Greatest guitar solos #3 - Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) by Jimi Hendrix
Hi, Marc from LWC here. Picture the scene - a young boy in a cinema lobby is trying to decide between salted or butter popcorn when all of a sudden he hears strange captivating noises come through the speakers. Listening spellbound, the young boy first hears the wah wah pedal introduction followed by a melodic bluesy question and answer motif, which leads into a distorted thundering blues riff. It’s all too much for the young boy’s brain to compute.
Two things shocked the young boy that day. One was the sublime guitar break and the second was the extortionate price of the popcorn. Of course that young boy was me and I’ve listened to the solo many many times and it still sounds as fresh today as that day all those years ago. Though Jimi’s solos are rooted in the blues tradition he did something special and made it sound like those notes came from a distant galaxy. In case you’re wondering the young boy chose the butter popcorn. Always choose the butter popcorn.
