Published 2005 by Sceptre

This biography attempts to find the man behind the myth as author and fan Charles R Cross charts the life of legendary guitarist and cult 60’s icon, Jimi Hendrix. What Hendrix packed into such a short space of time is phenomenal, especially when you think of today’s artists who release an album once every four or five years.

A fan of Hendrix myself, my knowledge was based on watching a couple of documentaries and listening to his music, so I picked up this book thirsty for more knowledge and curious to gain a deeper insight into the man. So much has been written about him that he has almost become a mythical figure, musicians and fans have almost deified him and the real Jimi Hendrix has become blurred. To my delight this book brought everything back into sharp focus.

As I read I learned of Hendrix’s latchkey childhood existence. It really was Dickensian with his parents in a tumultuous and abusive marriage and his younger siblings being shopped out for adoption and the social services. He literally lived a hand to mouth life and relied on the love of neighbours and a beloved Aunt in order to survive.

I was fascinated to learn that the exhibitionist and super-confident performer that I knew was in fact painfully shy and reclusive as a child and adolescent. The book recounts his discovery of a guitar and his love of it, how he used to practice and learn literally at the feet of other musicians. Cross also explores Hendrix’s life in the military where he served in the 101st Airborne Division.

The story really picks up when Hendrix leaves the military and takes to the road as a session player, a gun for hire for any musicians on the club circuit. It is here that the shy teenager learned all the tricks that made him such a virtuoso entertainer later in his career. I was riveted as I read how he developed his craft and when Hendrix finally arrives in swinging sixties London the book and his career takes off.

The next few years pass in a whirlwind of activity that helped to forge his legend. Friends and family are on hand to help describe what these years were like. Cross also delves into the circumstances that led to Hendrix’s tragic and untimely death at only twenty-seven years old. This area is surrounded by controversy and mystery and Cross has a good stab at debunking the myth in an effort to uncover the truth.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, devouring it almost in one sitting. Cross avoids sounding like a gushing fan and the book is thankfully a straight talking unsentimental account of an extraordinary life. With 325 interviews with people from his life and taking four years to produce this biography is a definitive and exhaustive account of the man behind the cult figure. I felt I knew the real Jimi Hendrix after reading this and I’m sure others will find this an engrossing and enlightening read.