Come classificare Jimi Hendrix? A parte come "Supremo Genio Della Musica Rock", è un bluesman? Un rocker? Altro? Ebbene, proprio in questo è l'essenza di Hendrix: nel suo sfuggire ai generi; e proprio in questo disco, il suo terzo e ultimo lavoro in studio, la sua personalità si rispecchia.
Infatti, mentre sia l'esordio "Are You Experienced?" e il seguente "Axis: Bold As Love" sono condizionati dal target, ovvero la trasmissibiità dei brani nelle radio, e dalle richieste della casa discografica, in questo disco Hendrix, assurto ormai al ruolo di genio musicale universalmente riconosciuto, può dare maggior sfogo alla sua creatività, finora sempre un pò compressa.
1968: Hendrix attraversa un periodo di crisi, ovvero non riesce a trasporre la sua immensa creatività in qualcosa di concreto, perchè sottoposto a immense pressioni da parte della casa discografica e dal proprio manager. Hendrix cambia manager, si rinchiude negli "Electric Lady Studios" di New York e, con l'Experience, partorisce il suo definitivo capolavoro: "Electric Ladyland".
Il disco si apre con un brano che richiama alla musica di Broadway, "...And The Gods Made Love", la psichedelica "Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)", e "Crosstown Traffic", uno dei singoli del disco, il brano più vicino al rock'n'roll in tutto il disco, con il suo ritmo indiavolato e il suo testo richiamante ai classici "Hot Rods" degli anni '50. Si prosegue con la magnifica "Voodoo Chile", ovvero l'ultima frontiera tra il blues e la contaminazione: l'opera (perchè definirla canzone è restrittivo) dura 15 minuti e si avvale della collaborazione di Jack Casady al basso e Steve Winwood all'organo Hammond, che in lunghi tratti soppianta la chitarra nell'eseguire grandiosi assoli.
Poi c'è "Little Miss Strange", brano frutto della penna di Noel Redding e cantato dall'autore stesso; Hendrix torna "padrone di casa" in "Long Hot Summer Night", con Al Kooper al piano, e "Come On (Let The Good Times Roll)", canzone che il 4 minuti contiene tre indiavolati assoli di chitarra. La successiva "Gypsy Eyes" è dedicata dal chitarrista alla madre, morta quando lui aveva undici anni, ed è realizzata con oltre settanta sovraincisioni, delle quali peraltro Hendrix non era ancora soddisfatto. "Burning Of The Midnight Lamp" è il brano più leggero del disco e anche questo fu singolo, mentre nella canzone seguente, "Rainy Day, Dream Away", che ha un seguito in "Still Rainin', Still Dreamin'", torna la contaminazione, qui apertamente jazzistica, con l'aiuto di Buddy Miles, futuro batterista della "Band Of Gypsys" e altri, quali Mike Finnigan, Larry Faucette e Freddie Smith.
Qui arriva il grande capolavoro del disco: continuando sulla via della contaminazione, Hendrix crea un capolavoro quale "1983: A Merman I Should Turn To Be", il brano più psichedelico dell'intera produzione hendrixiana insieme a "Third Stone From The Sun", che pian piano si dissolve in "Moon, Turn The Tides", nella quale compare Chris Wood a suonare il flauto.
Dopo questi due brani c'è la già citata "Still Rainin', Still Dreamin'", che riprende il tema di "Rainy Day", seguita poi da "House Burning Down", canzone dal ritmo trascinante e dal ritornello epico, che si chiude con il crollo della citata casa imitato dalla chitarra di Hendrix, che poi userà questo stesso "trucco" a Woodstock, per imitare i bombardamenti in Vietnam durante la sua celeberrima versione dell'inno americano.
Il disco si chiude con i due brani più famosi: "All Along The Watchtower", cover di Bob Dylan (la mia canzone preferita) e "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)", show chitarristico di quasi sei minuti interrotto da brevi strofe deliranti.
Per concludere, un disco epocale che mette a nudo la vera anima di Hendrix: quella creatività sfuggente a ogni schema, tendente solo al creare capolavori nella musica.
Elenco tracce testi e video
02 Have You Ever Been (to Electric Ladyland) (02:11)
Have you ever been (have you ever been) to Electric
Ladyland?
The magic carpet waits, for you.
