will be available later this fall. Authored by Janie Hendrix and John McDermott, the oversized book features reproductions of drawings from Jimi's childhood, rare handwritten song lyrics, and never-before-seen archival photographs. In addition to 30 interactive features, the book includes a 70-minute audio CD with interviews and commercially unreleased recordings of live concert music and a Record Plant jam session.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey DVD track listing
Introduction by Brian Jones
Killing Floor
Foxey Lady
Like A Rolling Stone
Rock Me Baby
Hey Joe
The Wind Cries Mary
Purple Haze
Wild Thing
The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey CD and LP track listing
Introduction by Brian Jones
Killing Floor
Foxey Lady
Like A Rolling Stone
Rock Me Baby
Hey Joe
Can You See Me
The Wind Cries Mary
Purple Haze
Wild Thing
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