Gone But Not Forgotten, The Anniversary Of The Death Of Guitar Great Jimi Hendrix

He was born Johnny Allen Hendrix; some also called him James Marshall.  But his fans knew him as someone who was and still is, to quote Wikipedia, “considered one of the most influential electric guitarists in the history of popular music and one of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century…” and it was on this day that his guitar was silenced, when Jimi Hendrix died 43 years ago today.

Details about Jimi’s death are a little muttled, and even disputed.  According to Wikipedia, Jimi spent the day before his death in London with gal pal Monika Dannemann, who, by the way, was the only witness in those final hours.  Apparently, in a statement, Monica said she made Jimi something to eat at her apartment around 11p.m., and she and Jimi shared a bottle of wine.  Then she drove Jimi  over to an acquaintance of theirs, and dropped Jimi off at approximately 1:45 a.m.  Jimi stayed for about an hour before she picked him up and drove him back to her apartment at 3 a.m.  Her statement also went on to say that she and Jimi stayed up and talked until 7am, and then they went to bed.  The next day, Monica woke up around 11am where she found Jimi still breathing but unconscious and unresponsive.  She said she called an ambulance which arrived at the scene at 11:27a.m.  Jimi was transported to St Mary Abbot’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 12:45 p.m., September 18^th, 1970.

A coroner examined Jimi’s body on September 21^st and it was concluded on September 28^th that Jimi choked on his own vomit and died of asphyxia due to intoxication from barbiturates.  The autopsy cited “insufficient evidence of the circumstances.”   Monica later stated that Jimi had taken nine of her prescribed sleeping pills, which was 18 times the recommended dosage.

Although this is the anniversary of Jimi’s death, we at 101-9 KING FM would rather celebrate the life of a man who was, and still is, one of rock and roll’s greatest guitarists of all time.