So don't you be late
Oh, (I wanna show you), the different emotions
(I wanna run to) the sounds and motions
Electric woman waits for you and me
So it's time we take a ride,
we can cast all of your hang-ups over
the seaside.
While we fly right over the love filled sea
Look up ahead, I see the loveland, soon you'll understand.
Make love, make love, make love, make love.
(I wanna show you)
The angels will spread their wings, spread their wings
(I wanna show you)
Good and evil lay side by side while electric love penetrates
the sky
(I wanna show you)
Lord, Lord I wanna show you
(I wanna show you)
Hmm, hmmm, hmmm
(I wanna show you)
Show you
(I wanna show you)
03 Crosstown Traffic (02:27)
You jump in front of my car when you, you know all time
90 miles an hour girl, is the speed I drive
You tell me it's alright. you don't mind a little pain.
you say you just want me to take you for a drive!
you're just like
(crosstown traffic!) so hard to get through to you
(Crosstown traffic) I don't need to run over you
(Crosstown traffic) all you do is slow me down!
and I'm trying to get on the other side of town
I'm not the only soul who's
accused of hit and run
tire tracks all across your back, I can, I can see you had your fun.
but uh darling, can't you see my signals turn from green to red
and with you, I can see a traffic jam straight up ahead
you're just like
(crosstown traffic) so hard to get through to you
(Crosstown traffic) I don't need to run over you!
(Crosstown traffic) all you do is slow me down
and I've got better things on the other side of town
yeah girl
(Crosstown traffic, yeah)
Look out, Look out,
Look out, Baby, Comin' through
(Crosstown traffic, yeah) yeah girl now
(Crosstown traffic, Look out) Look out, look out, Baby
(Crosstown traffic, yeah, Look out)
What's that in the street?
06 Long Hot Summer Night (03:28)
Show us a long
Long, long hot summer night
As far as my eyes could see
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Well my heart was way down
Cold cold winter stone
Well my darlin' where can you be
Where can you be baby
Where can you be
There were three sugar cane walls
And two candy cane windows
But the silliest move welted all those inside
Well everybody's on fire, but its
A snowin' in a cold blizzard
Where are you in this a hot cold summer?
Where are you in this a hot cold summer?
Where are you in this a hot cold summer?
God, god, god
Around about this time the telephone
Blew its horn across the room
Scared little Annie
Clean out of her mind
Out of her mind
And grabbed little Annie from the sink just in time
And the telephone just keeps on screamin'
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
"Hello," said my shaky voice
"Well, how you doing"
I started to stutter
Ah, ah, can't you tell that I'm doin' fine
Can't you tell I'm doin' fine
It was my baby talkin'
Way down across the border
She says "I'm goin' to hurry to ya, I've been a fool
And I'm tired of cryin'"
Ah, ah
Yeah
I said a long
Long, hot summer night
As far as my eyes could see
As far as my eyes
I could feel the heat comin' on
As my baby's gettin' closer
I'm so glad my baby's comin' to rescue me
So glad my baby's comin' to rescue me
My baby's comin' to rescue me
Rescue
Rescue
07 Come On (Let the Good Times Roll) (04:10)
People talkin' but they just don't know,
What's in my heart, and why I love you so.
I love you baby like a miner loves gold.
Come on sugar, let the good times roll. hey!
So many people live in make believe,
They keep a lot a going up their sleeves.
But my love baby is no kind that folds.
Come On Baby, let the good times roll.
(Let the good times roll).
ah baby, come on and let daddy fill your soul.
baby, let the good times roll.
hey!
A love is nice if it's understood
It's even nicer when you're feelin' good
You got me flippin' like flag on a pole
Come on sugar, let the good times roll
Hey! Yeah! Let the good times roll!
feel me baby! Come on, good times roll!
come on and let me fill your soul,
hey, let the good times roll
08 Gypsy Eyes (03:44)
Well I realize that I've been hypnotized,
I love your gypsy eyes
I love your gypsy eyes
Alright!
Hey!
Gypsy.
Way up in my tree I'm sitting by my fire
Wond'rin' where in this world might you be
And knowin' all the time you're still roamin' in the country side
Do you still think about me?
Oh my gypsy.
Well I walked right on to your rebel roadside
The one that rambles on for a million miles
Yes I walk down this road searchin' for your love and ah my soul too
But when I find ya I ain't gonna let go.
