Customer Reviews

Smash Hits

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Back in the late 60s and early 70s, one of the joys of finding British import LPs was the discovery of tracks that were not available in the USA; after all, much of the music we loved was doled out to us in a haphazard, thoughtless manner by the middle-aged music industry hacks who had no love nor respect for our tastes.

The UK Hendrix Smash Hits import LP was a treasure trove of unheard songs, such as Highway Chile and 51st Anniversary, but with no info given as to their origin. It was left to later fan/biographers to disclose that they were his earliest British singles that didn't make it onto Are You Experienced.

The US version of Smash Hits offered only a few of those rarities, going instead for a more predictable combination of the first and third Experience albums, plus Red House, a different take of which appeared on the very different UK debut album.

What is so disappointing and aggravating about this CD reissue is that all you get is the old US LP version, at a time when compilers who really care go to the trouble of combining different versions into a definitive collection and rounding up shamefully neglected B-sides; throwing a couple of tiny photo out-takes into the CD booklet does not make this a bargain. I expected so much more from the current gatekeepers, Experience Hendrix, who control and supervise all such reissues.

(They do deserve credit for putting some of these early tracks out in stereo for the first time, but for no good reason, they sat on Laughing Sam's Dice far too long and finally slopped it onto the South Saturn Delta compilation.)

Had I or any other True Believer been given this assignment, the definitive full version Smash Hits CD would have collected these tracks (with the UK-only tracks marked with an asterisk):

Purple Haze

Fire

The Wind Cries Mary

Can You See Me

*51st Anniversary

Hey Joe

All Along the Watchtower

Stone Free

Crosstown Traffic

*The Stars That Play With Laughing Sam's Dice

Manic Depression

*Highway Chile

Remember

Red House

*Burning of the Midnight Lamp

Foxy Lady

and, for good measure, the other take of Red House from the UK debut LP, as a bonus track.

These 16 (or 17) tracks, combining both LP versions, would really do this title justice, unlike the current slapdash product. (Perhaps they can correct this in the next series of Hendrix re-re-re-re-re-re-remasters...)

Okay, Indolent Gatekeepers, you can go back to sleep now.

Originally released in April 1968. This Album featured most of the songs from the experience's debut album "Are You Experienced?" then released in England on May 1967. This was the first "greatest hits" album released during in which the band were still together as the original experience. Soon after Noel Redding left the band, Hendrix released the U.S. version in July 1969. Consisting of nothing from Axis: Bold As Love and only one track from Electric Ladyland, this UK listing is still in my opinion the better of the two. Red House, Remember, All Along The Watchtower, and Crosstown Traffic are not incuded in the track listing of this compilation. Instead 51st Anniversary, Highway Chile, Burning Of The Midnight Lamp, and The Stars That Play With Laughing Sam's Dice are included. Burning Of The Midnight Lamp is truly one of the best songs written by Jimi Hendrix,in which the lyrics run deep with emotion. The Stars is an outlandish track consisting of excellent guitar solo's throughout, this was Jimi's first song in which he used a Wah Wah pedal. Frank Zappa is also featured on this track helping with the vocal for the "Milky Way Express." The new digitally remastering is worth the value of this mini lp cd.

Many Hendrix freaks may be wondering, "Why should I buy this remastered Smash Hits? I already own 10 copies of all these tunes." Please note that this is the import version with a slightly different track listing than the US version. More specifically, it features the original MONO single mix of "Stars That Play...", which beats the pants off the lousy stereo mix currently available on 'South Saturn Delta'. And if you ask me, you can't own too many copies of these songs anyway.

This is a solid collection of Jimi Hendrix Experience tunes, but the thing I've always found strange is that there is no songs from Axis Bold As Love. But if you have the new remasters of Expereinced?, Axis, and Ladyland, you relly don't need for this collection since you will have all 12 Smash Hits on those albums. But this is a great collection for amatuer/new fan wishing to get a taste of classic Hendrix. But once you get a sample, you'll probably want the full menu!

The thing about music is that it's subjective in two ways. One; it means something to you personally - where you were at - at the time. Two; even the collective view is lost in time - one can never recapture the impact of hearing Hendrix for the first time - in the context of being there in 1969. Someone asked me at the time if JH was British or American, and I realised that for me in 1969 he was neither, he was more like one of the characters from the Marvel Comics that I collected - JH was from another planet like the Silver Surfer! When The Experience appeared on the Lulu show and interrupted Hey Joe to play Sunshine of Your Love in tribute to Cream (who were doing their farewell concert that night) it was as if the hippies had taken over - starting with the invasion of Saturday Night Propriety! This was way before we learned from GSH that The Revolution would not in fact be televised :-) So, enjoy what you can make of it, and ask your dad to explain the rest. Cheers!

