Jimi Hendrix - 1968 [2013] "Miami Pop Festival"

Miami Pop Festival is a posthumous live album by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, documenting their May 18, 1968 performance at the Pop & Underground Festival in Hallandale, Florida. It features eight songs recorded during their evening performance, along with two extra songs.

The album was released on November 5, 2013, in conjunction with the Jimi Hendrix video documentary, Hear My Train A Comin'. "Fire" and "Foxey Lady", recorded during the afternoon-show, were also released as a stereo 45 rpm single. The album reached number 39 on the US Billboard 200 album chart and number 120 on the Belgian (Walloon) chart.

By the time Jimi Hendrix took the stage at Hallandale, Florida’s Gulfstream Park on May 18, 1968, the 25-year old guitarist, songwriter and visionary’s reputation preceded him.  He had already released two studio albums (1967’s Are You Experienced and Axis: Bold as Love released in 1967 in the U.K. and 1968 in the U.S.) and established himself as an unpredictable performer not to be missed when he set his guitar ablaze amidst the peace and love of the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967.  With Jimi Hendrix, there was always fire – if not literally, always musically.

There were actually two Miami Pop Festivals that year.  Hendrix joined Frank Zappa and his Mothers of Invention, Blue Cheer, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown and others for the May festival promoted by Flipper trainer Ric O’Barry and future Woodstock guru Michael Lang.  In late December, promoters Tom Rounds and Mel Lawrence held another fest at the same venue, enlisting artists including Procol Harum, The Turtles, Jose Feliciano, Country Joe and the Fish, and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.  The May event welcomed an estimated 50,000 people, and inspired Hendrix to pen “Rainy Day, Dream Away” (included on Electric Ladyland, released in September 1968) when his planned performance on the second day was cancelled due to inclement weather. Lang, proprietor of a Miami head shop that was one of the first such establishments on the East Coast, dubbed the event as “where the seeds of Woodstock were sown.”

So, you’re probably thinking: “wait, another Hendrix live album – aren’t we scraping the bottom of the barrel”?  The answer is, an emphatic NO.  In fact, Miami Pop Festival may turn out to be one of the finest documents of the cosmically-talented guitarist’s short career.

If it’s that good, why wasn’t it released until now?  Well, these tapes were thought to be long lost, so better late than never, right?

Organized by Michael Lang, who would famously put together Woodstock a year later, the Miami Pop Festival was the first outdoor rock festival on the East coast.  Thrown together in a month, the promoters lucked out when Jimi Hendrix said “yes” to an invitation to play.  He had wowed the audience at Monterey the year before with his flaming guitar, and since then, he was the biggest concert attraction around.

What sets Miami Pop apart from other Hendrix live albums is that this one sounds really good. While even Winterland, for all its greatness is kind of sludgy in the mix of instruments, Miami Pop is really crisp.  A lot of the credit goes to engineer Eddie Kramer, who was asked to record the concert while on hiatus from helming Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland LP.   He was also brought back in to remix these tracks 45 years later.

The disc opens with an introduction which features something unbelievable: Hendrix, one of the greatest guitarists of all time, having to tune his own guitar.  Certainly, you’d think he’d have a guitar tech standing by to do that!  As was tradition, this is followed by a long jam, which encompasses the beginning of “Hey Joe.”  As the actual song begins, marvel at the frenetic kick pedal of drummer Mitch Mitchell.

“Tax Free” gives Hendrix a chance to work out the wah wah pedal, while “Fire” is played at lightning speed.  Things slow down for an intense version of the blues standard “Red House.”

The booklet comes with an excellent essay giving background to the event.  Plus, there’s some fantastic photos, showing Hendrix with his signature hat in place.

There’s excellent video footage from this show in the new Hendrix documentary Hear My Train a Comin (read our review).  Seeing Hendrix and band perched on a makeshift stage made of flatbed trucks, makes you appreciate just how good this material sounds, despite the conditions.  In a long line of Jimi Hendrix live albums, Miami Pop Festival stands as one of the all-time best.  

Track listing:

Introduction (no music) – 1:54

Hey Joe (Billy Roberts) – 6:22

Foxey Lady – 4:33

Tax Free( Bo Hansson, Janne Karlsson) – 8:20

Fire – 2:47

Hear My Train A Comin' – 7:58

I Don't Live Today – 4:50

Red House – 12:07

Purple Haze – 4:19

Fire (afternoon show) – 3:07

Foxey Lady (afternoon show) – 4:56

Personnel:

Jimi Hendrix – vocals, guitar

Noel Redding – bass guitar, backing vocals

Mitch Mitchell – drums