By mid-1968 Jimi Hendrix was in the midst of a transformation as an artist. After being shunned early in his career, his meteoric rise on the strength of his two previous albums with his band The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced and Axis: Bold As Love (both Track Records) was brilliant, but by all accounts had left him drained. Jimi was a creative genius and always looking for the next mountain to climb as an artist. While preparing what would become his ambitious double album Electric Ladyland (Reprise/Track), Hendrix began gravitating towards a style and sound that would influence the remaining years of his life. While still pulling heavily from the Blues, he was beginning to incorporate more Folk, Funk, and experimental styles of music that indicated where he was going in the future. Continue reading →