Guns N' Roses - Civil War

This is a live performance by the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses doing a live performance of their song "Civil War".
The song was originally released on the 1990 compilation "Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel", but more famously in 1991 on the album "Use Your Illusion II". It's an anti-war protest song which uses the dual meaning of the word 'civil' to get the message get across. The song was written by, Axl Rose, Slash, and Duff McKagan and it was released as a single in 1993.
I really love how Slash opens the song with the intro riff from "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" by Hendrix and also ends the song on this riff. An homage to Hendrix is always welcome in my book, and it fits the song very well. It's a great song and a great performance.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Hey Joe

This is a live performance by guitar legend Jimi Hendrix playing his version of the classic song "Hey Joe". The song is from the 1960s and it became a rock standard. The original authorship of the song isn't certain, but the earliest known commercial recording of the song was done by The Leaves in 1965. The most famous version however was Jimi Hendrix's recording from 1966.
The song tells the story of a man who is on the run after shooting his wife. He is planning to go to Mexico on a hideout.
It's a great performance by Hendrix. What I really love about this is the pace of the song, it's quite slow allowing for some awesome soulful soloing by Hendrix.

Above is a version from 2007 featuring former members of Hendrix's band. It features Billy Cox and Mitch Mitchell from Hendrix's former band, Steve Winwood on Hammond B3 organ, and Slash on guitar. It's a good version, I especially like Winwood's singing and playing on this. Slash is all right too, but of course no match to Hendrix.
Hendrix really pulls all of the stops on this performance, first playing with his teeth, and then playing the second solo behind his head. It's showmanship, but the crazy thing is that it sounds just as good as if he'd picked it out traditionally. Only Hendrix could pull something like that off and that's why he's a legend.
Being a rock classic and standard, the song has been recorded countless times. It has been recorded by: Cher, Wilson Pickett, Deep Purple,Roy Buchanan, Patti Smith, Seal, Type O Negative, Eddie Murphy, and Robert Plant. It that is only a snippet of the people and artists who have done this song.
I love the Hendrix version of this. And this is a great performance by him, just pouring his soul out through his guitar, truly a legend!

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Valleys of Neptune

This is the music video made for the track "Valleys of Neptune" from the album of the same title. The music video is compiled from footage and still pictures of Hendrix with added effects and such.
The song is off the album "Valleys of Neptune" which was the 11th album by Hendrix released posthumously. Most of the album was self-produced by Hendrix and recorded in sessions during the year 1969. The album was released in America in 2010.
It's a great song, and the album is highly recommended for any Hendrix fan. It really is a good album, and not just a cash grab.

Enjoy ; )

Gary Moore - Midnight Blues

This is a live performance by Irish guitarist Gary Moore performing yet another one of his slow blues classics. This one is "Midnight Blues" which is just amazing and played with so much feeling.
Prior to the beginning of the performance there is a piece of interview footage featuring Albert King talking about the younger players and how he enjoys interacting with and instructing them how to play. Moore of course goes on to talk about the influence King has had on both him and people like Clapton and Hendrix.
It's a great performance by a blues man who was taken from us at far too young an age. Moore you are missed!

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Spanish Castle Magic

This is a live performance by guitar legend Jimi Hendrix playing the song "Spanish Castle Magic" live at The Isle of Wight festival, the performance is from 1970.
The song was originally released in 1967 on the album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience titled "Axis: Bold as Love". The song is written by Jimi Hendrix and since its release became a staple on their live performances.
The songs lyrics are about a club that was titled "The Spanish Castle". It was built in the 1930s outside Seattle to avoid the strict night club rules in the city district and Hendrix visited there quite often. (Picture below is of the old Spanish Castle, it was demolished in 1968)

The song's structure is very unique as well, going from aggressive guitar riffs in the intro, to solos, and a riff played in lock step by guitar, drums, and bass.
At the beginning of the clip Hendrix is playing the intro to The Beatle's "Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band", but he quickly switches and goes into "Spanish Castle Magic" instead.
The song is one of Hendrix' most well known songs.It has been covered by progressive speed metal guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, and by latin rock Guitarist Carlos Santana.
It's a great song with a unique structure courtesy of Hendrix.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Villanova Junction

