Customer Reviews

Live at Winterland

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No questions asked, if you like Jimi Hendrix, buy this album.
I originally purchased this album in 1987 when it first came out. Unfortunately, I lost it and was bummed out to find that it was out of print.

However, I got my hands on it again. The concerts are from a series of live recorded performances at the Winterland concert hall in San Francisco, just before Jimi went to work in New York City at the sessions destined to produce Electric Ladyland, one of the finest albums of the rock era, and one of the greatest works in music history (up there with Mozart, Beethoven etc.)

I consider many of Jimi versions of the songs here definitive versions, because after a while Jimi became disillusioned with playing "Fire" and "Hey Joe" and other songs that made him a star. If you listen closely with headphones you can hear why.
Before one of the songs, you can hear some [person] yell out, "Burn the guitar!!." Jimi hated the reputation he carried with him since the infamous performance ( and inferior recording) at the Monterey Pop festival (Monterey California 1966).

Jimi started to get weirder in his playing of his so-called famous songs after this time (check out recording Live at the LA Forum 1969, if you dont believe me).
Fortunately, his guitar playing on "Fire," Hey Joe," and "Foxy Lady" is revelatory. Wow, no one can produce the sound that Jimi was able to produce. Listen to his amazing solo on "Hey Joe." "Sunshine of your Love" (insturmental) is terrific ...P>If you want to hear why Jimi Hendrix is remembered fondly by so many people, buy this album as an example of his live performances, you will be very happy. However, I believe any serious rock fan would have this album along with the three albums Jimi produced in his lifetime - The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Axis - Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland. If you want other albums, the other Rykodisc album Radio One is interesting for the things it includes, such as "Burning of the Midnight Lamp"

There are lots of different recordings avalible of Jimi on stage. They're all mostly damn good. This one is ( I'm not kidding)the crown Jewel. Its not that he's playing that much differently to the audience, its the whole "feel" of the concert. He was completly loose and playing from the gut. Jimi had a tendency to play the way he felt at the moment. Sometimes nervous and uptight, like at Woodstock. The Winterland recording has the audience captured. He was having a damn good time that night. The version of "red House" goes on for ever with crashing hendrix blues licks, and while you're sitting there taking it all in, you ask yourself why for gods sakes didnt this album ever hit when it first showed up? Well produced and remixed for CD, this is one you need to have and actually listen to over and over. You wont get tired of it.

"Live at Winterland" was my first Jimi Hendrix CD, bought by sheer chance in 1993, when I was 16 years old and still knew him mostly from hear-say. Ever since, it has remained my favorite of all his recordings, with the arguable exception of the "Blues" album, and I have never heard a live CD or watched the live video of a better Hendrix performance, including Woodstock, Isle of Wight and the 4-concert compilation entitled "Stages". My impression is that in none of the other concerts I've heard Jimi is more at ease, sober, and enjoying his creative powers as viscerally and spontaneously as in this one. If I were to point out one single recording by our unforgetable man, I would have no doubt and say that Live at Winterland is the very hurricane's eye.

And so the CD has become my standard of comparison for everything else. In this one concert, we feel in Jimi through his music the overflow of such a healthy energy, such sane inspiration; he's got the right punch at all songs and is much more well-grounded and attentive than in other presentations - in which I feel him either too high, or simply bored, to give his best. Smartly taking his chances to push frontiers of improvisation in each note, even a song that otherwise doesn't catch my attention, "Maniac Depression", seems crisp and new. Soloes are long and beautiful, and playing fellows are incredibly tuned with his intuition. I never heard more intense and beautiful versions of "Sunshine of Your Love", "Tax Free" and "Foxy Lady"; the final sequence that starts with the intro to "Hey Joe" is mind-blowing and "Purple Haze" has a most special, longer solo, that I have not heard anywhere else. Finally, here "Spanish Castle Magic" is simply Revelation: I dare not even speak about it.

I have had this cd ever since I was a young lad, and I absolutely love it. The sound quality is excellent for the time period, anyone expecting any better doesn't know what they're talking about. Jimi plays his own music very well, and the bass performance by Noel Redding is very solid. My favorite tracks are probably: the 11 minute Red House (an exceptional gem), the Sunshine of Your Love instrumental (truely unique), and Hey Joe (always good). I really like the Wild Thing as well, musically its not too complex but its a fun song. Overall, this is recommended as a must have for all fans of Jimi, due to its rare jems (JACK CASADY joining in on bass) and great sound quality.

This is a classic super cool Hendrix live album. The way Hendrix's music is being handled by the record labels is shameful. If you buy the rights to a priceless recording like this it is your duty to keep it in print. Also, there are many other brilliant live Hendrix performances that are not being made available to the public. Jimi Hendrix is the greatest guitarist to ever live. His music is an American national treasure and rightfully belongs to any citizen of the world as it is a part of all of humanities world heritage. These record labels hoarding these recordings for timed releases to maximize profits is selfish and unethical. Where was this music when I was in highschool listening to Hendrix studio albums everyday? Where are the real Rainbow Bridge recordings? Where is the Albert Hall recordings (available in Japan but not America)? It's an outrage! I hope Kazaa puts all of you greedy record label scum out of business.

