To put this essential album in perspective, by April of 1969, Jimi Hendrix had released his last album with his “Experience” of drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding, namely the classic Electric Ladyland. He would soon break up that band and create his Band of Gypsys, and then live just a few more months before dying in September of 1970. At this point of his career, he was at the apotheosis of creativity and popularity, packing places like the palatial Inglewood Forum.
The trio is as in sync as could ever be imagined, and the entire April 26, 1969 concert is meticulously and completely restored by Eddie Kramer. There are some great vintage photos as well as an essay by Billy Gibbons.
The music? Oh, boy. Jimi is in inspired form, tapping into his inner Albert King on the bluesy “Tax Free” and searing “Red House”. The trio mixes improvisation with hard hitting rock on “Foxey Lady” and digs deep into psychedelia on “I Don’t Live Today” with Mitchell cutting a path with sharp sticks. Hendrix’s touch on “Spanish Castle Magic” is majestic, and the team lets loose on a medley from their recent album with a mix of “Voodoo Child” with a salute to fellow ax man Eric Clapton during “Sunshine Of Your Love”. It is stunning how fresh this sounds 50+ plus years later, and yet the roots of the urban blues are more palpable and appreciated in retrospect, which keeps this album from sounding anachronistic. Dig in and dig it