Top 3 Live Jimi Hendrix Songs

Top Three (Live) Jimi Hendrix Songs

The sultan of the six string, the master of the guitar, these names and many more have been used to describe the pure genius that is the music of Jimi Hendrix. From the master of the instrument that he became famous for, to the equally masterful technical abilities and tricks used to make the loud yet coherent solos in his songs, there will never be another like Jimi Hendrix. None of this ability was shown anywhere better than right there on stage, so in honor of him, here are his top three master pieces that were performed outside the studio.

#3: Like A Rolling Stone (Monterey Pop Festival)*

Artist: Bob Dylan

Let’s start this list off with the live concert that put Hendrix on the map in the United States. The Monterey Pop Festival did just that for the Jimi Hendrix, though not as highly recognized as Woodstock. Like a Rolling Stone was originally written by Bob Dylan and is still considered one of his greatest hits, but Jimi Hendrix completely redefined this folk song with not much guitar to an absolutely hard-rocking guitar-exploding shred fest. Jimi stated throughout his entire career that he was influenced by Bob Dylan’s great song writing abilities, and through this version of his popular song, pays a great homage to the folk king by making his song well, a Jimi song.

#2: Star Spangled Banner (Woodstock)*

Artist: Francis Scott Key; John Stafford Smith (A little American history for you!)

This is the definitive version of the great American Anthem. Played entirely on the electric guitar with no vocals, this version of the National Anthem is as great as it is controversial. This is because Jimi Hendrix employed many effects on his guitar that created a distorted and vibrating sound, at times even imitating the sounds of bombs dropping. This offended some though because they felt the Star Spangled Banner is not a song that should be edited for any reason, while others say Hendrix was just doing a version he felt was appropriate for the late sixties because of all of the turmoil around that time. No matter how you feel about it, this is still a great guitar jam none the less.

#1: Voodoo Chile (Berkeley)

Artist: Jimi Hendrix (Finally!)

This is the definitive version of Jimi Hendrix’s classic Voodoo Chile. Clocking at an impressive 10:49 (including the introduction), the numerous solos in this this song embody what was so great about not only Jimi Hendrix, but also the sixties. It was all about saying forget what’s already been done; it’s time to throw in some new stuff. This is precisely what made all of Jimi Hendrix’s concerts great, the fact that he may have done a studio version for all of his songs, and the solos present in those were great, but Jimi would still change it up in all of his performances, a feat that is definitely not easy and takes much hard work to do fluently.

These three live performance and many others are what truly made Jimi Hendrix of the best if not the best guitarist ever, a title that has been debated time and time again, but I, along with many others, believes he deserves. Thanks for reading and happy jamming!

*Artist other than Jimi Hendrix