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Rating: The Rainbow Bridge Concert was the last great live event in Hendrix's history. A concert for a chosen few, at the foot of the Haleakeala volcano crater, in Maui. July 30, 1970.
As we all know, our guitarist passed away a few months later. For this reason, this concert, originally intended as the closing sequence for the experimental film 'Rainbow Bridge Vibratory Color/Sound Experiment', was shrouded in a mystical aura probably equal to that of the famous Woodstock performance. I don't know why it remained in the drawers of Purple Haze Records before reemerging as a double CD. Most likely, the answer lies in the audio quality, which leaves much to be desired despite digital adjustments. And the performance?
The cover speaks of a 'sacred grail for Hendrix fans and collectors'. I fear I must disagree. The Experience (in the version with Cox on bass) plays just to play (naturally remaining at superhuman levels), Hendrix is in pieces and it is evident in his voice, very weak and terribly recorded. The guitar has a sickly sound. The acoustics are terrible, the feedback is not what it used to be, but an annoying resonance that The Lefty no longer bothers to manage. Forget the fret noise of the live performance at the Isle of Wight, or the 'force' of the first strum, or the 'crack crack' of a poorly shielded jack. Despite this, the performance retains its charm, indeed, it acquires a tone of extreme suffering that justifies the commercialization of such a product.
The band offers two shows, performed a few hours apart from each other. In the second performance, Hendrix uses a Gibson Flying V instead of the traditional white Strat. Not that it affects the sound quality. The repertoire encompasses a bit of what the audience wants to hear and a bit of what the group wants to play. To clarify, the first show opens with 'Lover Man', a song Hendrix loved to perform live, concluding with the much-anticipated 'Voodoo Chile' (in which he barely touches the wah-wah). More space for free improvisation in the second set, where we find the highlight of the concert, the unleashed guitar of 'Jam Back at the House', based on the little-known instrumental 'Beginnings'.
Let it be clear, this is not yet another 'scraping-the-bottom-of-the-barrel' operation, nor is it the best Hendrix live available, but rather a little gem for fans, to be cherished as a memory of their favorite guitarist, saddened and suffering, a genius unforgettable and unforgotten.
Tracklist and Lyrics
01 Lover Man (02:33)
Here he comes, I say
Here comes your lover now
Here he comes
Here comes your lover man
Aah I gotta get my head from this pillow
I gotta get outta your
No heart fellin's
Reach down baby and get my runnin' shoes
Oh yeah
Reach down baby and get my runnin' shoes
I gotta get outta here and I got no time to lose
Hey
Here he comes
Here comes your lover now
Here he comes
Here comes your lover man
I gotta get my suitcase
And get the hell outta just as fast as I can
Here he comes baby
Here he comes baby
Here he comes baby
Here he comes baby
Doo Doo....
03 In From the Storm (04:59)
Well I, I just came back today
I just came back from the storm
Yeah!
I said: I just came back, baby
I just came back from the storm
Yeah, from the storm
Well, I didn't know it then
But I was sufferin', sufferin'
For my love to keep me warm
It was so cold and lonely, yeah
The wind 'n' cryin' blue rain
Were tearing me up
It was so cold and lonely
The crying blue rain was tearing me up
Oh, tearing me up. (tearing me up)
I wanna thank you my sweet darling
For digging in the mud and picking me up
(Thank you baby)
Thank you so much!
(Thank you baby)
(Thank you baby)
(Thank you baby)
It was a crying blue rain burning my eyes
The wind and lightning struck by a surprise
It was you my love who brought me in
I love you so much
I'll never stray from you again
Hey!
I just came back baby
I just came back to get my baby on her way
Yeah, yeah
06 Hear My Train A Comin' (09:08)
Well, I wait around the train station
Waitin' for that train
Waitin' for the train, yeah
Take me home, yeah
From this lonesome place
Well, now a while lotta people put me down a lotta changes
My girl had called me a disgrace
Dig
The tears burnin'
Tears burnin' me
Tears burnin' me
Way down in my heart
Well, you know it's too bad, little girl,
it's too bad
Too bad we have to part (have to part)
Dig
Gonna leave this town, yeah
Gonna leave this town
Gonna make a whole lotta money
Gonna be big, yeah
Gonna be big, yeah
I'm gonna buy this town
I'm gonna buy this town
An' put it all in my shoe
Might even give a piece to you
That's what I'm gonna do,
what I'm gonna do,
what I'm gonna do
08 Fire (03:43)
Alright,
Dig this baby
You don't care for me
I don'-a care about that
You gotta new fool, ha!
I like it like that
I have only one burning desire
Let me stand next to your fire
Let me stand next to your fire (Repeat 4 times)
Listen here, baby
and stop acting so crazy
You say your momma ain't home,
it ain't my concern,
Just play with me and you won't get burned
I have only one itching desire
Let me stand next to your fire
Let me stand next to your fire (Repeat 4 times)
Oh! Move over, Rover
and let Jimi take over
Yeah, you know what I'm talking 'bout
Yeah, get on with it, baby
That's what I'm talking 'bout
Now dig this!
Ha!
Now listen, baby
You try to gimme your money
you better save it, babe
Save it for your rainy day
I have only one burning desire
Let me stand next to your fire
Let me stand next to your fire
09 Purple Haze (04:34)
Purple haze all in my brain
Lately things just don't seem the same
Actin' funny, but I don't know why
'Scuse me while I kiss the sky
Purple Haze all around
Don't know if I'm comin' up or down
Am I happy or in misery?
What ever it is, that girl put a spell on me
Help me
Help me
Oh, no, no
Hammerin'
Talkin' 'bout heart 'n'...s-soul
I'm talkin' about hard stuff
If everbodys still around, fluff and ease, if
So far out my mind
Somethings happening, somethings happening
Ooo, ahhh
Ooo, {click} ahhh,
Ooo, ahhh
Ooo, ahhh, YEAH!
Purple haze all in my eyes, uhh
Don't know if its day or night
You got me blowin', blowin' my mind
Is it tomorrow, or just the end of time?
Ooo
Help me
Ahh, yea-yeah, purple haze, yeah
Oh, no, oh
Oh, help me
Tell me, baby, tell me
I can't go on like this
You're makin' me blow my mind...mama
n-no, nooo
No, its painful, baby
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