Fact #105417
When:
Short story:
Jimi Hendrix is in TTG Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California, USA, working on Lover Man, Gloria, Red House and Room Full Of Mirrors. As well as drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding, the session includes Jack Casady on bass, Graham Bond on keyboards, Lowell George on flute, Buddy Miles on second drum kit and Lee Michaels on organ. Hendrix referred to this group as Electric Church.
Full article:
Paul Caruso (harmonica player) : I was in Los Angeles and we made another abortive attempt to record Room Full of Mirrors. It was at TTG Studios. Jack Casady was there on bass and there was an organist who I can't recall. The same thing happened, only this time it was a nasty [drug] combination and an unfortunate set of circumstances, which made him paranoid and caused a mood shift, a very extreme mood shift. He just lost the music and said, "I can't get it together:' and he left the studio. He was very upset. I decided to stick with him and try to see him through it.
We were riding to the Whiskey A Go Go. He hadn't told me that his house was robbed, but apparently, a songbook was stolen. I was unemployed at the time and for some reason he thought I did it. The traffic was very slow and the frustration was building up. Instead of usually when you are falsely accused of something you loudly and forcefully deny it, I decided to be cool. So I said, "Well Jimi, you know, one way you may find the songbook is if somebody uses the lyrics from it." And, he goes, "Yeah, Paul Caruso." in a menacing sort of way. I was still innocent of the whole thing. I couldn't imagine what the hell he was talking about because the last thing in the world I would do is steal something from Jimi. And then he was muttering something about, "When we get there I'm going straight for your ass." I was about to get out of the car, but my curiosity sort of kept me with him. We got to the parking lot and, after getting out of the car, he said, "When was the last time you ever really felt something?" And he hit me. He hit me so hard, he almost killed me. He knocked all the wind out of me. It took me a couple of minutes to get my breath back. It's upsetting for me to even talk about it. This really seemed like the end of our friendship. A few minutes later inside the club, he showed no sign that he had just flipped out. He just sat there smiling, surrounded by his women, while I was furious. I told Noel about it, and he said, "Bash him in the face. Bash him in the face! Give him one for me. He's got it coming to him!"
(Source : Interview by Kees de Lange, Experience Hendrix magazine, Vol. 3 Issue 6 Jan/Feb 2000)
Angel Balestier : The distance between Jimi and Noel was very apparent. It was sad. You could see it, it was so obvious. They kept two different crowds. They both would say hello to each other but would keep to their own corners. When people would come for Jimi, Noel would withdraw. The sessions were peaceful, however. I never witnessed any verbal or physical confrontations, but the vibe was always there. Once they got to playing, though, it still worked.
Paul Caruso : I said I didn't want to hit him 'cause I'd probably hit him over the head with a chair or something like that. So rather than do that, I walked over to his table and, because the music was really loud, screamed, "If you ever touch me again I'll kill you!" And he replied, "I'll never stop touching you!" And then I slapped his face, but he just kept on smiling and said, "Just listen to the music." And I remember Chicago Transit Authority was playing at the time and he was just so into the music that he showed no sign of what had just gone down. I left the club shortly after and didn't see Jimi until [eighteen months] later.
It was pure paranoia. If he had been in a normal state of mind he would never had believed that. He saw me, perhaps, as someone who was drifting off course in life and he had hoped that I would become famous. He was very anxious for me to be successful. I didn't much care for what fame had done to him, or others for that matter, so I saw no great attraction to it.
(Source : Interview by Kees de Lange, Experience Hendrix magazine, Vol. 3 Issue 6 Jan/Feb 2000)
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We were riding to the Whiskey A Go Go. He hadn't told me that his house was robbed, but apparently, a songbook was stolen. I was unemployed at the time and for some reason he thought I did it. The traffic was very slow and the frustration was building up. Instead of usually when you are falsely accused of something you loudly and forcefully deny it, I decided to be cool. So I said, "Well Jimi, you know, one way you may find the songbook is if somebody uses the lyrics from it." And, he goes, "Yeah, Paul Caruso." in a menacing sort of way. I was still innocent of the whole thing. I couldn't imagine what the hell he was talking about because the last thing in the world I would do is steal something from Jimi. And then he was muttering something about, "When we get there I'm going straight for your ass." I was about to get out of the car, but my curiosity sort of kept me with him. We got to the parking lot and, after getting out of the car, he said, "When was the last time you ever really felt something?" And he hit me. He hit me so hard, he almost killed me. He knocked all the wind out of me. It took me a couple of minutes to get my breath back. It's upsetting for me to even talk about it. This really seemed like the end of our friendship. A few minutes later inside the club, he showed no sign that he had just flipped out. He just sat there smiling, surrounded by his women, while I was furious. I told Noel about it, and he said, "Bash him in the face. Bash him in the face! Give him one for me. He's got it coming to him!"
(Source : Interview by Kees de Lange, Experience Hendrix magazine, Vol. 3 Issue 6 Jan/Feb 2000)
Angel Balestier : The distance between Jimi and Noel was very apparent. It was sad. You could see it, it was so obvious. They kept two different crowds. They both would say hello to each other but would keep to their own corners. When people would come for Jimi, Noel would withdraw. The sessions were peaceful, however. I never witnessed any verbal or physical confrontations, but the vibe was always there. Once they got to playing, though, it still worked.
Paul Caruso : I said I didn't want to hit him 'cause I'd probably hit him over the head with a chair or something like that. So rather than do that, I walked over to his table and, because the music was really loud, screamed, "If you ever touch me again I'll kill you!" And he replied, "I'll never stop touching you!" And then I slapped his face, but he just kept on smiling and said, "Just listen to the music." And I remember Chicago Transit Authority was playing at the time and he was just so into the music that he showed no sign of what had just gone down. I left the club shortly after and didn't see Jimi until [eighteen months] later.
It was pure paranoia. If he had been in a normal state of mind he would never had believed that. He saw me, perhaps, as someone who was drifting off course in life and he had hoped that I would become famous. He was very anxious for me to be successful. I didn't much care for what fame had done to him, or others for that matter, so I saw no great attraction to it.
(Source : Interview by Kees de Lange, Experience Hendrix magazine, Vol. 3 Issue 6 Jan/Feb 2000)