Customer Reviews

Becoming Jimi Hendrix: From Southern Crossroads to Psychedelic London, the Untold Story of a Musical Genius

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

Soft cover, 185 pages of text, 9 pages of information sources, 2 pages of recommended listening, 17 pages of discography/sessionography, 43 pages of a chronology of tours/events from 1962-66, and an index. There's 16 pages of b&w photos of Hendrix from the time period detailed in the book.

This great little book by Steven Roby (author of "Black Gold" a great book on unreleased Hendrix material), and Brad Schreiber is basically how Johnny Allen Hendrix became Jimi Hendrix. His youth in Seattle, playing in various local bands. The army-where he met and played with Billy Cox. Scuffling in Nashville, playing in the dives for very little money. Getting his first road experience with Hank Ballard's band, and getting fired (nothing unusual) for playing the music "incorrectly". Continuing to scuffle along as Jimmy James and the Vagabonds in New York, where he was discovered by Chas Chandler (bassist in THE ANIMALS), and whisked away to England on the promise of recording "Wild Thing". And then on to fame and fortune that's known to most fans of his music.

This succinct book is well written in an easy flowing style, with a number of quotes from people who knew Hendrix through all the various stages of his early years. The photographs help the reader formulate a better picture of Hendrix through these years, especially a picture of Hendrix at the age of four, wairing shorts and an embroidered sweater, and another shot of him in his uniform playing his guitar on the army base in 1961. The other photos show Hendrix on stage with Little Richard, the Isley Brothers, and Joey Dee and the Starlighters, among others.

For anyone who wants a clear, concise book on Hendrix' early years, this is the book to read. Included are a number of interesting/fascinating details and asides concerning both Hendrix and the era/locales, locales he found himself in, often not of his own choosing. This is the first book to give an in depth look at Hendrix' early stages without going overboard on details and things which have little or no real bearing on his music, and how he became one of the world's greatest electric guitarists. Well worth reading for the information on Hendrix' early years and for a straightforward writing style that's easy to digest.

BECOMING JIMI HENDRIX was an absolute joy to read. Having "lived the day" the book brought back not only the memories of Hendrix and the music scene of that period, but it more defined his genius and his motivation. For Hendrix, it was all about the music, and the mystery of his journey from irrelevancy to fame is documented in this book by two authors who not only understand the complexity of Hendrix, but also his sensitivity and his courage as a musician and as a man. If there ever was a page-turner in the music genre, this is it. I couldn't put it down. Being associated with some who knew him, I am anxious to share the book. The mystery surrounding his death haunts me and I hope that this book sheds light on the event. Anybody who remembers or is simply curious about the 60's should read BECOMING JIMI HENDRIX. Steve Feinberg Los Angeles

The book has a Malcolm Gladwell flow. He truly outlined the hardship of achieving goals. The author did not sugar coat anything throughout the book. This book can also be called The Science Of Success: Jimi Hendrix. If you are an artist or running a startup this book is good for you to read.

Really enjoyed this book, finished it in one sitting which I can only say for a handful of books in my life. Being from Seattle, Jimi Hendrix is pretty much the closest thing to a God for me. I've always wondered how the man evolved into a musical genius. This book does a very good job of laying out Hendrix's early formative years showing the path from how Jimmy became Jimi. I can see why people might be frustrated with this book as it mainly concentrates on Hendrix's years in the military and playing in backing bands in Nashville. But if you're a fan of Malcolm Gladwell type books, you'll probably enjoy this as much as I did.

It's also an easy read which I appreciated.

I really dug this book!It was not only enjoyable,but it was also a very easy read.What made this bio on JIMI so good, was that it covered not only the history of Blues and R&B circa the early 1960's, but also how much it influenced JIMI HENDRIX as a musician and song writer.I would recommened all Hendrix fans to read this book to get a better understanding about this legacy that played such an important role in his style as a guitar player.I would also recommend listining to the first cd of the" WEST COAST SEATLLE BOY" box set, which contains some of those great early R&B sides that JIMI played on.I consider myself a serious HENDRIX fan, and ther is a lot of info on him in this book that I didn't know about, such as his childhood in Seattle,his early days with Billy Cox in Nashville, as well as the time he spent living in Harlem and Greenwich village.I thought the story about JIMI missing a gig because he had to get his hair pressed and curled in Harlem was classic soul brotha material!This book was well researched and written.A must for all true fans, and avid readers on music history.

After "Black Gold: The Lost Archives of Jimi Hendrix", I was waiting for more solid Hendrixiana from Steve Roby. With the addition of coauthor Brad Schreiber, this new book is the wonderful missing link that answers the question "how did Jimmmy become Jimi?" Very readable, full of original interviews and photographs, (and stuff for those who love the detailed tour and session info get that too), what I loved was the attention to the context of the turbulent times Jimi lived through and was influenced by. The authors add fresh scholarship as well as rich entertainment to the rock music bookshelves that seem mostly full of tabloids these days.

Although I knew a bit about Hendrix, there were still a lot of surprises for me in this book. The Amazon Product Description above lists what topics are covered, but it doesn't lay out just what a wild ride and good read Becoming Jimi Hendrix is.

Focused on his formative years, you meet the person underneath that larger than life persona, and come to some understanding about the cultural climate in which he lived. I found it thoroughly compelling and fun. I just listened to Are You Experienced with a whole new level of appreciation.

I like this book a lot. It details the time Hendrix spent playing the so called "chitlin' circuit" in the 60s through his Uptown years in NYC and finally, his brief time playing clubs in Greenwich Village before he went off to England . As you can probably tell from some of the other reviews, the book pretty much ends there, so buyer beware, I guess. There is a brief epilouge that touches on his time in England, including his death.

But what it does is provide a narrative and very detailed chronology through 1966. The guy's resume was astounding...Isley Brothers, Little Richard, Ronnie Spector, and yes, even Jayne Mansfield. In the Village, he headlined and played with John Hammond Jr. What I find amazing, is that no tapes exist of his time in the Village. As this book expertly chronicles, he only played there a brief time, just a couple of months, so that may be why. But you would think that someone, especially in the savvy community of 60s Greenwich Village, would have taped at least some of his performances.

Anyway, this may not be a complete history of Hendrix, though it does detail his early years in Seattle quite well, in addition to his mid-60s touring. The David Henderson book is more thorough but not as precise. My suggestion is to get both of them and you'll be on your way to getting a pretty good idea of who Jimi Hendrix was.

I literately couldn't put this book down once it arrived. Jimi Hendrix influenced rock and roll for the world, with his juicy licks and style of stage presence. This book explains how he developed those sounds.

As a musician, I learned much about Hendrix, and the blues greats that captured his ear. The vintage photos really tell a story too.

I highly recommend this book, and hope they make it into a movie.

I thought I was getting a biography of Jimi Hendrix's entire life, but it focused on how he started out, which to be blunt, was boring. He had more downs than ups, and for quite a few years, he was playing with a variety of small bands.

Always the same story: Jimi plays great, Jimi plays with his teeth, Jimi is a space cadet and a nonconformist and gets kicked out of the band.

The last part of the book dealt with Jimi finding his voice, and his place, in New York. The most distracting entries in the book were ruminations about Jimi's death - mostly based on hearsay and conjecture.

The epilogue was riveting, covering in broad strokes Jimi's explosion onto the London music scene - I only wish the epilogue was the opening chapter.