Jimi Hendrix was a rock music legend and one of the most talented guitarists of all time. He was born Johnny Allen Hendrix on November 27, 1942 in Seattle, Washington to James Allen Ross Hendrix and Lucille Jeter. His parents had a tempestuous relationship and Hendrix and his siblings were raised in difficult circumstances. He was often left in the care of relatives and acquaintances while his parents neglected their duties. From an early age, Hendrix was crazy about music.

His favorite genre was blues and he often used to carry a broom with him, pretending that it was a guitar as he couldn’t afford to buy a real one. He first learnt to play a broken ukulele which had only one string. At the age of 15, his father relented to his endless yearning and bought him an acoustic guitar for $5. He taught himself to play by listening to other musicians such as Elvis Presley. His father bought him his first electric guitar in 1959. Hendrix joined a few small time bands and began to perform with them.

At the age of 19, he joined the army in order to avoid jail time for riding in stolen cars. He spent a little over a year there and was discharged in June 1962. During his service, he met fellow musician Billy Cox and the two began performing together. They moved to Tennessee and formed a band called “the King Kasuals”. He also performed as a backup guitarist for several performers as Little Richard, Sam Cooke and the Isley Brothers. His first big break came in 1966 when he met Chas Chandler, a member of a successful rock group called the Animals. Chandler became Hendrix’s manager and advised him to move to London.

In London, Hendrix met Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell with whom he created his first successful band called “The Jimi Hendrix Experience”. Hendrix gained great fame there and became well known with the most successful and popular musicians such as The Beatles, The Who, The Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton. The band’s first single was “Hey Joe” from their debut album “Are You Experienced” and it was a huge success.

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