Reissue of the Jazz great's original album from 1974, in which his orchestra, featuring John Abercrombie, Hannibal Marvin Peterson, David Sanborn, Billy Harper, etc., interpret nine classic Hendrix tunes. Includes the b... more »onus tracks 'Little Wing' and alternate takes of 'Angel', 'Castles Made Of Sand', Up From The Skies' & 'Gypsy Eyes'. RCA Victor Gold Series in digipak with original sleeve with booklet in French & English with photos & 24 bit remastering.« less
Reissue of the Jazz great's original album from 1974, in which his orchestra, featuring John Abercrombie, Hannibal Marvin Peterson, David Sanborn, Billy Harper, etc., interpret nine classic Hendrix tunes. Includes the bonus tracks 'Little Wing' and alternate takes of 'Angel', 'Castles Made Of Sand', Up From The Skies' & 'Gypsy Eyes'. RCA Victor Gold Series in digipak with original sleeve with booklet in French & English with photos & 24 bit remastering.
CD Reviews
Very interesting take on Jimi's Music
mistermaxxx@yahoo.com | usa | 02/14/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Gil Evans got around doing what Miles Davis had already started doing&that was covering the Influence of Jimi Hendrix in his SOund&Style.this Set has some interesting Arrangements&Playing but it also is a bit heavy in spots.to fully Capture you gotta allow the Sound to Dominate however this Set gives Jimi Hendrix a whole different spin.it's a interesting album in that it allows another Interpretation.check it out."
Meets the Challenge
Strat Man | Shelton CT | 04/25/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Given some prior reviews, I almost passed on this CD. Took a chance and am quite pleased. It's not Jimi, nor does it have some of the oomph of later tribute CD's. But it really has some amazing moments, and could not possibly be confused with Muzak (IMHO).
I feel that Mr. Evans captured much of Jimi's ethereal feel with instruments that are normally not associated with trippy sonorities. The arrangements of "Angel" and "Up from the Skies" are beautiful.
But my favorite bit is an upper-register tuba rendering of the melody for Voodoo Chile. Reminds me of Frank Zappa. It's priceless!
Mr. Evans delves into a number of Hendrix's lesser known tunes, and pulls out a feeling that only someone of his caliber can possibly even attempt to put forth with a big band.
My only complaints are the cheesy contemporary synthesizer, and somewhat dated production quality. But given the 1974-5 recording dates, and the difficulty of stuffing so many instruments into a bit of tape, I don't find these to be much of a distraction."
Embarrassing Jimi-Jazz
IRate | 09/07/2008
(1 out of 5 stars)
"1 1/2
A rare major misfire for such a distinguished name in Jazz. Just about all these horned Hendrix interpretations fall flat on their faces due to lumpy orchestrations, plodding pace, and laughable instrumentation. Evans just can't seem to find the soul inherent in Jimi's music and ends up translating the melodies with none of fire and all of the bells and whistles. Some of the misguided fusion remains bearable, a few moments actually feel justified, but a majority of time is spent cringing in utter distaste at the cornball lengths this orchestra went to butcher some great tunes."
An original album
hateater | 06/26/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I can hardly listen to music anymore. going to school for music has ruined everything "commercial" for me, so all I have left is extremely avant-garde rock, jazz, classical and experimental techno. With that said, this album has some very interesting arrangements for Jimi's songs, and I actually think I like a couple of them better than the originals (sorry JH fans!). Worth a listen at least.... not a 1 star album."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1