Thought you would enjoy this

[Knox]

(from NYTimes this morning, regarding Al Hendrix death this year)

Hey Dad
By WAYDE COMPTON

In August 1965, when he wrote this letter, Jimi Hendrix was in New York City, between gigs as a sideman for bands like the Isley Brothers and Joey Dee and the Starliters. He was beginning to work on his own songs, in a new style that would soon revolutionize popular music. In 1965, though, he was mostly worried about the approval of his father, Al, a former boxer and top jitterbug dancer from Vancouver, British Columbia. As a single father in Seattle, Al had raised Jimi (then Jimmy) by himself, working odd jobs and making the payments on his son's first electric guitar. Al, who outlived Jimi by 32 years, was always proud of his son's later success. But it was often a perplexed pride. '''Are You Experienced?' was something altogether different,'' Al wrote. ''I'd be listening to it, and just when I'd be looking for it to go one way, it'd go another. I thought: 'Dadgum! He sure has added to his music.' It was something for me to get used to.''

Dear Dad,

I still have my guitar and amp and as long as I have that, no fool can keep me from living. There's a few record companies I visited that I probably can record for. I think I'll start working toward that line because actually when you're playing behind other people you're still not making a big name for yourself as you would if you were working for yourself. But I went on the road with other people to get exposed to the public and see how business is taken care of. And mainly just to see what's what, and after I put a record out, there'll be a few people who know me already and who can help with the sale of the record.

Nowadays people don't want you to sing good. They want you to sing sloppy and have a good beat to your songs. That's what angle I'm going to shoot for. That's where the money is. So just in case about three or four months from now you might hear a record by me which sounds terrible, don't feel ashamed, just wait until the money rolls in because every day people are singing worse and worse on purpose and the public buys more and more records.

I just wanted to let you know I'm still here, trying to make it. Although I don't eat every day, everything's going all right for me. It could be worse than this, but I'm going to keep hustling and scuffling until I get things to happening like they're supposed to for me.

Tell everyone I said hello. Leon, Grandma, Ben, Ernie, Frank, Mary, Barbara and so forth. Please write soon. It's pretty lonely out here by myself. Best luck and happiness in the future.

Love, your son, Jimmy

[Don]

That was cool..Thanks !Nowa days the letter would be about bad playing and not so much bad singing..But all in all have things really changed so much?

[Blast9]

Originally Posted by Knox

Nowadays people don't want you to sing good. They want you to sing sloppy and have a good beat to your songs. That's what angle I'm going to shoot for. That's where the money is. So just in case about three or four months from now you might hear a record by me which sounds terrible, don't feel ashamed, just wait until the money rolls in because every day people are singing worse and worse on purpose and the public buys more and more records.

Wow! 1965 or 2008?

(I just stumbled upon this searching for Isley Brothers info)

[mics]

somethings never change, it's like a time capsule.

[Kyle S]

after 20 cumulative years of the same theory applied to pop music, we've arrived at the Lil's, POD, and Soulja Boy.

[Blast9]

Originally Posted by Kyle S

after 20 cumulative years of the same theory applied to pop music, we've arrived at the Lil's, POD, and Soulja Boy.

And Pods and Guitar Rig

[Kyle S]

and gibson robots!