Jimi Hendrix's Last Album Was Also His Best: Electric Ladyland
The third and final studio album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience was the 1968 double album Electric Ladyland. It's the album that many Jimi Hendrix fans (including myself) believe to be his true masterpiece. While his first two albums were excellent as well, Electric Ladyland is a truly mind blowing trip and that's exactly what Hendrix intended it to be.
The album begins with some other-worldly voices in "...And the Gods Made Love." This lets you know exactly what kind of tripped out experience you are in for. This is certainly not just music mean to be merely listened to, it's music to be truly experienced (as the band's name makes reference to.) The music does it's part, it's up to the listener to open up their minds and really "take the trip."
The album showcases many different styles in it's 16 tracks (two of which are at least 13 minutes.) One example of those different styles is the British rock inspired "Little Miss Strange" (which features bassist Noel Redding on vocals, Redding also wrote the song.) This is a cool song as it gives you an idea of what a British rock band (like The Beatles or The Who) would have sounded like with Jimi Hendrix on lead guitar. Another example is the blues rock of "Voodoo Chile" (which is a different song than the much more well known "Slight Return.")
"Voodoo Chile" is 15 minutes long and starts off reasonably conventionally as a heavy blues song but it eventually breaks down into full on psychedelic rock (go about 9 minutes into the song to get an idea of what I'm talking about.) For those that really love the bluesier side of Hendrix this is a great, great track.
Then there's the excellent medley that makes up side 3 of the album beginning with "Rainy Day, Dream Away" and ending with "Still Raining Still Dreaming." This is probably the most "far out" part of the album and considering what else is on the album, that is definitely saying quite a bit.
Included in this medley is the 13 minute "1983 (A Mermaid I Should Turn To Be)" which includes the albums most adventurous studio production.
The album also includes some well known Hendrix classics like "Crosstown Traffic," "Gypsy Eyes," "Burning of the Midnight Lamp," "All Along the Watchtower," and the previously mentioned "Voodoo Child (Slight Return.)" If you are unfamiliar with this album, these will probably be the songs you'll already recognize from somewhere else (from the radio or a "greatest hits" type album.)
While I definitely recommend getting all three of his albums, I do think that Electric Ladyland is the ultimate Hendrix album. If you have yet and you love the music you've heard from Jimi Hendrix thus far then you really must listen to it.
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