Born in Seattle, Washington, Hendrix began playing guitar at the age of 15. In 1961, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and trained as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division; he was granted an honorable discharge the following year. Soon afterward, he moved to Clarksville, Tennessee, and began playing gigs on the Chitlin' Circuit, earning a place in the Isley Brothers' backing band and later with Little Richard, with whom he continued to work through mid-1965. He then played with Curtis Knight and the Squires before moving to England in late 1966 after being discovered by Linda Keith, who in turn interested bassist Chas Chandler of the Animals in becoming his first manager. Within months, Hendrix had earned three UK top ten hits with the Jimi Hendrix Experience: "Hey Joe", "Purple Haze", and "The Wind Cries Mary". He achieved fame in the U.S. after his performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, and in 1968 his third and final studio album, Electric Ladyland, reached number one in the U.S.; it was Hendrix's most commercially successful release and his first and only number one album. The world's highest-paid performer, he headlined the Woodstock Festival in 1969 and the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970, before his accidental death from barbiturate-related asphyxia on September 18, 1970, at the age of 27.
Hendrix was inspired musically by American rock and roll and electric blues. He favored overdriven amplifiers with high volume and gain, and was instrumental in utilizing the previously undesirable sounds caused by guitar amplifier feedback. He helped to popularize the use of a wah-wah pedal in mainstream rock, and was the first artist to use stereophonic phasing effects in music recordings. Holly George-Warren of Rolling Stone commented: "Hendrix pioneered the use of the instrument as an electronic sound source. Players before him had experimented with feedback and distortion, but Hendrix turned those effects and others into a controlled, fluid vocabulary every bit as personal as the blues with which he began."
Hendrix was the recipient of several music awards during his lifetime and posthumously. In 1967, readers of Melody Maker voted him the Pop Musician of the Year, and in 1968, Rolling Stone declared him the Performer of the Year. Disc and Music Echo honored him with the World Top Musician of 1969 and in 1970, Guitar Player named him the Rock Guitarist of the Year. The Jimi Hendrix Experience was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. Rolling Stone ranked the band's three studio albums, Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland, among the 100 greatest albums of all time, and they ranked Hendrix as the greatest guitarist and the sixth greatest artist of all time.
Wild Thing
Jimi Hendrix Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You make everything groovy, wild thing
Wild thing, I think I love you
But I wanna know for sure
Come on and hold me tight
I love you
Wild thing, you make my heart sing
You make everything groovy, wild thing
Wild thing, I think you move me
But I wanna know for sure
Come on and hold me tight
You move me
Wild thing, you make my heart sing
You make everything groovy, wild thing
Wild thing, you make my heart sing
You make everything groovy, wild thing
Wild thing, you make my heart sing
You make everything groovy, wild thing
Jimi Hendrix's iconic song "Wild Thing" is a love anthem that perfectly captures the excitement and passion of young love. Throughout the song, the singer expresses his love for a woman who drives him wild, urging her to hold him tight and expressing his uncertainty about whether he truly loves her or not. The repetition of the lyrics "Wild thing, you make my heart sing" throughout the song emphasizes the singer's intense emotions and desire for the woman.
The lyrics of "Wild Thing" are a powerful representation of the free-spiritedness and passion of the 1960s culture. The song emphasizes the idea of living in the moment, indulging in wild and hedonistic pleasures, and embracing the unpredictable nature of love. The simplicity of the lyrics and the catchy melody make it an easy song to sing along to and one that has endured for decades as a classic rock hit.
Overall, "Wild Thing" is a vibrant love song that captures the joyful, exuberant spirit of the 1960s. It reminds listeners to embrace the unpredictability and excitement of love and to embrace the wildness of life itself.
Line by Line Meaning
Wild thing, you make my heart sing
The subject of the song (likely a woman) creates a feeling of elation and joy within the singer's heart.
You make everything groovy, wild thing
The subject has the ability to make every aspect of the singer's life feel cheerful and carefree.
Wild thing, I think I love you
The singer is expressing his romantic attraction to the subject and is considering the possibility of falling in love.
But I wanna know for sure
The singer wants to confirm that his feelings of love are reciprocated by the subject before fully committing to a relationship.
Come on and hold me tight
The singer is urging the subject to physically embrace him, as an indication of their mutual affection.
I love you
The singer declares his love for the subject, indicating that he has now received the confirmation he was seeking and is ready to pursue a romantic relationship.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Chip Taylor
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
chadwr85
"We tune because we care for your ears, that's why we don't play it so loud." He says that all the time on live recordings.
Shocking Blue fan Andy Nirvana
Jimi will always be my favorite guitarist NR.1
Johnharpdalton
So many beautiful details in this great performance, and such fun they were having on all levels. I especially like where the guitar says 'Thankyou' at 3.53...
DILLIGAF425
The best there ever was Long live Jimi
Tom George
...such joy and exhuberance..and kick-ass attitude! this clip is so great to find, as a big Jimi fan..so much of the most famous footage is of a worn-out and disenchanted Hendrix. Here he is an the first flush of fame, loving every second! :)
K DePauw
The humor, the smile, the tongue. And the guitar, of course!
Lee Stedman
This has to be in my top 10 of live music clips. Impossible to tire of this :-)
jhendrixfanatic2
Still jaw dropping after what by now must be 100 personal views
Kracid Kelevra
3:51 , he says Thank You with his guitar ( listen clearly to the sound ) .
Arttisan
Jimi played in Blackpool? Holy mother of god