Neil Young

Neil Young :


During 1978's Rust Never Sleeps tour, Neil wore a Jimi Hendrix button prominently on his peace sign guitar strap as a homage to the guitar genius' influence on rock. From a radio interview program "On The Record" by Mary Turner in 1979, Neil was asked about what he remembered about Woodstock.

Young: "One of things I remember about Woodstock was trying to get there to play. As it turns out, the charter plane I was on with Jimi Hendrix flew into the wrong airport. We were supposed to be picked by a helicopter. The roads were jammed and there was nobody at the airport, so we had no way to get to the concert.

So we're standing at the airport with Melvin Belli [an attorney] trying to figure out what to do. And Melvin Belli steals this pickup truck parked at the airport.

So it's the three of us in this stolen pickup truck trying to get to the Woodstock concert to play -- Jimi, Melvin & me.

That's what I really remember about Woodstock."

On January 15, 1992, Neil Young inducted Jimi Hendrix into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In his induction speech for Jimi, Neil said:

Young:"Guitar -- you can play it or transcend it. Jimi showed me that. He was at one with his instrument. I just looked at it, heard it, and felt it and wanted to do it. Hendrix threw a Molotov cocktail onto rock & roll."

Later that night, Young would pay tribute to Hendrix's guitar legacy by performing "Purple Haze" with Keith Richards.

On the album Harvest Moon, Neil paid homage to the Hendrix legacy in the song "From Hank to Hendrix". The lyrics of the song site the influence of the musical guitar giants Hank Marvin from the Shadows (not Hank Williams, as often cited) and Jimi Hendrix.

From Hank to Hendrix
I walked these streets with you
Here I am with this old guitar
Doin' what I do.

I always expected
That you should see me through
I never believed in much
But I believed in you.

In Jimmy McDonough's biography Shakey, Neil said of Hendrix's work: "he was the greatest electric-guitar player who ever lived."


Source : http://www.thrasherswheat.org/jammin/jammin_more.htm#hendrix