This is a live performance by rock god Jimi Hendrix performing the instrumental song "Villanova Junction". The performance is from the Rainbow Bridge in Maui, Hawaii, from 1970.
The song first appeared at Woodstock where it was part of the recorded set that consisted of jam based recordings.
Hendrix is playing a Gibson Flying V in this performance and I really love the cleaner tone he gets from this. Probably the humbucker pick-ups.
You can definitely hear the influence Hendrix has later had on newer artists on songs like this. It is very clear that for instance Stevie Ray Vaughan has been influenced by songs like this on his own songs like "Lenny" and "Riviera Paradise". Just the groove, tempo, expressive nature, and also slightly on the modes Hendrix uses. I must stress that this is merely what I hear when listening to this, I have no sources that confirms my assumptions other than my own personal analysis.
It's a great performance and a great song. And the sound is just excellent on this which is really nice too.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Lover Man

This is a live performance by Jimi Hendrix playing his classic song "Lover Man". The performance is from The Royal Albert Hall in 1969.
The song "Lover Man", also known under the titles: "Here He Comes" and "Here He Comes Your Lover Man", is unique in that a studio version wasn't released until 2010. It has been performed live on numerous occasions and performed as early as 1968. The structure of the song is the same they'd use when covering B.B. King's tune "Rock Me Baby".
It's a great song and Hendrix really adds that unique touch and sound to this tune. My favourite version is a rare take that I haven't really identified. It's from youtube and all I know is that it's rare. Embeded below:

There's no video, just pictures. The audio quality is really good though and to me it sounds like a deposited studio take. It's a slower version of the song which I really dig. The slow tempo really adds to the psychedelia factor. Also the extended wah wah solo at the end of the song.
I love this take and any version of this song. It's so good and one of Hendrix's best in my opinion.

Enjoy ; )

Cream - Outside Woman Blues

This is a live performance by British supergroup Cream performing a live version of the song "Outside Woman Blues". The performance is from their 2005 reunion concert at The Royal Albert Hall. It's a great performance and it shows just what this trio was capable of and still were capable of back in 2005.
The song was originally recorded by Blind Joe Reynolds in 1929. It has since been covered by a large number of artists, but most notably Cream. Cream's version was released in 1967 on their "Disreali Gears" album. There were only two covers on this album, and the rest of the songs were originals. Also the lyrics are credited to Blind Joe Reynolds, but with arrangement by Clapton. This is also very clear, if you take a listen to the original (click here for a performance of the original).
The song has been performed by a lot of artists and Clapton has also played the song live as a solo artist. Like this acoustic clip embeded below which is a very good version. It really marks Clapton's self-accompanied style and abilities and his vocal ability as well.

The song has also been performed by: Jimi Hendrix, Back Door Slam, Doyle Bramhall II, Van Halen and Johnny Winter.
I love both of Cream's versions of this song. They're both great performances who share displaying Clapton's guitar abilities and his vocal ability as well.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix – I Don’t Live Today

This is a live performance by guitar legend Jimi Hendrix and his band The Jimi Hendrix Experience. The performance is from The Royal Albert Hall in 1969. After the performance there’s a short interview at the end of the video.
The song “I Don’t Live Today” is from the band’s debut album “Are You Experienced” released in 1967. The album was very successful and helped launch Hendrix’s career. It reached #2 on the UK charts behind The Beatles with their album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”.
I really love this performance. Hendrix’s playing and singing on this is sublime and Mitch Mitchell’s drumming on this song is just sublime.
A great performance of a great song.

Enjoy ; )

Muddy Waters - Mannish Boy

This is a live performance by blues legend Muddy Waters playing the classic song Mannish Boy. It was released by Waters in 1955 on Chess records.
The song is an arrangement of and an answer song to Bo Diddley's song "I'm a Man". (Click here for a previous post of this song) Diddley's song on the other hand was heavily inspired by Muddy's song "Hoochie Coochie Man" written by Willie Dixon. "Mannish Boy" borrows the one chord stop-time arrangement and is also partially credited to Diddley.
It's quite a famous song and it's been done by other artists as well. It's been done live by both Roger Daltrey and Queen. Also Jimi Hendrix has done a version of this song. And it was recently featured in a H&M commercial sung by a woman who quite frankly slaughters the song. It's just so wrong to see a blues number covered and featured in a fashion commercial, plus why the hell did they hire a woman to record it. Does it make much sense for a woman to sing "now I'm a man"? No of course not!
So yeah listen to the original and listen to both Diddley's and Waters' version of this great composition. And avoid the H&M commercial like the plaque!

