On August 18th, 1969, legendary guitarist and musician Jimi Hendrix took the stage at the Woodstock Music and Art Festival. Hendrix and his band had originally been booked to close Woodstock the previous night; however, due to scheduling issues, they wouldn't take the stage for over ten hours after they were supposed to. In Bethel, N.Y., on Max Yasgur’s alfalfa field, only roughly 30,000 to 40,000 people of the estimated half a million were watching when Hendrix came on at 8 AM.
However, that fraction of attendees was about to witness history.
Hendrix, alongside guitarist Larry Lee, musicians Juma Sultan and Jerry Velez, bassist Billy Cox, and drummer Mitch Mitchell, opened with playing Hendrix's hits "Fire," "Here My Train a Comin'," and "Foxy Lady." After which, Hendrix began freestyling on his own on his guitar. After multiple minutes had gone by, Hendrix began playing his own distorted version of "The Star-Spangled Banner."
The performance is absolutely iconic.
Many believed Hendrix was making a political statement about the Vietnam War and other issues in the United States by playing the national anthem; however, Hendrix was adamant that he was simply playing music and experimenting with his own interpretation.
Following "The Star-Spangled Banner," Hendrix and his band played more hits like "Purple Haze" and “Villanova Junction Blues" before wrapping up his two-hour set and the Woodstock festival as a whole with "Hey Joe."
Journalists and critics have credited Hendrix's performance as one that went down in cultural history. Bernard Collier said upon hearing the rendition, “Suddenly into my head stabbed this sound. It sounded exactly like rockets, missiles and bombs bursting in air. I’d never heard anything like that in my life.”
What was a moment of improvisation and interpretation went on to solidify Hendrix as an artist and a pinnacle of the 60s. However, when asked about the performance, Hendrix remained ever humble and modest, saying:
"I’m an American so I played it. They used to make me sing it in school, so it was a flashback."
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