Hendrix at Royal Albert Hall

[Dave W]

Rare Footage of Jimi Hendrix's Full Performance at the Royal Albert Hall in 1969 — Video

[Basvarken]

Thank you Dave. That is very cool.

[Alanko]

The cleanest copy I've seen of that footage thus far.  I have a DVD of it back home, from a higher gen video with colour issues. Some copies seem washed out and other copies seem far too warm, and mine is the latter. Mine also has sync issues, as the creator has tried to use a superior audio source whilst the visuals lag behind. I see this new version still cuts to an inferior VHS source during Foxy Lady however, so all is not fixed!

I have a real soft spot for this gig. My first Hendrix album was a cassette that had some of this gig on it and some of the pre-Experience session stuff Jimi played on. Definitely a weird mix of music, as it included a raucous version of Day Tripper with Jimi on fuzz bass alongside some of the Albert Hall cuts.

The video shows that Jimi was maybe not in the best frame of mind. He clearly loses it with Mitch for his impatient snare tapping at the beginning of Hear My Train a Comin'. There is a long meandering version of Stone Free from this gig that isn't on the video, but luckily a very explosive take of I Don't Live Today makes the cut. Jimi clearly tries to use longer, sludgy jams to try and reach some sort of level of personal satisfaction.

I would love to see a full release of this with clean visuals, audio mixed properly (not the weird panned-off and heavily reverb'd version on most releases) and maybe also the inclusion of whatever else was filmed during this period. The preceding week's gig at the Albert Hall was potentially filmed, as there is some much darker concert footage edited in. The presence of looped sections of footage and other visual aberrations, from shitty fast-panning effects to superimposed imagery and other non-concert footage, does make me question if all the gig was captured on film successfully.

[westen44]

It doesn't seem anyone in the band at that point was playing at 100%.  But that's still probably the most important Hendrix performance that has never been officially released.  Calling it rare is no exaggeration, IMO.   

[uwe]

Electrified blues alright.

[Alanko]

It doesn't seem anyone in the band at that point was playing at 100%.  But that's still probably the most important Hendrix performance that has never been officially released.  Calling it rare is no exaggeration, IMO.   

It is both rare and somewhat ubiquitous. The Albert Hall material has cropped up on hundreds of unofficial releases, which I think is indicative of the legal wrangling behind the material. I think this starts at day one, as some of the concert goers themselves were meant to be given a private screening of the video to compensate them for having their view blocked by camera equipment. I don't think that screening happened, though I recall Noel Redding saying he had seen a clean copy, minus visual effects, in the '70s?

I was surprised to see a new release of the Atlanta Pop Festival footage (I have a washed out copy from a Japanese laserdisc somewhere) and the Miami Pop Festival footage. Never say never!

[uwe]

I can't believe that the industrious Hendrix family haven't gotten their hands on this yet after the bottom of the barrel has been scraped beyond stability several times over.

No matter how (not so) good the performance might have been by his own standards, it does give you clear idea how "far out" he was at the time. That is the mold of guitar herodom as we know it, no less.

[westen44]

It is both rare and somewhat ubiquitous. The Albert Hall material has cropped up on hundreds of unofficial releases, which I think is indicative of the legal wrangling behind the material. I think this starts at day one, as some of the concert goers themselves were meant to be given a private screening of the video to compensate them for having their view blocked by camera equipment. I don't think that screening happened, though I recall Noel Redding saying he had seen a clean copy, minus visual effects, in the '70s?

I was surprised to see a new release of the Atlanta Pop Festival footage (I have a washed out copy from a Japanese laserdisc somewhere) and the Miami Pop Festival footage. Never say never!

I've watched that Atlanta Pop Festival performance several times on Showtime now.  Of course it wasn't as good as the RAH by a long shot.  But visually especially it was very interesting.  I'm glad Hendrix got to experience how appreciative those people were to see and hear him.  It also shattered the stereotypes which existed at that time.  It proved that Hendrix was appreciated as much in the South as in the North. 

