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“Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.”
― Jimi Hendrix
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Too often in life we seek only to be heard instead of truly listening to, and understanding those who matter to us most– the ones that we love in this world. Jimi knew, and it would serve us well (me especially) to heed his wise words. At the end of the day, it’s the love that we give and receive– in other words, relationships, that make this life beautiful and worth living. Sometimes we must decrease so that the relationship can increase. After all, what’s more important– being happy, or proving how smart we are and being right all the time?
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Jimi Hendrix, 1967 ― Image by © Gered Mankowitz
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Jimi Hendrix, 1967 ― Image by © Gered Mankowitz
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Jimi Hendrix, 1967 ― Image by © Gered Mankowitz
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Jimi Hendrix, 1967 ― Image by © Gered Mankowitz
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“I’m the one that’s got to die when it’s time for me to die, so let me live my life the way I want to.”
― Jimi Hendrix
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The Selvedge Yard 
No truer words said than by Jimmy…One thing I always noticed the dude could not only play that guitar like he was an alien, but have you ever noticed how much and how nice of a smile the dude had when performing on stage? At the Monterrey Festival he many times was smiling broadly and pointing out into the crowd he had a good connection with the people.
Jimmy’s got to be up there jammin away and smilin….
Indeed mattdougandesign… Remember the two guys from chariots of fire? One of them ran with a broad smile on his face… Like Jimi, he had nothing to prove…
It’s a shame He left us so soon. His work w/ Band of Gypsies signaled a new road for him and excluding the human element (young loss) — We missed out on a jazzier Jimi — I for one would have loved to hear the evolution of his signature sounds.
Errrrr. Much as I respected Jimi’s playing and loved his music : need I remind you all that much if not most of his happiness/smiles were in fact Drug Induced and not indicative of the mans real state of mind ?
Genuinely ‘ happy ‘ people do not do drugs: especially not to the excess Jimi did . Life gives them more of ‘ high ‘ than they know they can handle
Having met the man himself , as well as gotten to know his dad : suffice it to say Jimi had many a ‘ Demon ‘ to do battle with and unfortunately chose to do so with copious amounts of drugs .
As to Jimi’s promising ‘Jazz ‘ future : I’m one amongst many that wishes both the Davis ( Miles ) and Hendrix estates would agree to release at least some of the Jam Sessions between Jimi and Miles that were put down on tape . I’ve heard a snippet or two and despite the ‘ roughness ‘ and casual nature of the recordings , Jimi’s potential comes shining thru
Jimi Hendrix ; As Roger Waters so aptly put it ; ” Shine on You Crazy Diamond “
lots of happy people have done drugs. i myself quit in 1969. i still feel pretty good. if you are alive, you are dealing with demons.
Thats a very pleasant delusion to be living in I’m sure , but unfortunately thats al it is . A delusion . Having been there myself and watched many an addict around me I can promise you , one does drugs etc to ‘ Hide /Avoid ‘ life …. not to enhance it
And yes , life is full of Demons as long as you’re alive . The question being ; How do you chose to deal with them ? In a Self Destructive manner such as drugs / excess alcohol / multitude of other addictions ? Or in a constructive manner such as creative outlets etc ?
Happy people may experiment with drugs on occasion , but no one thats ‘ happy ‘ makes it their lifestyle
No, you needn’t remind us the source of Jimi’s happiness. While your expertise on the human condition is laudable, you’re riding such a high horse, you don’t know what you are looking at. Jimi was very complicated and so were the times he lived in. In the 60s, walls were being smashed and limits were being tested everywhere – politically, musically, sexually, and with mind alteration. Jimi was actually a very sensitive, old soul and he had a lot of trouble saying no. He was under a ton of pressure from a shady manager, relentless touring, fans who weren’t able to move with him past Purple Haze and Foxey Lady, a (setup?) drug bust and court appearance, The Black Panthers and other groups leaning on him for support, constant hangers-on, constant legal hassles over all the contracts he signed before becoming famous and more. As was said in a documentary about him, the easiest things is to just leave a person alone, give them some space and time, but Jimi couldn’t often get that. I don’t think anyone thought he was always happy. No real life is always happy. There’s a large pallet of feelings that make a life complete and they aren’t all positive. After all, he was a blues guitarist too. I’ve never heard happy blues.
I’ve been back several times waiting for a new post…and this one was spot on with me this week. Makes me think perhaps JP is also battling with someone in his life and is looking for some light. Jimi and JP just set me straight.
“Sometimes we must decrease so that the relationship can increase. After all, what’s more important– being happy, or proving how smart we are and being right all the time?”
Exactly. Thanks for the reinforcement. I have someone in my life that loves to find fault in me for living my life that way (as often as is possible). Nice to feel like maybe I’m not the coward she makes me out to be. In my opinion it takes more strength for me to NOT say the mean things I feel like saying, than it would to spit venom just to make myself feel better. Some people don’t know when to zip it.
Thanks for your eloquent thoughts here JP.
Hendrix was a good part of a decade before my time, notorious just the same.
Having lost my dear sister to the ravages of addiction, I saw her struggle with the pain and brutality of life firsthand. Pain that most of us have to learn how to manage in other ways, if we are to survive. Yet even as the life was slipping away from her Irish eyes, there was love.