Here is a great collection of his big smash hits.Purple haze,Fire,The Wind Cries Mary,All Along The Watchtower,and Foxey Lady are my favorits.Its amazing how many albums have been released since he died in 1970.

You can't avoid hearing his tunes from time to time.

The new remastering of this record is actually better, than the last attempt. You get more depth, detail and clarity in the sound quality. You also get a good selection of Hendrix Hits, on this disc, as well.

I remember when this came out back in 1969, when we were kind of starved for another disk from Jimi, and only got this fake greatest hits collection arond the time of Woodstock while he was back at the house jamming with his old Memphis band of Billy Cox and what was left of his friend and mentor Larry Lee after Vietnam.

I remember the great poster included of Jimi and the boys on horseback; Jimi looking like an Apache warrior and the others very uncomfortable. I always wondered why and where and when that photo shoot was done.

The greatest thing about this collection getting released was it was the first time we could hear that locomotive blues Red House as released on the British version of Are You Experienced? Unless you had access to an import record shop, and plenty of bucks, you would not have heard this now classic of the blues guitar, frequently played in those early years out on tour, with the greatest a symphonic version captured from San Diego on the In the West live album.

And the pop-music Remember, really jumpy, good groove, and not on the US version of AYExp? It made us wonder why we were cheated of those cuts.

Also on here are of course- Purple Haze, which really hit the AM stations like a future blast, Fire, the ballad The Wind Cries Mary, Can You See Me (It was on the Monterrey album whose flip side was Otis Redding, but not filmed because they dropped the camera), Hey Joe, All Along the Watchtower, Stone Free (Was this on the US version? I really do not think so), Crosstown Traffic, Manic Depression, Remember, Red House, Foxey Lady.

So basically what you have here in Smash Hits (and by the way few of them were ever actually released as hit singles, and fewer ever actually charted on commercial AM radio, after Purple Haze. You had to hear it all on "underground" FM radio, long before market target radio came in) are a bunch of AYExp? cuts, including what was missing from the British release, and a few from the third (double) album, including Crosstown Traffic, which Jimi did not like being released as a single as it was ripped from context (between two great extended cuts Electric Ladyland and Voodoo Chile) and All Along the Watchtower.

I don't think Jimi was happy with this phoney greatest hits collection being released, but probably had contractual obligations with the WB (this was long before Prince declared his emancipation from the same slave driver label, which should have protected Jimi from further prosecution by the vampire Ed Chaplin in London courts, having settled in the USA by stealing Band of Gypsies, and might have saved his life by backing him up a bit, but oh well, he said he was already dead anyway) and had been worked day and night on the road for a good year before, and preparing for Woodstock with a new band. This was the last of the Experience.

So, nice of the family to re-release this collection, but whatever happened to that Royal Albert show video? I mean, even the Stones have let loose their really bad Circus, even the Beatles have the unwatchable Mystery Tour out. How about releasing that Royal Albert show tape? How bad can it be? I mean, hey, it's Jimi Hendrix!

Anyway, nice to see this once more, and hope you enjoy it too!

Five stars for the memories. Thanks!

This release gives you more for your money. It was released when the record making executive thought Jimi was dead as a money maker. The bonus of two tracks, to make fourteen was to inspire buyers. Now Jimi is alive, more than he was when he was alive, so the recording executive wants to give you less for your money. Things never change. The hippy has become the image of their parents. Regardless, buy the used copy. The recording quality is good and you get more. They won't last.

The track listing on Amazon and when you import the CD doesn't match the actual songs or what is printed in the booket. I bought this for sentimental reasons, so really wanted the CD as I remember listening to the cassette. The CD is missing Red House, Crosstown Traffic, Remember and All Along the Watchtower. Wouldn't have purchased if I knew half of the Smash Hits were missing. I DO like the songs that are included: 51st Anniversary, The Stars that Play with Laughing Sam's Dice, Highway Chile and Burning of the Midnight Lamp - because yeah, it's Hendrix - but I really miss Red House and Watchtower and wish this was disclosed upfront.