Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection
| Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | May 8, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 1966–1970 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 146:19 | |||
| Label | MCA | |||
| Compiler | Janie Hendrix, John McDermott | |||
| Jimi Hendrix chronology | ||||
| ||||
Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection is a two-disc compilation album featuring songs recorded by American rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Jimi Hendrix. It was released on May 8, 2001 by MCA Records.[1] The first disc contains studio recordings, including alternate versions, while the second disc contains live recordings, some of which were previously unreleased. Its accompanying booklet features numerous photos and an essay written by Kurt Loder.[2]
Voodoo Child was generally well received by critics. On April 4, 2006, it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), having sold 500,000 copies in the United States.[1]
Critical reception[edit]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Blender | [4] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
Reviewing for Blender magazine, Robert Christgau regarded Voodoo Child as an improvement over the 1997 compilation album Experience Hendrix because, apart from "Manic Depression", it does not leave out any crucial songs. He also believed the second disc features undefinitive but revealing live recordings that made it Hendrix's best live album.[4] Oscar Jordan of Vintage Guitar said the release "blows the previous greatest hits style packages out of the water". While finding the first disc "well-paced" and "an excellent sampler of some of Jimi's best studio work", Jordan was more impressed by the live disc, on which he said "some of the best live recordings ever made of Hendrix reaffirm his status" as "the ultimate live performer and entertainer".[2] AllMusic's Lindsay Planer wrote that, considering the difficulty in curating a compilation of Hendrix's music, Voodoo Child's exceptional song selection and sound quality make it successful as "a thumbnail sketch of Hendrix in both a studio and concert environment … a great touchstone for anyone wishing to begin their Jimi Hendrix experience".[3] In the opinion of The Daily Telegraph's Jamie Dickson, the compilation shows why "his status as rock's most outrageously inspired guitarist has endured", while contrasting "the opulence of his studio epics with the fluency and fire of his live performances nicely".[7]
Nicholas Taylor from PopMatters was more reserved in his praise, feeling the alternate versions on disc one are of mixed quality but that the two-disc set still offers listeners the most thorough overview of Hendrix's precarious artistry, particularly the live disc. "We hear him at his glorious studio best, we hear his less than stellar studio experimentation, and we hear his sometimes wildly exhilarating, sometimes horribly messy, live performances", Taylor wrote, concluding that Voodoo Child "gives us a full picture of Jimi Hendrix—always experimenting, always pushing the limits of conventional guitar rock, always willing to put it all out there at the risk of looking like a fool."[8]
Track listing[edit]
The titles and running times are taken from the original Voodoo Child CD release. Other releases may show different information.
All tracks are written by Jimi Hendrix, except where noted
| No. | Title | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Purple Haze" | single | 2:50 |
| 2. | "Hey Joe" (Billy Roberts) | single | 3:30 |
| 3. | "The Wind Cries Mary" | single | 3:20 |
| 4. | "Fire" | Are You Experienced | 2:43 |
| 5. | "Highway Chile" | alternate recording | 3:39 |
| 6. | "Are You Experienced?" | Are You Experienced | 3:35 |
| 7. | "Burning of the Midnight Lamp" | single (UK) | 3:39 |
| 8. | "Little Wing" | Axis: Bold as Love | 2:24 |
| 9. | "All Along the Watchtower" (Bob Dylan) | alternate recording | 3:59 |
| 10. | "Crosstown Traffic" | Electric Ladyland | 2:12 |
| 11. | "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" | Electric Ladyland | 5:12 |
| 12. | "Spanish Castle Magic" | alternate recording | 5:48 |
| 13. | "Stone Free" | alternate recording | 3:43 |
| 14. | "Izabella" | single (US) | 2:46 |
| 15. | "Stepping Stone" | single (US) | 4:07 |
| 16. | "Angel" | The Cry of Love | 4:21 |
| 17. | "Dolly Dagger" | Rainbow Bridge | 4:44 |
| 18. | "Hey Baby (New Rising Sun)" | Rainbow Bridge | 6:04 |
| 19. | "Third Stone from the Sun" (UK bonus track) | Are You Experienced | 6:45 |
| No. | Title | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fire" | previously unreleased | 3:33 |
| 2. | "Hey Joe" (Billy Roberts) | Live at Winterland | 6:46 |
| 3. | "I Don't Live Today" | Lifelines: The Jimi Hendrix Story – Disc four | 6:45 |
| 4. | "Hear My Train A Comin'" | Rainbow Bridge (album) | 11:00 |
| 5. | "Foxey Lady" | Rainbow Bridge (film) | 4:25 |
| 6. | "Machine Gun" | Live at the Fillmore East | 11:36 |
| 7. | "Johnny B. Goode" (Chuck Berry) | Hendrix in the West | 4:45 |
| 8. | "Red House" | The Jimi Hendrix Concerts | 8:00 |
| 9. | "Freedom" | Isle of Wight | 4:06 |
| 10. | "Purple Haze" | Stages – Disc three | 3:55 |
| 11. | ""The Star-Spangled Banner"" (music composed by John Stafford Smith) | Woodstock: Music from the Original Soundtrack and More | 3:43 |
| 12. | "Wild Thing" (Chip Taylor) | Historic Performances Recorded at the Monterey International Pop Festival | 7:41 |
Charts[edit]
- US Billboard 200: number 112[9]
- UK Albums Chart: number 10[10]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Gold & Platinum: Voodoo Child". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ a b Jordan, Oscar (January 2001). "Jimi Hendrix – Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection". Vintage Guitar. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ a b Planer, Lindsay. "Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection – Jimi Hendrix". AllMusic. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (December 2005). "Back Catalogue: Jimi Hendrix". Blender. New York. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 53. ISBN 978-0857125958.
- ^ Evans, Paul; Brackett, Nathan (2004). "Jimi Hendrix". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 374. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
- ^ Dickson, Jamie (July 24, 2002). "Standing next to the fire". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ Taylor, Nicholas. "Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection". PopMatters. Archived from the original on January 7, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
- ^ Billboard album charts info – Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection at AllMusic. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
- ^ "Jimi Hendrix". Official Charts. Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
Further reading[edit]
- Moskowitz, David (2010). "More Modern Releases – Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection". The Words and Music of Jimi Hendrix. ABC-CLIO. pp. 119–20. ISBN 978-0313375927.
External links[edit]
- Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection at Discogs (list of releases)