...at least of those that were recorded in such a brilliant audio-quality.

I know, it's not Woodstock or Monterey, but I hardly know any other live recording of the Experience, where Jimi, Mitch, and Noel are merging so perfectly into one deep, rich unit of sound. It all fits together.

As mentioned before, all the "hits" like "Foxy Lady", "Purple Haze", or "Hey Joe" that Jimi soon got tired to play, are sounding extremely vivid on this recording.

It's hard to point out some of the songs in particular, but what makes that record especially so extraordinary to me is:

the only life version of "Manic depression" (at least I've never heard any other in that quality),

a superb "Spanish castle magic",

an incredible great "Tax free"-Jam,

a version of "Killing floor" different to all the others you might know,

the best "Hey Joe" with a superb intro,

and maybe not the longest but for sure the heaviest "Wild thing" you can get.



P.S: It was my first Hendrix-record, that I bought when I was 13 years old, back in 1987.
One evening I heard the 4th side of the LP (Hey Joe, Purple Haze, Wild thing) on radio.
Until that evening I just knew the name Hendrix...it sounds stupid, but these 15 minutes of music changed my life. It was a crucial experience to me and it teached me what music -in its best moments- really is about.

Hendrix and the Experience open with the typical set opener, "Fire" just to get the crowd going...then into the standards..."Manic Depression," etc. Noel Redding's bass playing in distorted, mellow, and solid throughout the concert, certainly his best performance, especially with the double-bass on "Killing Floor" with Jack Cassidy from the Jefferson Airplane. The long extended "Red House" with the special "Big Fat Brat sister will" ending is the best version of the song. My favorite track on this album isn't even a Hendrix Tune: "Tax Free;" the guitar's lead riffs (not really solos at all, played by Jimi) in accompaniment with the rhythm section, produces a fine composition where you simply can't help but turn the volume up. And the "Hey Joe" has a vintage, memorable, and explosive intro...the best I've heard...turn the lights down, turn the volume up...this is not the screechy electric guitar obscenity that Jimi has repeatedly produced (i.e. Radio One or even Are You Experienced?) They have a thick, bassy, hypnotic intensity in this show, and if you are in fact a Hendrix collector or aficionado, you would know that this is not typical Hendrix...it's the best of his early sound...

You can't go wrong with this title. The original Experience would break up a year after these recordings but here they rock out. Jimi was expanding the length of these songs. Jamming and adding sounds that no one ever heard before.
If you own one live Hendrix CD this should be the one. Sadly this is long out of print so grab what ever used copy you can find.

It's hype time, no apologies - positively the hottest Hendrix concert disc, ever. From start to finish it blazes with intense energy. Molten, volcanic energy. Jimi may have achieved the towering summit of guitar creativity with his "Star Spangled Banner" at Woodstock, but that show at times drifts and lulls, as he was stressed and burdened with his inferior "Gypsy" band, and was physically exhausted at having waited over 8 hours to finally go on. And so "Live at Winterland" by the Jimi Hendrix Experience is a superior show that incinerates all others.

"Fire" erupts with a million megaton burst, the most violent nuclear version of the song I've ever heard. Next, "Manic Depression" is a blast furnace of aural wonder, swirling with electro-thermal fury. To Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love" he takes a raging flamethrower. "Spanish Castle Magic" gets ruthlessly battered and bruised in a relentless sonic assault. A smoldering "Red House" is glowing at every seam. Next, he and guest bassist Jack Casady from Jefferson Airplane thoroughly scorch "Killing Floor."

And then, in what is absolutely the most unusual, the most mind bending gesture of creativity, Jimi performs an astonishing tours de force parody of himself by way of a complex composition written by two Swedish dudes. Within the span of "Tax Free's" eight minutes nearly every tone, style and effect that Hendrix had yet ever attempted is dramatically recreated, seemingly being played by someone imitating Jimi, and maybe doing a better job at it. It's such a disturbingly outrageous act of inventiveness, sublime and hysterical, no other artist could even conceive it. I can't overstate the uniqueness of this moment, the sheer stunning genius.

You might doubt what I'm saying about this particular song's performance because it's essentially gone unrecognized by virtually everyone. You never hear critics talk about it and it's not discussed by hard core Hendrix fans. The fact is, just about nobody gets it. Probably because the tune itself isn't all that memorable in its construction, it's been universally undetected at being the astoundingly unique creation it is. It's the indescribable things that Jimi does to, with, for, and about the unusual composition that is the very definition of Post Modern Art. If you're fortunate to follow where he's journeying with all his time shifting stops and starts, backward sounding leads and feedback orchestrations, your mind gets stretched, twisted, and remolded in very bewildering ways. There's just no equivalent experience to compare it to by any other live performer, ever.

