Description
Rock music legend Jimi Hendrix chats with Dick Cavett about nervous breakdowns and performing the American National Anthem (his way), at the Woodstock festival in August 1969.
Interview Transcript
So it's really you at last
how are you I'm pretty tired it's been
recording so much you know you're tired
now yeah I haven't had a sleeping about
all night working on the last LP how
much sleep do you need to be alert alert
I guess eight eight hours yeah I had
about eight minutes so you know I've
slept longer than that in my monologue
when it cut the and racket off on the
sound here okay nice gentlemen what is
that my sound that we hear irritating is
so dreadfully saw something like the New
York Street I don't know it's like a
today there is our static so the
amplifier is esthetic music as well the
air is loud you know we're trying to
settle things down a little bit
there's no take it like a rest you know
I asked a practical question and got a
philosophical answer yeah well it's
trying to get a phone across before we
don't you know take our ass I'm sorry
we're gonna both sack at mr. young will
you me ask you anything what really
happened to you that night at Woodstock
could you stay on so long you just
really we're always late in the morning
yeah and I was announced that it was
canceled the show at the dick Cavett's
was canceled and so and then later on
was announced that it was on oh really
now you know what's happening I was so
exhausted you know yeah I was like a
booty calls things nervous breakdown or
whatever you know physical breakdown you
don't suppose it was real you didn't
have you ever had a nervous breakdown
yeah three of them since I've been in
school this is a bit of this business
you know really
I didn't mean to pry but since you
brought it up
they said that everyone was amazed at
the absence of violence it's become a
cliche now about that big festival and
about the others were you surprised at
it do you think that most well I was
glad that's what it's all about you know
try to keep violence down you know keep
them off the streets and like a festival
500,000 people was a very beautiful
turnout you know
oh we have more of them you know be nice
yeah
what was the controversy about the
national anthem and the way I don't know
all I did was play it I'm American so I
played it I said the same in school they
may be singing the school song
this man was in the hundred and first
Airborne so when you write your nasty
letters in that is when you mention the
national anthem and talk about playing
it in any unorthodox way you immediately
get a guaranteed percentage of hate mail
it isn't knowing they're in the know I
thought it was beautiful living there
you go
don't you find that there's a certain
mad beauty in an orthodoxy I knew you'd
do that someday
do they ever send that shirt back with
too much starch in the collar
that's the mr. day I've seen in a long
time where did the supergroups keep
breaking up their ores their ores rumors
that your group is breaking up and Big
Brother broke up and well probably cuz
like they want to get into individual
things on their own or maybe you might
want to get into other things beside
music you know you mean guys in your
group would be would want out of the
business out of music business and in
this but not necessarily maybe they
might want to get into their own music
cuz like what I was trying to do like
was I could do it today's type of Blues
like manic depression and so forth and
like no reading he's like isn't too more
harmonic thing you know when you're
singing and so forth and like you were
too angling to get its own group
together know already in the base and
already yeah okay Billy Cox playing bass
this time mm-hmm and I think it's the
less Java do until you know take a rest
it's like we've been working very hard
for three years you know
can you tell some nights you're just not
making it at all you know you're used to
just walk off and that's like
compliments you know government's is so
embarrassing sometimes cuz you know
really the truth of stuff and sometimes
people don't really try to understand
you know it's like a circus that might
come in town so watch that you know and
then Susie fadeaway wouldn't they go on
and feed upon the next thing you know
but it's alright it's part of life I'm
digging myself you're considered one of
the best guitar players in the world
well one of the best in this studio and
how about some of the best sit in this
chair yeah do you have to practice every day
the way a violinist doesn't mean if
you're not working so you're off in
England and you're just have to keep
shape every day yeah I like to like play
to myself and I can go in the room
before we go on stage like this or
whatever I feel like whenever I feel
down or depressed or whatever you know
it's gonna play and I can't practice so
it's always constantly what do you call
it like a jam you know it's hard for me
to remember any notes because I'm
constantly trying to create other things
that's why I make a lot of mistakes you
read music you ever run into any of the
guys from the old hundred and first yeah
do they do they wonder who think your
life is strange compared to what they're
in you know but I wouldn't matter really
because you know there's so many
different things going on you know I
can't you can't take time out to say oh
I don't do they think about me they're
all you know and all this kind of stuff
you know I can't go through all that if
I go through it for three years I think
I think there are pretty pretty well off
if they ever get out of that stuff you
know to see me again it's for me to see
them feel very lucky about that you're
still looking for that certain girl
certain girl what girl
the certain one you yet you're not
married no do you see yourself married
ever no but you'll never get a situation
comedy on television
by the time I think of the absolute
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