This dynamic compilation of previously unreleased tracks focuses on Jimi Hendrix’s last few years. Most historians assume his best work was with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, but this new album with his later Band of Gypsys and Gypsy Sun & Rainbows (the group with whom he played Woodstock) shows him expanding his sound without sacrificing his guitar ferocity. He adds a second guitarist, a saxophonist, and two percussionists at times. There are echoes of his earlier riffs in “Purple Haze” and “Hey Joe,” but much of the playing is original. The album has yielded a surprise hit in “Somewhere” (featuring Stephen Stills on bass, it has been number one on Billboard’s Hot Singles Sales chart). But more compelling is the percussive “Izabella,” the rich soul jam “Let Me Move You,” the grinding Elmore James cover “Bleeding Heart,” and the spacy “Crash Landing.” The songs are remastered (but without the phony overdubs of some Hendrix reissues) and given the punch they deserve. The Hendrix estate, along with Newton-based archivist John McDermott and producer Eddie Kramer, have done themselves proud here. (Out Tuesday)
ESSENTIAL "Izabella"
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