World Is Still Experiencing Hendrix
When Jimi Hendrix died in London 25 years ago today, he left an indelible mark on pop music and popular culture generally.
Part shaman, part showman, Hendrix redefined rock guitar much as John Coltrane redefined the tenor saxophone. And his legend has only grown, with the marketing of it showing no signs of letting up. Here is a sampling of the recent evidence.
Music
The bulk of the celebrated Hendrix catalog was recorded between 1967 and 1970, and no fewer than a score of other albums have been released since then. “The Ultimate Experience” (MCA), a compilation of some of Hendrix’s best-known music, has sold 1.2 million copies since its release in April 1993.
“Band of Gypsies” (Capitol), an album recorded with Buddy Miles and Billy Cox, has recently been re-released and digitally remastered for its 25th anniversary.
A tribute album, “In From the Storm: The Music of Jimi Hendrix” (RCA Victor), featuring Sting, Stanley Clarke, Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin along with the London Metropolitan Orchestra, is due on Oct. 24.
Books
The Hendrix literary canon, at least a dozen biographies strong, welcomes “The Inner World of Jimi Hendrix” (St. Martin’s Press), a new collection of photographs, paintings and personal musings by Monika Dannemann, who was Hendrix’s fiancee. Harry Shapiro and Caesar Glebeek’s revised and expanded 1990 biography, “Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy” (St. Martin’s Press) is due on Sept. 28.
Memorabilia
Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft and the owner of the Portland Trail Blazers, is underwriting the Experience Music Project, a museum of more than 15,000 artifacts from Hendrix and other musicians from the Pacific Northwest. It will be in Seattle, Hendrix’s hometown, and is expected to cost about $60 million; it is scheduled to open in 1998.
Film
D.A. Pennebaker, the filmmaker whose 1967 documentary “Monterey Pop” chronicled the Jimi Hendrix Experience in an early performance, is at work with Chris Hegedus on “Searching for Jimi Hendrix,” a documentary offering interpretations of Hendrix’s music by contemporary artists like Roseanne Cash, Charlie Musselwhite, Los Lobos and Chuck D. of Public Enemy.
The actor Laurence Fishburne has optioned David Henderson’s 1983 biography, “‘Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky,” and is considering a feature film on Hendrix’s life.
.. And who benefits
In July, the guitarist’s father, Al Hendrix, regained control of his son’s music publishing rights, name, image and the master tapes of his most important recordings. Two years earlier, the senior Hendrix had sued a Los Angeles lawyer, Leo Branton, for misappropriation of Jimi Hendrix’s music. Hendrix had hired Branton in 1971 to help manage his son’s business affairs.
The money from music publishing, performance rights, posters and other items all add up to a tidy sum. “The total revenue generated over the last few years from all sources is in the range of $6 million and $8 million a year,” said O. Yale Lewis, a partner at Hendricks & Lewis, the Seattle law firm that represents the Hendrix family.