[Alanko]

I agree about Atlanta. Something went a bit weird with Jimi's rig in mid-to-late 1969. It seems less organic; the fuzz seems harsher and colder and the feedback just doesn't seem to come as easily and doesn't seem as controllable. The Isle of Wight is further evidence of this; a ropey gig re-issued countless times on all mediums.


The Hendrix family seem to be on the right path, sort of. This is the outfit that only released the 2nd set from Berkeley 1970, and have cobbled together all sorts of shit in the past. I wouldn't consider all of their releases as definitive, really, and they've had a fair number of attempts at making the illusive final Jimi album (Black Gold, or whatever it is called this week) a reality. They work hard at keeping Jimi visible as a brand, but they aren't exactly giving us the Discipline Global Music or Dick's Picks style of releases we would like.

I would quite like to see more concert footage, simply. The Randall's Island gig was taped in some capacity, as was the 'Earth vs Space' Madison Square Garden gig from early 1970 where Jimi was spiked (or mis-dosed) on acid. There is a short clip of this in some movie from the time, but nothing more substantial.

This is the outfit that licensed the Hendrix starter guitar to Gibson. Dig the pickguard logo:



I wanted one of these as well. 

[westen44]

I can't believe that the industrious Hendrix family haven't gotten their hands on this yet after the bottom of the barrel has been scraped beyond stability several times over.

No matter how (not so) good the performance might have been by his own standards, it does give you clear idea how "far out" he was at the time. That is the mold of guitar herodom as we know it, no less.

I doubt if it can be verified, but I read somewhere recently that the Hendrix family is demanding 2 million to settle the suit.  As a layman, it just appears to me as one of those instances in which two parties have an equal and valid claim to something.  I'm not sure how much something like that happens. 

[westen44]

I agree about Atlanta. Something went a bit weird with Jimi's rig in mid-to-late 1969. It seems less organic; the fuzz seems harsher and colder and the feedback just doesn't seem to come as easily and doesn't seem as controllable. The Isle of Wight is further evidence of this; a ropey gig re-issued countless times on all mediums.


The Hendrix family seem to be on the right path, sort of. This is the outfit that only released the 2nd set from Berkeley 1970, and have cobbled together all sorts of shit in the past. I wouldn't consider all of their releases as definitive, really, and they've had a fair number of attempts at making the illusive final Jimi album (Black Gold, or whatever it is called this week) a reality. They work hard at keeping Jimi visible as a brand, but they aren't exactly giving us the Discipline Global Music or Dick's Picks style of releases we would like.

I would quite like to see more concert footage, simply. The Randall's Island gig was taped in some capacity, as was the 'Earth vs Space' Madison Square Garden gig from early 1970 where Jimi was spiked (or mis-dosed) on acid. There is a short clip of this in some movie from the time, but nothing more substantial.

This is the outfit that licensed the Hendrix starter guitar to Gibson. Dig the pickguard logo:



I wanted one of these as well. 

Some of the releases have been worth it and some haven't.  One of the most disappointing was the Valleys of Neptune album.  But I liked several others like what was released in 2011--I think Hendrix in the West and Winterland.  As far as I know, the mythical final release is still being called Black Gold by people.  I'm no expert, but I have a friend who knows as much or more about this than anyone out there.  If I really want to know something, I just ask him. 

[westen44]

They've already taken down the video.  It's very rare that Hendrix videos don't end up being taken down.  Seriously, this is really getting irritating if you're a Hendrix fan.  I buy what is released, but it looks like this freaking RAH concert will never be released.

Here is a concert that they seem to not be able to take down for some reason.

[Highlander]

Might have been pulled but not UK viewable...

[westen44]

Might have been pulled but not UK viewable...

It isn't viewable in any country now.  Jani Hendrix has almost everything pulled.  Some videos may stay up briefly, but that's about it.