The Elan and Jimi Hendrix: Fenders, Cars, Stars and Guitars<\/strong><\/p>\n Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n Jimi Hendrix and The Experience <\/em>is a significant piece in our celebrities and Lotus cars series. Subscribers are invited to see our item on Peter Sellers\/Britt Ekland in order to gain the broadest appreciation of how celebrities and cars interact.<\/p>\n We have already studied the seismic Swinging sixties in some depth with the knowledge that Chapman and Lotus were at the cutting edge of technology and fashion.<\/p>\n The events that link Hendrix The Experience <\/em>contain lives full of myth, scandal, sex, drugs and rock and roll. They along with Chapman were: –<\/p>\n Redding and Appleby:-<\/p>\n “from 1967 \u201370 the band enjoyed one of the most dazzling and sensational careers in the history of rock music , with a roller \u2013coaster ride through a schedule of sell out tours and frantic recording sessions that left the band crazed with drugs ,stardom and exhaustion ,but still capable of producing some of the most explosive ,inventive and inspirational music ever heard “<\/em><\/p>\n The entwined story of Chapman, Lotus and Hendric \/The Experience<\/em> possibly best illustrates the power of imagery and association and how this enters the cultural landscape along with the collective psyche.<\/p>\n Subscribers might like to see the directly relevant and integrated A&R pieces that complement and help structure this article:-<\/p>\n Jimi Hendrix the Experience<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n From wiki:-<\/p>\n \u201cJames Marshall<\/strong> “Jimi<\/strong>” Hendrix<\/strong> (born Johnny Allen Hendrix<\/strong>; November 27, 1942 \u2013 September 18, 1970) was an American rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential electric guitarists in the history of popular music, and one of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame<\/a> describes him as “arguably the greatest instrumentalist in the history of rock music”.[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n The Jimi Hendrix Experience<\/strong> was an American-English rock<\/a> band that formed in Westminster, London, in September 1966. Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Jimi Hendrix<\/a>, bassist Noel Redding<\/a>, and drummer Mitch Mitchell<\/a> comprised the group, which was active until June 1969. During this time, they released three studio albums and became one of the most popular acts in rock. In April 1970, Hendrix, Mitchell, and bassist Billy Cox<\/a> performed and recorded until Hendrix’s death on September 18, 1970. This later trio was sometimes billed as the “Jimi Hendrix Experience”, but the title was never formalized.<\/p>\n Highly influential in the popularization of hard rock<\/a> and psychedelic rock<\/a>, [7]<\/sup><\/a> the Experience was best known for the skill, style, and charisma of their frontman, Jimi Hendrix. All three of the band’s studio albums, Are You Experienced<\/em><\/a> (1967), Axis: Bold as Love<\/em><\/a> (1967) and Electric Ladyland<\/em><\/a> (1968), were featured in the top 100 of the Rolling Stone<\/em><\/a> list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time<\/a>, at positions 15, 82 and 54 respectively. In 1992, the Jimi Hendrix Experience was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame<\/a>.<\/p>\n UK Success<\/strong><\/p>\n In mid-October 1966, Chandler arranged an engagement for the Experience as Johnny Hallyday<\/a>‘s supporting act during a brief tour of France.[112]<\/sup><\/a> Thus, the Jimi Hendrix Experience performed their very first show on October 13, 1966, at the Novelty in Evreux<\/a>.[114]<\/sup><\/a> Their enthusiastically received 15-minute performance at the Olympia<\/a> theatre in Paris on October 18 marks the earliest known recording of the band.[112]<\/sup><\/a> In late October, Kit Lambert<\/a> and Chris Stamp<\/a>, managers of the Who<\/a>, signed the Experience to their newly formed label, Track Records<\/a>, and the group recorded their first song, “Hey Joe”, on October 23.[115]<\/sup><\/a> “Stone Free<\/a>“, which was Hendrix’s first songwriting effort after arriving in England, was recorded on November 2.[116]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n Hendrix on stage in 1967<\/p>\n In mid-November, they performed at the Bag O’Nails<\/a> nightclub in London, with Clapton, John Lennon<\/a>, Paul McCartney<\/a>, Jeff Beck<\/a>, Pete Townshend<\/a>, Brian Jones<\/a>, Mick Jagger<\/a>, and Kevin Ayers<\/a> in attendance.[117]<\/sup><\/a> Ayers described the crowd’s reaction as stunned disbelief: “All the stars were there, and I heard serious comments, you know ‘shit’, ‘Jesus’, ‘damn’ and other words worse than that.”[117]<\/sup><\/a> The successful performance earned Hendrix his first interview, published in Record Mirror<\/em><\/a> with the headline: “Mr. Phenomenon”.[117]<\/sup><\/a> “Now hear this\u00a0… we predict that [Hendrix] is going to whirl around the business like a tornado”, wrote Bill Harry<\/a>, who asked the rhetorical question: “Is that full, big, swinging sound really being created by only three people?”[118]<\/sup><\/a> Hendrix commented: “We don’t want to be classed in any category\u00a0… If it must have a tag, I’d like it to be called, ‘Free Feeling’. It’s a mixture of rock, freak-out, rave and blues”.[119]<\/sup><\/a> Through a distribution deal with Polydor Records<\/a>, the Experience’s first single, “Hey Joe”, backed with “Stone Free”, was released on December 16, 1966.[120]<\/sup><\/a> After appearances on the UK television shows Ready Steady Go!<\/em><\/a> and the Top of the Pops<\/em><\/a>, “Hey Joe” entered the UK charts on December 29 and peaked at number six.[121]<\/sup><\/a> Further success came in March 1967 with the UK number three hit “Purple Haze<\/a>“, and in May with “The Wind Cries Mary<\/a>“, which remained on the UK charts for eleven weeks, peaking at number six.[122]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n On March 31, 1967, while the Experience waited to perform at the London Astoria<\/a>, Hendrix and Chandler discussed ways in which they could increase the band’s media exposure. When Chandler asked journalist Keith Altham for advice, Altham suggested that they needed to do something more dramatic than the stage show of the Who, which involved the smashing of instruments. Hendrix joked: “Maybe I can smash up an elephant”, to which Altham replied: “Well, it’s a pity you can’t set fire to your guitar”.[123]<\/sup><\/a> Chandler then asked road manager Gerry Stickells to procure some lighter fluid<\/a>. During the show, Hendrix gave an especially dynamic performance before setting his guitar on fire at the end of a 45-minute set. In the wake of the stunt, members of London’s press labeled Hendrix the “Black Elvis” and the “Wild Man of Borneo<\/a>“.[124]<\/sup><\/a>[nb 18]<\/sup><\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n Noel Redding: Autobiography<\/strong><\/p>\n All the reference works listed below have made some contribution to our appreciation of Hendrix and The Experience <\/em>but Noel Redding’s autobiography is particularly important as it: –<\/p>\n In this work we have not seen reference to Noel owning the Elan which is the subject of discussion but we feel we can provide some insights \u2013see below]<\/p>\n London Connectivity<\/strong><\/p>\n In previous articles we have established the cultural and fashion influence Chapman and Lotus were having in Swinging Sixties, London [see list articles above]. The Elan was already featuring in The Avengers.<\/em><\/p>\n Jimi Hendrix and his band were fashion conscious and many of his clothes it\u2019s believed were bought in Carnaby Street or in Dandie [see A&R Tara Browne]<\/em><\/p>\n Other significant London locations associated with Jimi Hendrix and his band are: –<\/p>\n\n
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