JIMI HENDRIX Unearthed: Hours Of Unheard Sessions Discovered

Robin Stummer and Anthony Barnes of The Belfast Telegraph are reporting that Jimi Hendrix's estate is planning on releasing dozens of unheard recordings that will delight Hendrix fans and go some way to repair damage done to his reputation by years of poor-quality bootlegs.

The new material — there is enough for regular releases over the next 10 years — is understood to include several hours of film of the guitarist in concert shot by fans and entourage, plus studio out-takes and unreleased sessions recorded between 1967 and 1970.

The release of such a large number of lucrative recordings will only add to the value of an estate already estimated to be worth £200m (approximately $388 million). It is ranked as the fifth most lucrative among dead rock and pop artists, after those of Elvis Presley, John Lennon, George Harrison and Bob Marley.

But not everyone associated with Hendrix will benefit. His British bass player Noel Redding died almost penniless last year after signing away his rights to the material in the early 1970s for a one-off payment when he was short of cash. His manager Ian Grant has claimed the agreement was not valid because Redding could not have anticipated all the other ways his work could have been exploited. "The fact is that there were no CDs in those days, let alone DVDs. Back then you were told 'If you don't sign here, you won't get any money'."

 

Jesus christ, the selling-out of Jimi will never fucking end...

 

A quick check of Jimis session logs will show that there isnt likely enough to make a ten track disc of much less hold us out for ten years. Is there stuff I havent heard? Yeah, but its few and far between. I doubt they have more than a few full tracks, and if Jimi didnt use it, Jimi had a reason he didnt want me to hear it!

 

My guess is that it's pretty much going to be nothing but live recordings...

 

Oh well, no use arguing over it... he died and we obviously can't do anything about it. It's theirs...

 

If they are live recordings, most of them are probably already out there in bootleg form. They have already released the Paris, Stockholm, and LA Forum shows, and the rest of the better live bootlegs.

Often owners of the rights will release an official version of a popular live boot in effort to cut the cash off to the bootleg sellers, perhaps this is the case here, but it says "studio outtakes and unreleased sessions". I'd be happy to hear what they have, however. If it exists, let the people hear it!