February 1967

In interviews, Jimi credits Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and other influences; discusses his band’s approach to performing; and disses the Monkees. As the Experience tours extensively in the U.K., the band receives widespread coverage in music magazines and local British newspapers, but mishaps and the relentless pace take their toll on Jimi, Mitch, and Noel. In studio sessions, the band completes “Fire,” “Foxey Lady,” “I Don’t Live Today,” and “Purple Haze.” With his Fender Stratocaster out of commission, Jimi records his iconic “Purple Haze” solos with a standard-strung, flipped-over, right-handed Fender Telecaster. A publishing agreement signed on February 16 confirms that Hendrix has composed more than a dozen of his most enduring songs during a six-week period. Writing for Melody Maker, Paul McCartney pens a rave review of the newly-released “Purple Haze” single by “the great Twinkle Teeth Hendrix!”