Jimi Hendrix at LA Forum, 1969

[westen44]

The entire concert will be available on CD in November. 

[Alanko]

One of those nights where Jimi's rig was working together as one organism rather than presenting issues (Isle of Wight and Atlanta Pop spring to mind). It's nice that it still sounds a bit raw and unpolished. One of the quirks of live Experience-era material is where the bass and drums sit in the stereo field. Noel Redding had quite a bright, dirty tone so do you pan him across to one channel rather than stick him in the centre with the drums? If so, what do you put in the empty channel opposite the guitar? I had one live recording with the drums penned into one channel.

Cheeky of the Hendrix estate to present this as a new release as 95% of this gig has been out there in some form or other. I'm still diligently waiting for an official DVD of the 1969 Albert Hall gig rather than the washed out, chopped up bootleg I bought about twenty years ago.

Hendrix is one of the artists with the least sympathetic treatment of his back catalog, unreleased material and merchandise.

[ilan]

Chicago Transit Authority (AKA Chicago) were the support act that night.

[uwe]

Funny, but I would welcome a mix with Hendrix and Redding panned and Mitchell in the middle. Sort of like you saw them. I have nothing against extreme panning, my mind puts it all together.

That's a good quality recording and performance, will get it.

[westen44]

This CD is finally available.  I've been sick and can't really say that I've been able to completely focus on it as much as I could if I were well.  At the same time, listening to it even in a dazed state is therapeutic.  I really like the set list.  Hendrix seemed more relaxed than usual.  Some critics are saying this is the best Hendrix live performance.  I'm not sure about that, but it's really good.  Well worth the $13 I paid for it (including taxes and shipping.)  I've definitely paid a lot more and got a lot less for something like this.   This concert had a loose and improvisational feel to it.  It differs quite a lot from the studio recordings.  Eddie Kramer worked hard remixing this and the positive results are obvious. 

[uwe]

Ok, based on your reccommendation, I'll get it ...

CDs that contain the word "purple", you can't go wrong with them!

I read that some diehard Hendrixites find it "too sanitized", too much Eddie Kamer, too little "real Hendrix", whatever that is.

[westen44]

I still haven't been able to fully evaluate it since I'm still sick.  Personally, though, his live performances like that which are so different from the original recordings appeal to me.  I don't know how exactly how I'll feel about it yet, but it's good, definitely better than average.  Up to this point, my favorite live recordings have been "Winterland" and "Hendrix in the West."  Exactly how the Los Angeles concert compares to those two, I don't know yet. 

I haven't seen any of those negative reviews that you are referring to.  However, if they're coming from other Hendrix fans, I would have to take it with a grain of salt.  In general, I don't identify with many of the other fans who came to this late in the game when Alan Douglas was screwing around with the recordings.  I can't identify with that and wouldn't want to.  Hendrix had said he never wanted Douglas to have anything to do with his music, and he was right to say that. 

Some of the people complaining may be some of the same ones objecting to the album cover.  But like someone once said, you don't listen to album covers.  But if this concert isn't "real Hendrix," then I don't know what is.