Song Discussion: Hey Joe

Jimi Hendrix is considered by a lot of people to be the greatest rock guitarist of all time. Many would say that he was the greatest guitarist of all time, period. Pretty much everyone agrees that he revolutionized what could be done with the electric guitar. His style of playing was based solidly in the blues, but he combined that with an extremely heavy, LOUD rock and roll sound and all kinds of experimentation with effects and the feedback coming from his amplifier. And he made it look effortless. On stage, he often seemed like he was possessed, almost like it wasn't a human being playing at all, but rather some spirit using his body to create this wild, electrifying blast of sound.

Hendrix's most famous work was recorded between 1966 and 1968 - a relatively short period of time. This was a time when there was a lot of turmoil going on in the country and around the world. The war in Vietnam was happening, people were protesting in the streets, the Civil Rights Movement was evolving into the Black and Brown Power movements, and there was a major change in white youth culture from the hippies and counterculture movements. Maybe more than any other artist, Jimi's music reflected all these changes.

Below is a video clip of a famous performance of the song, "Hey Joe" at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. Here is a link to the lyrics, if you want to follow along: link.

Discussion Questions:

1. What (if anything) stands out about this performance for you?
2. What is this song about?
3. In the song, what do you think the writer's emotions are? How do you think he feels about what he has done?
   
4. In what ways does Jimi's performance capture these emotions (or not)?