Jimi took up an interest in music since small, and unable to read or write music, he taught himself how to play the guitar by the age of 12. In 1961, he left home to enlist himself in the United Stated Army. Discharged due to an ankle injury, after a parachute jump, Jimi started to earn a living supporting and touring with soul and blues bands such as Tina Turner and Little Richard. In 1966, he shredded the role of back line guitarist for the spotlight of the lead guitar, and formed Jimmy James and the Blue Flames. In 1965, he was spotted by Chas Chandler in a New York Café, who signed a new agreement with him to form a new band called the "Jimi Hendrix Experience-. From then onwards, Jimi rose meteorically, and had an overwhelming success with his first album "Are You Experienced-. In 1968, Jimi took more control over the direction of his music, and released a more experimental album called Electric Ladyland. But throughout 1968, the touring demands and studio work deteriorated the relationship between band members and management, resulting in the separation of the "Experience-. Subsequently, Hendrix preformed with different musicians, such as in Woodstock 1969. Bringing the mass to frenzy, the highlight of the performance was when he played a version of "Star Spangled Banner-, unrecognisably distorted, which became a political anthem against the Vietnam War. In 1970, Jimi spent the year playing and recording sporadically, sometimes expressing his discontent to the public's clamour, who wanted to hear the old hits instead of his new ideas. On September 18th, he tragically died in a barbiturate-induced coma.
One of the few quotes that clearly portrays Jimi's creative process is the following; "Imagination is the key to my lyrics. The rest is painted with a little science fiction-. The science fiction he refers to, and the imagination he inputs, were undoubtfully from a man with a gifted talent, a man way ahead of his time.