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Crosstown Traffic

This is the music video to the classic Jimi Hendrix song "Crosstown Traffic". The song was originally released in 1968 on the album "Electric Ladyland". It was released as a single in 1968 in America and in 1969 as a single in the UK, it was the second single of the album. It peaked at no. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 and no. 37 on the UK pop singles chart.
The song is one of the tracks from the album that features the full line-up of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. It also features Hendrix on a self made kazoo like instrument made from a comb and a piece of tissue paper doubling that with his lead playing at various points in the song.
It's a great song and one of my favourite Hendrix songs. The lyrics are good, but simple, it's well produced, short and got mainstream success. A great song by a great artist and band

Enjoy ; )

Gary Moore - Still Got the Blues (In Loving Memory of Gary Moore)

This is a live performance by blues and rock guitarist Gary Moore playing what is probably known as his signature song, or at least his most well known song of his solo career.
As I just recently found out, Gary Moore has passed. He died in a hotel room during a vacation at the age of 58. The specific date has been dated to the early hours of 6 February. The reason I'm just posting about it now is that I just recently found out. It hasn't gotten a lot of media attention which is a little sad, because he was a great guitarist in both rock and blues and hugely successful (at least in Europe). I haven't seen a lot of media coverage in neither the American media or the European media which is why I'm a little delayed with this.
I think it is tragic in that he died at age 58 in what seems to be a sudden death. And we know that he was still making music. His latest record was released in 2008 and he seemed to still be energetic and have plenty of music left in him. And that's the sad part, all of that beautiful, soulful and rocking music we'll be missing out on.
I also always felt that Gary never got the full recognition he deserved. I mean he was somewhat well known as a blues and rock guitarist and as an influence on a lot of people spanning a broad spectrum of genres, but he never really got enough recognition. He was never really placed in the same league as Clapton, SRV and Hendrix. And in my book he ranks right up there with them. I know you should never rank guitarist, and I'm not comparing them, but Gary deserved a broader audience and he deserved to be one of those guys who everyone knows, and I don't think he is. And that's sad.
What we can do now is simply try and remember all of the beautiful music Gary has brought us. He brought us everything from hard rock to slow blues and he did it in his own style. And that's quite an accomplishment in my book. I mean he can play rock guitar and still also play blues in his own style with the same amount of feeling as the greats.

Below are a list of links to previous posts I posted featuring Gary Moore. Remember: The best memory is one's music, so click them and remember Gary for all the good music he brought.
Gary Moore - Don't Believe a Word
Gary Moore - The Stumble
Gary Moore - Dust My Broom
Gary Moore and Albert King - Stormy Monday

Gary Moore you will be missed.
R.I.P.

Steve Vai - Jibboom

This is a performance by guitarist Steve Vai playing something a little more bluesy and outside his comfort-zone. The song appears on Vai's 1999 album "The Ultra Zone".
On the album Vai mentions that this track is an homage to blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan. And you can definitely hear the resemblance, it's a classic blues progression that sort of is a take-off/sounds similar to songs recorded by SRV song like Scuttle Buttin', Mary Had a Little Lamb and Testify. It's an homage and it's own original thing, but the general feel and groove of the song is similar to many SRV songs.
Steve Vai recently said in a video posted on his official youtube channel that blues is outside his comfort-zone. He jokingly says that he plays blues within the comforts of his own home which is a pretty funny thing to say. (I've embeded the video below, he also shares some very good practice-techniques for guitar)

I really love how long this performance is. It starts out with the basic song, and then goes into Vai soloing. Then it turns into a "call and response" sort of thing between Vai and the bassist which is just awesome. The bassist really does an amazing job, and the two performers play to well together and interact so well on stage. At the end Vai goes into a Hendrix style guitar thing, making sounds by using the whammy bar, the natural harmonics and the control knobs to really make the guitar scream.
This is an awesome performance and awesome showmanship. Gotta love that!!

Enjoy ; )

Stevie Ray Vaughan - Testify

This is a live performance from blues guitarist extraordinaire Stevie Ray Vaughan playing the instrumental song Testify live from the El Mocambo venue in Canada.
The song originally consisted of two different recordings of the same song, but with different lyrics. They have been dubbed the names Testify Parts I and II. The song was recorded by The Isley Brothers in 1964 who at this time had Jimi Hendrix on guitar. Embeded below is a short clip of the original recording (or at least one of the original recordings with Hendrix on guitar). It sounds different and has lyrics, but you can recognize the riff that Stevie did a take-off on.

Stevie's version was released on the 1983 album Texas Flood and it was the fifth track on this record. It starts out with a stand-alone guitar riff and on the 7th bar the bass and drums kick in and play with the guitar for the rest of the song.
I think it's a very good song, and without Hendrix's version we wouldn't have had Stevie's. Hendrix just seems a bit like he's holding back, he was playing with a group and hadn't branched out as a solo artist at this point. Remember we were still four years away from Voodoo Chile (Slight Return), but he definitely shines on this as well. Stevie's version just sort of became the famous one, and is in my opinion the superior version.
Especially from The El Mocambo gig which is one of the best gigs ever recorded. It's so good, and if the DVD "Live at The El Mocambo" isn't in your collection, it ought to be!!

