Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child Page #3

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"Dear Dad,

"Just a few words to let you know

I made it to South Carolina.

"Tell everybody 'Hello'.

With Love, Jimmy"

I went to New York and won first place

in the Apollo Amateur Contest.

I stayed up there

for about two or three weeks.

Then The Isley Brothers asked

if I would play with them.

I played with them for a while

and got very bored

because you get very tired

of playing behind other people all the time.

I quit them in Nashville somewhere

and this group came up

and brought me back to Atlanta, Georgia,

where I met Little Richard.

"Dearest Dad, I received your letter

while I was in Atlanta.

"I'm playing with Little Richard now.

"We're going towards the West Coast.

"We're in Louisiana now.

"But my address will be in Los Angeles

when I write again. Jimmy. "

Well, Little Richard,

he was the guy up front and that was it,

and he said he was the only one

allowed to be pretty.

I guess I played with Little Richard

for about five or six months.

I quit because of money misunderstanding:

he didn't pay us for Eve and a half weeks.

I couldn't imagine myself for the rest of

my life in a shiny mohair suit

with patent leather shoes

and a patent leather hairdo to match.

I didn't hear any guitar players

doing anything new

and I was bored out of my mind.

I wanted my own scene,

making my own music.

I was starting to see that you could create

a whole new world with an electric guitar.

'Cause there isn't a sound like it.

I had these ideas and sounds in my brain,

but I needed people to do it with

and they were hard to End.

I went back to New York and played

with this little rhythm and blues group

called Curtis Knight And The Squires.

I also played with King Curtis

and Joey Dee.

"Dear Dad,

Well, I'm just dropping in a few words

"to let you know everything's so-so

in this big, raggedy city of New York.

"Everything is happening bad here.

"I hope everyone at home is all right.

Tell Leon I said hello.

"I'll write you a letter real soon

and will try to send a decent picture.

"So, until then,

I hope you're doing all right.

"Tell Ben and Ernie

I play the blues like they never heard. "

I had friends with me

in Harlem and I'd say,

"Come on down to the Village

so we can get something together. "

The Village was groovy.

I just laid around

and played for about two hours a night.

You had to chat someone up real quick

before you had a place to stay.

I got a break playing guitar

for John Hammond Jr. at the Cafe au Go Go.

Bob Dylan was also down there.

We were both stoned

and just hung about laughing

thanks to the demon ale.

When I first heard Dylan,

I thought you must admire the guy

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