Jimi gives a subtle clue as to his self conscious metaphysical posture by announcing it as "Tax Free...Tax Free...Tax Free..." Like Gertrude Stein's "A rose is a rose is a rose", he's calling into question the idea of identity and originality. Have the two Swedes crafted a better, truer "Hendrix" composition than Jimi himself could? And who, then, is Jimi if he in fact is not the best version of Jimi Hendrix? He explores these mind shattering notions not in simple, idle thought or tedious chatter, but by assuming the role of an altered, heightened version of himself and performing what is nothing less than the complete reconstruction of his being. That's pretty heady stuff, aye? And he's doing it so much better than any cerebral Doctoral candidate could ever scratch out. He tears into the song with the force and style of two Jimis, revealing himself to be a sublime master of existential philosophy as well as the original Guitar God. It's for this track above all others that I recommend this disc, and the rest of the tracks are indeed blazing brilliance.

He then proceeds with blistering, tight versions of the staples "Foxy Lady", "Hey Joe", "Purple Haze" and "Wild Thing." His grand intro to "Hey Joe" is epic. He's not yet bored and burnt out on these numbers and they all crackle and snap with toasty crispness. He packs every sound as absolutely full of heart as any superman can. His notes are loaded with decades, eons of musical memory, and radiate a galaxy of cosmic heat. There isn't the slightest hint what-so-ever that his prior stage antics may be haunting him. If someone yells for him to burn his guitar then it's just that silly fan's mistake. Jimi's already done that old stunt one better, even if they all were too thick and dull to catch it.

If you find all this just too hard to believe, too much fawning and raving, then know that only just now, after marveling at it for more than 22 years, have I thought to put into words my impressions of this disc. I've waited to submit this comment to be sure I wasn't exaggerating or fooling myself. I acknowledge his Fillmore East '69/'70 "Band of Gypsies" concert has "Machine Gun", which might just be the single most remarkable rock song performance ever, iconic. But the rest of that concert is not up to that level - it lags and wavers throughout, as it's often brought to a crawl by Buddy Miles' tedious call and responses and plodding drums. And '67's "Monterrey Pop", of course, has "Wild Thing" that seared everyone's mind with its shamanistic flaming sacrifice. He and the boys were certainly fresh and tight back then, but there's even more group cohesion and incendiary virtuosity one year later on this one. So it's with all this contemplation and consideration that I make my claim that this concert disc is the most raging inferno of Jimi's searing talent ever captured. It's hot!

The engineering here is quite good, though the eq is a hair light on bass. No problem, just crank the bass knob. It's hardly worth mentioning that at times there are barely audible buzzes, hisses and static noise. The distraction, if any, is negligible as these petty glitches are so overwhelmed by the band's awesome power. Fact is I didn't even notice the stuff till just a couple years ago. If they'd remaster this one I'd pay $25 or more to posses the ultimate evidence of the ultimate live Hendrix Experience.

*9/27/10 - As I have recently just heard the entire 6 cd, 6 show collection of Jimi's 3 nights at Winterland, I feel it only fair to amend my review of this particular Alan Douglas produced release. It is now quite apparent that what is presented here is is fact the cream of the crop, the absolute finest moments selected from those 6 consecutive performances. Representing this as a single performance, rather than highlights culled from 6 shows, is rather disingenuous, even deceptive. This, of course, is wholly the product of the evil Alan Douglas, who is notorious for this sort of subterfuge. The wrath and ire that the self deluded Douglas provoked with his constant meddling with Jimi's legacy is again justified as it turns out that he has unconscionably created a false standard by which to judge other Jimi performances. The 6 actual performances are each quite routine for the Experience at the time, with meandering moments, soft unfocused attempts, and constant interference and interruptions from faulty equipment. To be sure there are moments of absolutely blazing brilliance captured throughout, some of the finest takes ever recorded, and my review above I still include as my genuine reactions to the individual takes. The "performance" has been scrubbed of inferior moments. Omitting them has presented a false account of what transpired those 3 nights. That's a major crime, if you consider that Jimi's greatest attribute, most fervent impulse, was to reveal the truth. Even if it's an ugly truth. So "cleanin' up" Jimi's mess is a task that Alan Douglas took upon himself without anyone's request or permission. In light of this I have to affix an asterisk to this CD - the contents have been tampered with. It's as though that idiot Alan has, without Jimi's knowledge, injected him with steroids. Even the greatest of all time gains an unfair advantage under the influence of performance enhancing drugs.... Ha! That's funny - Jimi operating under the influence of drugs!....

This outstanding recording features both excellent live playing by Jimi Hendrix Experience and amazingly good recording quality. Well known songs (Fire, Foxy Lady, Hey Joe, Purple Haze) blend well with lengthier songs (Red House, Killing Floor, Tax Free), all of which feature Jimi at his improvisational best.

It seems as though this disc may be out of print. If so, I advise you to immediately seek it out from any possible source and obtain it. If you like Hendrix at all you will be glad you did.