Townshend On Hendrix and Monterey

Pete Townshend said "If you didn't see him . . . I'm sorry". Well, I know exactly what he means because I was in the support band to him in Boston in 1967. He was a shy, polite gentleman and was in the next dressing room to us. He actually had a go on one of our 12string Rickenbackers and played it although it was strung right handed. I will be 80 in August and will never forget this amazing phenomenon. 🥁

I was at Pop in 67, words can not describe how amazing it was!

Pete is a great storyteller. I could listen for hours to him. This man has known all the great names. To me, Townshend is the godfather of English rock. He wrote Tommy at age 23... Great composer, great guitar player, great performer. Living legend. His music will be regarded as 20th century classical music.

Jimi died in 1970 at the age of 27 . We are still talking about his genius . Amazing . 🎸✨✨✨✨☮️

He’s told this story differently in the past

I was 12 going on 13 when I saw Jimi live in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Found the original concert poster online and had a t-shirt made. All these years later I can still remember that show😱

Very classy of Peter Townsend to acknowledge Jimi Hendrix to be the leading rock artist of his generation. I went to a Hendrix concert in a pretty small theater in Canada -- the size of a movie theater, if anybody remembers what they were. The Jimi Hendrix Experience had their wall of Marshall amps, along with various pedals for Jimi to use to alter the sound of his Stratocaster, and a reel-to-reel tape recorder which Jimi used to play multi-track leads: a pre-recorded lead by Jimi on tape, and Jimi playing over top of it in person. We were close enough to the stage to see Jimi's facial expressions, and to summarize his mood I'd say he was relaxed and having a really good time playing for an adoring audience. Not many realized at the time that Jimi had struggled for years to be taken seriously, living in poverty and having to move the England to get paying work. (At a get-to-know-you jam session in London with Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and other top Brits in the rock scene, Jimi left them speechless.) At this 1968 concert I attended Jimi was riding high, all his venues sold out. Their opening band was The Soft Machine, another totally disruptive force in rock who ended up transitioning to jazz fusion. I still have their first three albums. I played keyboards full-time back then, and The Soft Machine's keyboard player, Michael Rattledge, was acknowledged to be the best rock keyboard player in Britain. Onstage, Jimmy would banter a bit between songs but he knew what we were all there for: to hear cuts from his "Are You Experienced?" album. I know what Townsend meant when he noted the aura around Jimi as he performed at Monterey Pop. It was as if his whole being radiated music -- music that had never been heard before and that once heard, changed our perception of what rock could be. I would like to know what today's Gen Z rock music fans think of Jimi. Does he resonate with them as he did with us? Or is he ancient history? Hendrix pretty much invented the psychedelic sound but already during his 1968 tour there were rumors he was evolving it to be blusier, with less ornamentation. After Jimi's death at age 27, along with Janis and Brian Jones and other great talents who transformed the genre, over the 1970s there was a large-scale dumbing down of rock music, with, if course, a few notable exceptions.

Excellent. I saw Jimi two times, both in South Florida and I've seen the WHO 3 times. Two times with Keith and one time with Kenny. All wonderful musicians and a major impact on my life. I've been a drummer since 1964 and I still play.Thank You for this Great Post.

The greatest rhythm guitarist and phenomenal song writer complimenting the original guitar god.

My missus and I were walking along the Seine and came across a guy selling photographs in A4 size. There was a photo of Jimi Hendrix, among others, and I said to him; "Who took these photos"? He replied that he had, when he was a photographer in the late 60s. I bought the Hendrix photograph. It sits above the kitchen table in my apartment in Adelaide SA. Just a quick snapshot of Jimi walking past. A real treasure.

I've heard him say that Jimi said something like 'well if I'm going on after you, then I'm pulling out all the stops!" And then he jumped up on that chair and played some incredible, amazing stuff right there. I think he just overlooked that tidbit here.

Jimi Hendrix Always Loved, Never Forgotten, Forever missed.❤❤

Pete is such a gent. And Hendrix was amazing. But I have listened to Pete my whole life and I always will.

Love hearing these stories from their contemporaries! Townsend trying to express how insanely amazing and revered Hendrix was!

It's respect , Jimi was the prodigy anywhere He went..

After all he’s been through, he’s amazingly calm, clear headed and articulate. Probably one of the most intelligent and sensitive rock stars there’s ever been.

I saw Jimi four times and Pete describes it beautifully. I went to see him first time at a matinee in Liverpool Empire UNDER DURESS. Not a fan. He opened with Spanish Castle Magic. Otherworldly. We came out, bought tickets from a tout, and went straight back in for the second show. He was magnificent yet lovable all at the same time.

Jimi was an improviser and that is why he was so good.

The Jimi performance remains amazing. 🌹🌹

This gave me chills.   Jimi is rightly considered the best guitarist ever, but that does not take away from Pete Townshend's and The Who's influence as one of the greatest rock bands of all time.