A new posthumous Jimi Hendrix live album titled “Jimi Hendrix Experience: Hollywood Bowl August 18, 1967”, will hit shelves on November 10th, documenting the power trio on the cusp of stardom with a collection of 10 never-before-heard recordings.
“Jimi Hendrix Experience: Hollywood Bowl August 18, 1967” is available to order now on vinyl, CD and digital. Hollywood Bowl August 18, 1967 was recorded five days before the Jimi Hendrix Experience released their debut album, “Are You Experienced”, in the U.S.
The group which also included drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding was opening for the Mamas & the Papas, whose John Phillips helped organize the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, where the Experience made their triumphant U.S. debut at the recommendation of Paul McCartney.
Despite their standout Monterey Pop performance, the Jimi Hendrix Experience did not enjoy immediate stateside success. The first two singles off “Are You Experienced” failed to ignite on the charts, and the LP took more than a year to reach its peak position of No. 5 on the Billboard 200. The trio was also poorly received on a short-lived stint opening for the Monkees in July 1967.
Following the Monkees debacle, Phillips invited Hendrix to open for the Mamas & the Papas at the Hollywood Bowl, which proved to be the headliners’ final show. The Experience burned through originals such as “Purple Haze,” “The Wind Cries Mary” and “Foxey Lady,” as well as covers such as the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone.”
“I absolutely loved him,” says Michelle Phillips, the sole surviving member of the Mamas & the Papas, in the Hollywood Bowl August 18, 1967 liner notes. “He was a gentleman, he was lovely, he was funny.”
He was also on his way to becoming a star. Thirteen months after their fateful opening slot for the Mamas & the Papas, the Experience would return to the Hollywood Bowl as headliners. As Phillips recalls, “In a couple of days or months, Jimi Hendrix was the hottest thing happening.”
“Live at The Hollywood Bowl: August 18, 1967” has never before been released or bootlegged. It captures the Jimi Hendrix Experience at a unique moment in their illustrious career. Before a sold out audience of 17,000 people, the Experience overwhelmed an unsuspecting audience with a superb show that encompassed his renditions of songs by the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters as well as signature songs such as “Purple Haze” and “The Wind Cries Mary.” Out November 10th,
Last time we counted there were at least 45 live Jimi Hendrix live albums, and while many have been exercises in musical barrel-scraping, a newly released version of “Killing Floor” suggests that there’s hope of the 46th.
“Jimi Hendrix Experience: Hollywood Bowl August 18, 1967” was recorded at the 17,000-capacity venue as the Jimi Hendrix Experience returned to The US after their all-conquering first trip to The UK, and finds the trio playing for an audience who have gathered to see headliners The Mamas & The Papas.
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