a world torn by war, on the verge of destruction as he and his lady go for a walk by the sea, and dream of living in the water” (20). The songs on Electric Ladyland show a marked turn for Hendrix that indicates that as his comfort in his own abilities and heritage grew, the faith that he once had in the world was being torn apart by the Vietnam War and his increasing realization that everything in the world is not necessarily made better by his own success. The social awareness shown on Electric Ladyland was nearly unprecedented, with both of his two earlier albums only hinting at social and cultural malcontent in songs like Axis: Bold As Love’s “If 6 Was 9.” By the time that the next album was ready to be recorded, The Jimi Hendrix Experience was broken up, with Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell moving on to different projects. Hendrix’ new band, Band of Gypsys, included Buddy Miles on drums and Billy Cox on the bass (Alterman 10). The album that they recorded , titled Band of Gypsys, , represents the least amount of development Hendrix made between any two albums. Band of Gypsys, the last album that Hendrix would cut and release as a whole during his life, Murray reports that: “Hendrix was always ambivalent about the...album, Band of Gypsys.” (54). Band of Gypsys was a collection of new songs that were recorded at the 1969 New Year’s Eve party at the Fillmore East in New York City (Murray 54). Lorraine Alterman, a writer for Rolling Stone who attended the party, wrote: “Only one number, ‘Machine Gun,’ stands out as truly exciting. Hendrix dedicated it to all the soldiers in Detroit, New York, Chicago and, oh yes , Vietnam.” Of the other songs, she wrote: “The rest of the songs...tend to sound very much alike. Stylistically they aren’t far from ‘Purple Haze’ days” (Alterman 10). Through “Machine Gun,” the “towering, ex...
