Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

His guitar slung across his back, his dusty boots is his cadillac.

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Rich_D
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Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by Rich_D » Sun Jun 29, 2014 1:04 pm

I'm not much up on Hendrix lore, but I have Mitch Mitchell's book and I'd like to get some thoughts on his words on the Woodstock performance. I've studied the hell out of the DVD and I can see the problems, the technical problems and the unfamiliarity of the hodgepodge of players, but it's still one of the most powerful and seminal rock performances I know of. For me, Hendrix is as inspired as I've ever seen and Mitchell is really tearing it up. I don't know how Hendrix felt going into the show other than what I read in Mitchell's book about the week of jams leading up to the show being an unproductive disaster, but it really seems like they both really gave a shit once they got onstage. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that the instrumental jam and the Villanova Junction are some of the best guitar playing I've ever seen, but I also love the Spanish Castle Magic, the Foxy
Lady is vicious in spite of the gear failure, and the tone on Voodoo Chile just blows my mind, greatest strat I've ever heard.

So I don't know what to make of it when Mitchell says the show was awful, embarrassing almost, and he was just glad to get offstage. I know the conditions were a nightmare and by all expectations it should have been a tragedy but I sure don't feel that way when I watch it. To contrast, when I watch the Stockholm video I feel horrible for how disinterested, bored, and almost disgusted Hendrix seems, yet Mitchell says those shows were OK, not too bad in the grand scope of their career. I can speculate that Mitchell resents the situation of Woodstock, with Hendrix really upsetting things by bringing in such an unworkable group of ingredients, but I'd like to hear others' thoughts on the whole scene.

p.s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPS90jn ... e=youtu.be

This is why I've studied Woodstock so hard for a couple of months - my 2 yr old demands at least 2 viewings a day! For like 2 months! :drummer:
Interpretation?! I thought I was playing it right!

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Rich_D
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Re: Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by Rich_D » Wed Jul 09, 2014 12:14 pm

Is there a question in there fruitloop or do you just like the sound of yourself typing?
Interpretation?! I thought I was playing it right!

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Rich_D
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Re: Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by Rich_D » Wed Jul 09, 2014 12:17 pm

Rich_D wrote:Is there a question in there fruitloop or do you just like the sound of yourself typing?
Oh yeah, sorry.

So am I just love-struck by Woodstock for some reason, like the production and the film is so good that I'm glossing over the bad stuff, or is it as awesome a Hendrix performance as I feel like it is? I'm not talking about the social and political significance of it, I'm talking about the performance. If it's subpar, what are the superior shows?
Interpretation?! I thought I was playing it right!

Tenderfoot
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Re: Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by Tenderfoot » Wed Jul 09, 2014 4:08 pm

It was "Band of Gypsys" that made me listen to any and everything I could get my hands on by him.

yladrd61
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Re: Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by yladrd61 » Thu Jul 10, 2014 6:41 am

I think it is a great performance by Jimi, I am just happy it was so well recorded :jimi:

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Re: Mitch Mitchell on Woodstock

Post by yngwie308 » Sat Sep 13, 2014 5:49 am

Jimi and band were kept waiting soooooo long and he was supposed to headline the Sat nite but things ran on and Sunday morning was when they finally went on.
There are many flashes of brilliance in his performance. I don't think it can be compared to Band of Gypsys, apples and oranges.
Still brilliant Hendrix that stands the test of time.
Mitch should have been used to Jimi's rehearsal style by then :lol:
yngwie308
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