Jimi Hendrix headlined and closed the Woodstock Festival starting at 9 a.m. on Monday, August 18, 1969. Most of the 400,000+ crowd had left and he played to less than 180,000 people. Bad weather and logistical problems delayed his two hour set, the longest of his career. The performance was plagued with technical difficulties such as microphone levels and guitar tuning problems. It was not his best performance, but it is nonetheless great, a historical milestone.
Sixteen movie cameras from Warner Bros. captured his image and his long-time studio engineer/producer, Eddie Kramer, handled the audio recording. Jimi played with a new band he had assembled called "Electric Sky Church" or the "Gypsy Sun and Rainbow Band", usually abbreviated to "Band of Gypsies". It featured Mitch Mitchell on drums, Juma Sultan on percussion, Jerry Velez on congas, Larry Lee on rhythm guitar, and his army buddy Billy Cox on bass.
The songs performed as listed on the 2005 2 DVD set are:
01. Message To Love
02. Spanish Castle Magic
03. Red House
04. Lover Man
05. Foxey Lady
06. Jam Back At The House
07. Izabella
08. Fire
09. Voodoo Child (Slight Return)
10. Star Spangled Banner
11. Purple Haze
12. Woodstock Improvisation
13. Villanova Junction
14. Hey Joe
15. The Road To Woodstock: New documentary directed by Bob Smeaton featuring new interviews with Hendrix band members Mitch Mitchell, Billy Cox, Juma Sultan, and Larry Lee, engineer Eddie Kramer, and Woodstock promoter Michael Lang among others.
16. Jimi Hendrix Press Conference: Color film footage of never before seen Jimi Hendrix press conference held September 3, 1969 at Frank's Restaurant in Harlem. Hendrix answers questions about his Woodstock festival performance, his rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner" and the festival's cultural impact.
With the exceptions of Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox, the other musicians were not good enough, had not rehearsed sufficiently, and sometimes couldn't keep up with him. But for a colossus like Jimi Hendrix it doesn't really matter. He was magnificent! "Band of Gypsies"? During his three years as a Superstar, Jimi Hendrix never had a home. He was a genuine counter-culture hippie.
The end of his set ended the original WOODSTOCK (1970) movie. In 1994 the "Director's Cut" was released with 40 minutes added, including more Hendrix. 1994 also brought JIMI HENDRIX AT WOODSTOCK, a 57 minute video of his performance. Then a video of the entire performance was released in 2005.
Jimi Hendrix is by far the greatest electric guitarist in history. You may prefer Eric Clapton or Jeff Beck. However, both these guitar players knew and played with Hendrix--and they both have said frequently that Hendrix is the best, in a league of his own.
What made this genius the best? He was a virtuoso who could play the guitar behind his back, with his teeth, and with one hand better than Clapton and Beck or the other guitar heroes who just play boring blues licks. Jimi invented his own musical vocabulary and his own style. His unique guitar sound was totally unprecedented. He was a showman who danced as he played. And he sang his own first-rate songs, that are very personal.
Jimi Hendrix said about Woodstock: "It was a success for the simple fact that it was one of the largest gatherings of people, in a musical sense. It was a complete success compared to all the other festivals. I'd like everybody to see this, how everybody mixes together. It spreads harmony and communication. There was no violence at all out there. Nobody could expect this through a mixed group, the idea of non-violence, and the idea of let everbody in free. And the idea of people really listening to music over the sky in such a large body."
More quotes from Jimi Hendrix:
"Festivals shouldn't worry about getting so many people. It's a big ego trip now. They didn't do all that kind of mess with Monterey."
"Imagination is the key to my lyrics. The rest is painted with a little science fiction."
"My goal is to be one with the music. I just dedicate my whole life to this art."
"If I'm free it's because I am always running."
"Music makes me high on stage, and that's the truth. It's like being almost addicted to music."
"Blues is easy to play, but hard to feel."
"I just hate to be in one corner. I hate to be put as only a guitar player, or either only as a songwriter, or only as a tap dancer. I like to move around."
"Music doesn't lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music."
"I'm the one that has to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my life, the way I want to."
"Once you're dead you're made for life."
"When I die, I want people to play my music, go wild and freak out and do anything they want to do."
"When I die, just keep playing the records."
