The rhythm of Hendrix
 

I know this might be considered off-topic for this forum, however, I think I am able to connect the subject to interests of this forum.

Many times when I've listened to songs of Jimi Hendrix, I have noticed several things. Not neccassarily the greatness in his guitar playing (!), but rather the pumping FUNKY GROOVE. Especially the drummer has grabbed my attention, as he seems to be the fundament of the great rhythms that live on in the songs.

Now, what I am wondering is; do the Hendrix band tend to incorporate varied time signatures in their songs, is the drummer (and the rest of the band, for that sake) incredibly gifted when it comes to maintaining grooves, is it a combination of both maybe, or is there another explanation?

Since when are varied time signatures funky or groovy?

What exactly were you listening to?

Zappa: Good question. I am afraid I failed in my reasoning. However, there IS a certain groove going on in most of Hendrix' songs, I will claim. Let me re-phrase a new question: Has anyone else noticed that the musicians in the Hendrix band tend to have a great sense of rhythm?

Another point might be that I react to a song if it has a time signature which is not 4/4. Then, if the rhythm is good, and the time signature is not 4/4, I might automatically relate the greatness of the rhythm to the non-4/4 groove. Just a thought.

Noonward Race: The last example I listened to was Little Wing.

Mitch Mitchell could lay down the coolest grooves. He definitally has a big jazz background, and it really shows.

the bassist is really great too. they make a great pair, and i think thats where the groove comes from. i love his backup band.

[QUOTE=jazzfunkboy]the bassist is really great too. they make a great pair, and i think thats where the groove comes from. i love his backup band.[/QUOTE]

Noel Redding = bass.

Jimi Hendrix's rhythm is really smooth and funky, though it has more to do with his playing style then time signatures.

Hendrix is underrated.

[QUOTE=Emin3m]Noel Redding = bass.[/QUOTE]

That all depends on which album you're talking about. IN '69 Redding left and jimi's army buddy Billy Cox became the new bassist.

[QUOTE=Seafroggys]Mitch Mitchell could lay down the coolest grooves. He definitally has a big jazz background, and it really shows.[/QUOTE]
I love the drumming in "Fire".

[QUOTE=Livewired]I love the drumming in "Fire".[/QUOTE]
I noticed that too.

[QUOTE=Sam]

Hendrix is underrated.[/QUOTE]



Joke?

[QUOTE=Destroyed]Joke?[/QUOTE]

Hendrix is underated on this board, every where else he is overated.

[QUOTE=Sam]Hendrix is underrated.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, maybe on this board. I see too many people going crazy here for Jimmy Page, but compared to Hendrix, he's mediocre. Hendrix, every aspect of his playing is so amazing... his rhythm and lead...

hendrix wasnt really a great guitarist, he played with heaps of emotion though, i consider page to be a much better guitarist.

Mitch Mitchell was amazing. Great drummer, and as was already said - alot of jazz influence. Origional musician that guy. Truely a legend.

"Yeah, maybe on this board. I see too many people going crazy here for Jimmy Page, but compared to Hendrix, he's mediocre. Hendrix, every aspect of his playing is so amazing... his rhythm and lead..."

Jimmy Page was the top studio guitarist in the UK when he was 17 years old. Hendrix was great, but he was most definately not as good as Page. Just look at the Zeppelin and Yardbirds cataloge. The variety, musicianship, technicality... it's all there. I love Hendrix, but he simply cannot beat out someone like Jimmy Page.

[QUOTE=dumbassdrummer]Hendrix was great, but he was most definately [sic] not as good as Page. Just look at the Zeppelin and Yardbirds cataloge. The variety, musicianship, technicality... it's all there. I love Hendrix, but he simply cannot beat out someone like Jimmy Page.[/QUOTE]

That's ridiculous. I saw Page in his prime on the "Stairway to Heaven" tour: He was nothing. The best I can say for Page is that he's better than Steve Miller, which is saying very little. Page could never hold a candle to Jan Ackerman, Danny Kortchmar (of The Section), Jeff Beck, Clapton, Santana, or Hendrix. Even Martin Barre wipes him out. (Write "definitely" fifty times on the chalk board before you leave.)

I would'nt go as far as saying Martin Barre is better then Page. Otherwise i agree with you on everthing else. Speaking of Martin Barre, i'm going to see Tull in October. Anyone else going this year?

[QUOTE=Titties_n_Beer]hendrix wasnt really a great guitarist, he played with heaps of emotion though, i consider page to be a much better guitarist.[/QUOTE]
yes, yes he was. his rhythm work in particular is spectacular. and his solos are much more complex than pages. page was kind of mediocre compared to other guitarists around in the same time period.

[QUOTE=punchnpie]I would'nt go as far as saying Martin Barre is better then Page. Otherwise i agree with you on everthing else. Speaking of Martin Barre, i'm going to see Tull in October. Anyone else going this year?[/QUOTE]

Well, it may be an exaggeration to say, as I did, that Barre "wipes out" Page. Back in the day I personally preferred Barre. How about that?

I saw Tull in 2003 (August), the first time in several centuries or so. I thought Barre was much improved technically but not pacing himself especially well this particular night. Ian Anderson's flute playing was also much improved technically, in respect to tone, intonation, and clarity, but his solos, although well-paced, were fairly obvious and his lines not intricate, which may be a concession to his non-jazz fans. His patter was very entertaining and his singing voice completely shot. I almost saw Tull again November of 2005 playing just a couple blocks from where I live, but it was the day after the election, and I was too depressed.

