Jimi Hendrix is often hailed as one of the most precise and talented guitar players who ever lived, but fans can rarely agree on which song best exemplifies his generational talent. Is it studio masterpieces like “All Along the Watchtower” and “Little Wing”, or more authentic, live performances like “Red House”?
Rolling Stone opted for none of these classics, instead naming his live New Year’s Day 1970 performance of “Machine Gun” for Band of Gypsys as his crowning accomplishment. The 12-minute song includes multiple energetic guitar solos, interspersed with live electric feedback to simulate the sounds of a battlefield.
The song quickly became one of Hendrix’s most legendary musical numbers, even though it was never included on any of his studio albums. Instead, it was simply released on the Band of Gypsies live album and continues to live on in infamy as an incredible demonstration of his guitar skills.
“Machine Gun” was devised as an anti-war protest song. During a now-famous performance in Berkeley, California, Hendrix introduced the song as a dedication to protesters involved in the People’s Park Protests in Berkeley, American soldiers fighting in Vietnam, and “other people that might be fighting wars too, but within themselves, not facing up to the realities.”
Rolling Stone called Hendrix’s “Machine Gun” live performance “the most ambitious, raw, soulful, go-for-broke expression of his musical genius,” and it’s hard to disagree. The song includes so many precise, dynamic guitar solos that blend into each other effortlessly, testing Hendrix on so many levels—and he succeeds on them all. Every single one of these solos deserves to be in the conversation for the greatest ever performed, and Hendrix does them all in one go.
And it’s not just music fans (or Rolling Stone) who believe “Machine Gun” to be among the greatest feats ever accomplished on the guitar. Several other legends of rock music, from Guns ‘n Roses’ Slash to Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, have cited this performance as their favorite guitar performance of all time. There’s something truly magical about the way Hendrix plays, and it’s all encapsulated in “Machine Gun”.
Source: Life – Fitness – mensjournal
