Friday, October 9, 2009

Friday Night Videos: Room Full Of Mirrors

I have avoided the news all day today, and so until I just logged on to my PC and opened up Drudge Report, I had no idea that Barack Hussein Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

I am absolutely amazed at the ridiculousness of this concept. What in the Sam Hell did "Mmm, Mmm, Mmm," Barack Hussein Obama do to deserve this award?

Through strength and diplomacy Ronald Reagan led the world to witness the end of Communist oppression, and essentially the freedom of millions of Europeans and others worldwide. George W. Bush led the world in liberating millions of people in Iraq. Barack Hussein Obama failed to bring the Olympics to Chicago, is allowing more death to Afgans and American troops, supports a dictatorial regime in Honduras, will not meet with the Dali Lama, and he is seen by the world as a man of peace? The Nobel Peace Prize has become a complete and total joke as of late; AlGore and Jimmah Cattah come to mind as reasons why the committee should be absolutely ashamed of themselves.

I've got blood shooting out of my eyes...

Of course, the good news for the moonbats on the left is that now we can no longer compare Obama to Hitler, because Hitler was only nominated for the prize.

Therefore, on a day when I feel I must indeed be living in a room full of mirrors, I bring you an amazing piece of footage.

This recording is from February 24th, 1969 at Royal Albert Hall in London. Jimi Hendrix, in the eyes of many was the greatest guitar player who ever will live, performed a magnificent piece of art on this particular night.

During an easygoing introduction, during which some small set changes were made including the addition and introduction of a bongo player, Jimi and The Experience begin the tune in a very mellow way. Over the first couple of stanzas they built the energy and the tempo. Never given much critical praise for his singing, on this particular tune Jimi was very in time with the band and very soulful.

Finally the band takes the song to the next level, and the legendary axeman puts on a classic show. Working the fretboard with amazing finesse and speed, he plays with feedback in true Jimi Hendrix fashion, and creates unique and intriguing audio sensations.

As the band mellows, a flute begins to play. One of the magnificent parts of live music from this era was their willingness, if not absolute intentional desire to include traditional instruments in their rock and roll performances. In this instance, it is fun to witness the showman Hendrix, who clearly was the center of attention at every concert he ever participated in, make every effort to create an environment that put full attention on the flute player. At one time he even approaches the man and says something to him.

As the song closes with a majestic crescendo, take note of the final notes Jimi played. A veteran of the Vietnam era, Hendrix was always a patriot in an era in which (much like today) seemingly unpatriotic gestures and overtures were par for the course with celebrities and socialites.



Rest in peace, Jimi... we miss you.

10 comments:

tammy said...

I actually thought of you this morning when I heard the news.

tammy said...

Let me finish that thought...because I knew your head would explode.

Amusing Bunni said...

Way Cool Solomon! I'm glad you posted this. Jimi was the best around, and also very Patriotic. Not many people know he was in the Military, like today, he would have been picked on.

I've had blood shooting out of my eyes all day. I found out the minute I woke up, before I even got out of bed....it's bad news, but considering what a joke the prize is, it doesn't mean much. You know who's really mad! Bill Clinton Bahwhaaaa!

Soloman said...

Tammy.. my head didn't quite explode, but close!

Thanks for thinking of me... it's (honestly) extremely flattering to know that my thoughts and writing are something that people think about.

Y'all make me feel good... thank you.

Soloman said...

Bunni - the only one who I think ever rivaled Jimi was Stevie Ray Vaughan. I have a 'Friday Night Videos' post in mind for SRV, but it's pretty deep so it might be a while before I get to it.

I'm glad you like the idea of the theme, as we discussed on your comment thread. It's funny, I did it a few weeks ago, and now I've decided it's going to become a regular thing.

I don't get out much, so Fridays are a night I can post, pretty much guaranteed. Sometimes I want an easier post because I'm tired from the work week. This theme offers me the option - I can just throw one out there, like I did
here
or I can write something more profound, like I did this week and
here
.

Anyway - thanks for coming by - and if you think of it, check out
my 2nd Friday Night Videos post of the night
, which actually went up early Saturday morning.

PS - notice I'm using the trick Kid taught us, how to post the neat little links? It's really easy, and makes comments with links look so much neater.

Snarky Basterd said...

Man...after yesterday's earth-shattering news...the Jimi vid was a nice treat to wake up to. Thanks for sharing.

Amusing Bunni said...

You got this link thing in the comments down pat!
I need to practice more...hee hee.
SRV was another virtuoso...he had a hard life, and tragic death...seems all the most brilliant artists share that. I have been getting into all kinds of music, since I discovered a few years ago you can check out cd's at the library. I've about gone thru the entire collection at my local one.....the apple guys when they converted my old pc stuff into the mac mini, were in awe...ha ha.
Have a fun weekend.

Amusing Bunni said...

I was just thing of another great artist you could explore. Michael Hutchence from INXS. There are lots of vids on youtube, I found this one. I actually have a few dvd's of their concerts and the compliation of their best music video's. I haven't watched in a while, thanks for making me remember this.

Beautiful Tribute

Soloman said...

Dave - glad you enjoyed, and happy to bring it your way.

Soloman said...

Bunni - interesting you bring up Hutchence.. I was a huge INXS fan during the 80's - they probably were my favorite of the era.

I was terribly crushed by his death. I had just seen them live - for the 9th time, if you can believe that - about a month and a half before the announcement. It shook me up pretty badly.

I was glad to hear it might have been an accident, rather than straight-up suicide, and I hold on to that. Like Morrison, who was likely a suicide, it fascinates me that people can become all they wish to be and then not be happy, but there's more to it than that simple statement of course.

The thing they did a few years back in trying to replace him really offended me, because they definitely didn't pick the most talented performer - they picked a look-alike.

Anyway - thanks for the vid - it was well produced, and as much as you can summarize a 20 year career in 3 minutes.. it did well.