I remember the first time I saw you
The tears in your eyes look like they're tryin' to say
Oh little boy you know I could love you
But first I must make my get away
Two strange men fightin' to the death over me today
I'll try to meet cha by the old highway.
Hey!
Well I realize that I've been hypnotized, I love your gypsy eyes
I love your gypsy eyes
I love your gypsy eyes
I love your gypsy eyes
Alright!
I've been searchin' so long my feet have made me lose the battle
Down against the road my weary knees they got me
Off to the side I fall but I hear a sweet call
My gypsy eyes is comin' and I've been saved.
Oh I've been saved
That's why I love you uh
Said I love you
Hey!
Love you uh
Lord I love you
Hey!
09 Burning of the Midnight Lamp (03:40)
The morning is dead
And the day is too
There's nothing left here to greet me
But the velevet moon
All my loneliness
I have felt today
It's a little more than enough
To make a man throw himself away
And i continue
To burn the midnight lamp
Alone
Now the smiling portrait of you
Is stll hangin' on my frowning wall
It really doesn't really doesn't bother me too much at all
It's just the, uh, ever falling dust
That makes it so hard for me to see
That forgotten ear-ring laying on the floor
Facing coldly toward the door
And i continue
To burn the midnight lamp
All alone
Burn
Lonely lonely, yeah
Lonely lonely lonely
Loneliness is such a, drag
So here i sit to face
That same old fire place
Gettin' ready for the same old explosion
Goin' through my mind
And soon enough time will tell
About the circus and the wishing well
And someone who will buy and sell for me
Someone who will toll my bell
And i continue to burn the same ol' lamp
Alone
Darlin' do you hear me callin' you
So lonely
Lonely!
11 1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be) (13:46)
Hurrah i awake from yesterday
alive but the war is here to stay
so my love catherina and me
decide to take our last walk
through the noise to the sea
not to die but to be re-born
away from a life so battered and torn....
forever...
oh say can you see its really such a mess
every inch of earth is a fighting nest
giant pencil and lip-stick tube shaped things
continue to rain and cause screaming pain
and the arctic stains
from silver blue to bloody red
as our feet find the sand
and the sea is strait ahead..
strait ahead.....
well its too bad
that our friends
cant be with us today
well thats too bad
"the machine
that we built
would never save us"
thats what they say
(thats why they aint coming with us today)
and they also said
"its impossible for man
to live and breath underwater..
forever" was their main complaint
(yeah)
and they also threw this in my face:
they said
anyway
you know good well
it would be beyond the will of God
and the grace of the King
(grace of the King yeah yeah)
so my darling and I
make love in the sand
to salute the last moment
ever on dry land
our machine has done its work
played its part well
without a scratch on our bodies
and we bid it farewell
starfish and giant foams
greet us with a smile
before our heads go under
we take a last look
at the killing noise
of the out of style...
the out of style, out of style
13 Still Raining, Still Dreaming (04:26)
Rainy day, rain all day
Ain't no use in gettin' uptight
Just let it groove its own way
Let it drain your worries away yeah
Lay back and groove on a rainy day hey
Lay back and dream on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back
Oh yeah !
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and dream on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and dream on a rainy day
Lay back and, lay back, lay back, lay back and groove.
Ooh
Aaaah !
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and groove on a rainy day
Lay back and dream on a rainy day.
Still rainin' still dreamin'
Carico i commenti... con calma
Altre recensioni
Di Mario
La danza cosmica dei sensi nel vento incandescente di 'Voodoo Chile'.
Dopo aver ascoltato 'Voodoo Chile' capisci che Hendrix non avrebbe potuto andare oltre.
Di woodstock
Le note sembrano essere state incise su un sepolcro da dèi che fanno l'amore.
"Prima avevamo una musica che era tutta corpo, poi abbiamo avuto una musica che era tutta mente. Ora abbiamo una musica che è corpo e mente".
Di TraumaCronico
Hendrix era la Chitarra, per parafrasare imminenti personaggi che hanno ormai varcato la soglia dei 60 ma hanno ancora negli occhi quel qualcosa che sembra essere concentrato in queste parole: so qualcosa che tu non sai.
Con certi suoni, le droghe perdono senso. Non servono, vattene affanculo.
Di claudio carpentieri
Jimi Hendrix è il Van Gogh delle sette note, in grado di riprodurre singolari arcobaleni musicali.
Electric Ladyland ha tutte le carte per divenire uno degli apogei della musica rock.