Enjoy ; )

Yngwie Malmsteen - Bedroom Eyes

This is a performance by Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen and his band, playing live at the Budokan arena in Tokyo, Japan.
The song "Bedroom Eyes" is a bit of a departure for Yngwie who usually moves in the metal genre, and even sometimes touches something that could be considered classical music. He isn't usually considered a rock/hard rock guitarist, but on this tune he strays a bit from his traditional style.
He uses a simple guitar riff, and plays a lot of the song using a wah-wah pedal. He even goes into a section of the song where he starts playing a bit from Hendrix's "Voodoo Chile".
It is a really good energized performance, and a good rock song.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - All Along The Watchtower

This is a performance by Hendrix of the classic Dylan song "All Along The Watchtower". The song was originally recorded by Dylan, but the most famous version of the song has become the one done by Hendrix on his 1968 album "Electric Ladyland".
Hendrix was very influenced by Dylan, because he has said in interviews that Dylan was the one who gave him courage to start singing, so definitely thank you for that Dylan. Before Hendrix started playing solo and as leader for his own groups he toured playing the rhythm sections for various bands, including Little Richards band.
This is definitely the most famous rendition of the song, and Dylan (who generally isn't easy to impress) was overwhelmed by this version, and has said that Hendrix with his talent build upon the song and made it better. Dylan took notice of this version, and started doing Hendrix's version live and still does Hendrix's version to this day. So in a way the cover had become the original, or at least been embraced by the original artist.
Hendrix's version is amazing, and he could even do it live which is just even more amazing. This rocks, no doubt about it and it's one of my favourite Hendrix tracks.

Enjoy ; )

Steve Vai - Bad Horsie

This is a hard rock instrumental by guitarist Steve Vai. Steve is known for his technical abilities on guitar, he started out playing as one of Joe Satriani's students, and today they are both among some of the best. Steve plays with a lot of intricate techniques and with a very high skill level and difficulty to his playing. He does however also draw from a number of artists who wouldn't fall into that category like Hendrix for instance, so Steve's playing is a nice mix of technical skill level and playing with emotion. He's innovative, and has made his own line of revolutionary guitars and is just a master of the trade that is guitar playing.

The song "Bad Horsie" is the opening track on Vai's EP named "Alien Love Secrets" that came out in 1995. The song "Bad Horsie" is derived from a riff Vai contributed to the film "Crossroads" where he played the devil. The song is played tuned down to what would be Drop C tuning, a very low tuning (CGCFAD). It's a great song, and it has one hell of a groove, love it!
(As a little fun thing, I've added the guitar duel from Crossroads, you can definitely recognize the intro, it's a little silly, but great 80's retro fun)


Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - The Wind Cries Mary

This is a performance from Stockholm in 1967 The Jimi Hendrix Experience play one of their famous songs "The Wind Cries Mary". The song was also released in 1967 and became one of Hendrix's first songs that got popular in Europe. In America it was released as a B-Side to the song "Purple Haze".
The song would fall in the category of psychedelic blues rock, it's a great song, and it showcases just what Hendrix was about and able to create.

Enjoy ; )

Jimi Hendrix - Fire

This is a performance from the 1969 concert at Woodstock, a now famous hippie music festival where Hendrix played back in 69.
The song "Fire" was recorded in 1967 by Hendrix and his band "The Jimi Hendrix Experience" on the 1967 record "Are You Experienced".
It has become one of Hendrix' many famous songs, and has also been covered by a couple of artists, including; Red Hot Chili Peppers and Alice Cooper. It is more a rock song, due to the power chords and simple structure.
It's a great little performance by Hendrix and his band.

Enjoy ; )

Stevie Ray Vaughan - The Things That I Used To Do

This is a video of Stevie performing his version of this classic blues song. It was first recorded by blues artist Guitar Slim, and after a long time on Southern rural radio stations, it was picked up nation wide and became somewhat of a hit.
The song was produced and arranged by a young Ray Charles, and took several takes to get just right.
It has become a legendary song, and it has been covered by a lot of artists including; Muddy Waters, Jimi Hendrix, Freddie King, Chuck Berry, Buddy Guy and John Mayer. (click links to go to artist's version)
It's a great song, and a great performance. The camera angels are a little weird, and it's not the most well shot video, but the audio is descent and it's an enjoyable watch.

Enjoy ; )