By Mark Grove
The closest player to a Hendrix I ever heard or seen,is Dee Curtis. He's a blues man that plays more like a consummate Rock/Funk player, with little doses of free-form jazz.Dee would say he's not that great a player.But I'm biased where he's concerned.Is Jimmy the guitar hero everyone tries to play like.Actually,no.
Not because it's too hard.Because he's seen as the messiah of guitar.He pulled sounds out of a guitar very few could.Even when today's players use a wah or a stomp it still doesn't compare.
Sometimes,playing guitar is like writing.You have to take time away from playing in order to get a new element of your sound when playing.May be it's being a bit of a slacker,but it works.
Even something as simple as trying different amp set ups and using dirtier tones,but in a way that isn't totally muddy will also take a players sound into the Hendrix circle possibly.
But learning to combine blues boxes and jazz are essential elements of playing like Hendrix as well. Even Hendrix borrowed from other players, don't kid yourself.But you need to study and listen to his material,and give it your twist.
I think in a small way Hendrix got players of the day in the late 60's to write more their own original material,but still have the blues and rock undertones that excite us to this day.
Whether or not that's true is debatable.Play like you but listen and study the greats.There are still great blues men alive that play like they're still 30 sometimes.Flashes of greatness if you will.
Go see them live.Hendrix is a great player still.If you're in the music business you think of Hendrix in the present tense. He's the god of guitar,not some idiot wearing a cross spouting bull-shit about the bible that will clear it all up.
If some loser god does come back he better bring back Hendrix and want to have a beer and talk sports. Don't bull-shit me.
I would like to see Tampa Red,Dee Curtis and Hendrix--and Vinny Trad in a gig at the Old blues club (The Firehall)in London,Ontario Canada.
Just an elusive dream of mine.So listen to Hendrix and study him like crazy, and play Hendrix your way.
Mark Grove