Hendrix's solos are more complex than Page's? Maybe if you've only listened to Communication Breakdown, I could understand that claim. From what I can tell, I will have to disagree, based on the opinion of the guitarist in my band Page is superior to Hendrix, and based on the view point of a couple of other professional blues guitarists that I know, Page was a better player. If you could sight some examples as to why you argue that Page is inferior I'd love to give all of this another listening to.

As for Clapton and others being better than Page, with all certainty. But notice I never said Page was better than Clapton, et. al. I said Page was the top studio guitarist when he was 17 in the UK. Clapton and those fellows were out on the road and when they were in the studio it was usually with their band. Page was a studio musician, just a studio musician until Clapton begged him to join the Yardbirds, which he finally did.

[QUOTE=dumbassdrummer]Hendrix's solos are more complex than Page's? Maybe if you've only listened to Communication Breakdown, I could understand that claim. From what I can tell, I will have to disagree, based on the opinion of the guitarist in my band Page is superior to Hendrix [/QUOTE]

I doubt many of us are interested in the opinion of "the guitarist in [your] band" reported second-hand. Have him come here and explain himself.

[quote] If you could sight [sic] some examples as to why you argue that Page is inferior I'd love to give all of this another listening to.[/quote] Technically he was nothing. He played pentatonic scales in one position. Jan Ackerman was all over his guitar. I saw them both live with my own eyes the same year. Page's tone-quality was awful--and that has a hell of a lot more to do with the way you play than with your amp set-up. Hendrix's tone-quality was amazing. The great thing about Hendrix was how much he could intimate. There was no subtlety whatsoever to Page's playing.

[quote] But notice I never said Page was better than Clapton, et. al. I said Page was the top studio guitarist when he was 17 in the UK. [/quote] You said Page was better than Hendrix, and I say that's ridiculous. Page was *A* studio guitarist in England, certainly not "the top". I don't know the UK studio scene, but I rather suspect he'd have been laughed out of L.A.

I have yet to hear a Page solo that even comes close to, "Machine Gun". I'm biased though, I loathe that thief Jimmy Page.

[QUOTE=dumbassdrummer]Hendrix's solos are more complex than Page's? Maybe if you've only listened to Communication Breakdown, I could understand that claim. From what I can tell, I will have to disagree, based on the opinion of the guitarist in my band Page is superior to Hendrix, and based on the view point of a couple of other professional blues guitarists that I know, Page was a better player. If you could sight some examples as to why you argue that Page is inferior I'd love to give all of this another listening to.

As for Clapton and others being better than Page, with all certainty. But notice I never said Page was better than Clapton, et. al. I said Page was the top studio guitarist when he was 17 in the UK. Clapton and those fellows were out on the road and when they were in the studio it was usually with their band. Page was a studio musician, just a studio musician until Clapton begged him to join the Yardbirds, which he finally did.[/QUOTE]
:wave: hi. only communication breakdown? sorry, i own led zeppelins entire discography. including a few bootlegs. i think ive heard more than that. page couldnt touch hendrix's rhythm skills let alone his soloing, songwriting, or creativity. machine gun, come on (pt 2), little wing, red house, and various other songs are testament to hendrix's superiority.

and by the way, clapton never begged page to join the yardbirds. clapton was long gone by then. he left, they brought beck in, and then page reconsidered their offer. and beck was far better than page too.

I personally find Hendrix to be the greatest rock guitarist we've ever seen. The way he found a distinct/original sound to his music, developed it, and made some amazing songs based on it is the main reason I say he is the best. However, this doesn't belittle what Jimmy Page had done as a guitarist. Page was great too, regardless of what everyone is trying to say about him. He was more versatille than Hendrix, both as a guitarist and as a song writer. I just find it silly that the only way to say you think one is better than the other is by completely belittling the accomplishments of the other.

With that said, Peter Green is my favorite classic rock guitarist.

to say that Page is more versatile than Hendrix is ignoring Hendrix's discography, hes played funky songs rock blues he had so many more influences than the blues. The man had a great rhythm something that is really rare in rock at the time.

[QUOTE=dumbassdrummer]Hendrix's solos are more complex than Page's? Maybe if you've only listened to Communication Breakdown, I could understand that claim. From what I can tell, I will have to disagree, based on the opinion of the guitarist in my band Page is superior to Hendrix, and based on the view point of a couple of other professional blues guitarists that I know, Page was a better player. If you could sight some examples as to why you argue that Page is inferior I'd love to give all of this another listening to.[/QUOTE]

A lot of Page's solos are just as many notes as he could cram into the given time (Since I've Been Loving You stands out the most to me). Hendrix used a wide variety of scales, and usually mixed them together in the same solo. Machine Gun is another great example of Hendrix's complexity, as mentioned before. I'm also a little biased towards Page (for the same reason as Passion, Grace, and Fire), but biased or not, Page's skill couldn't touch Hendrix's.

[QUOTE=magicbus]A lot of Page's solos are just as many notes as he could cram into the given time (Since I've Been Loving You stands out the most to me).[/QUOTE]

That song is no worse than "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)"

So, what's Page have to do with Hendrix being funky or not?

[QUOTE=DemBonez]That song is no worse than "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)"[/QUOTE]
Voodoo Chile (slight return) was a totally improvised song for reporters