| "My Friend" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Jimi Hendrix from the album The Cry of Love | |
| Released | March 1971 |
| Genre | Rock, blues, Folk |
| Length | 4:40 |
| Writer | Jimi Hendrix |
| Producer | Jimi Hendrix |
| The Cry of Love track listing | |
|
|
"My Friend" is a song written and recorded by Jimi Hendrix in New York City in 1968 during the recording sessions for Electric Ladyland. The song was first released in 1971 on the posthumous album The Cry of Love and later appeared on the CD First Rays of the New Rising Sun. It was mixed posthumously by Hendrix's engineer Eddie Kramer.
The recording of "My Friend" combines a humorous song with sound effects to create a bar or nightclub atmosphere. Hendrix' friend Paul Caruso (listed as 'Gers' on the L.P.) plays harmonica on "My Friend".[1][2] In late 1966 Frank Zappa had used the same ideas to record "America Drinks and Goes Home" on the album Absolutely Free. This song parodied Zappa's own experiences playing with drunken bar bands in the early 1960s. Songs with a similar effect were recorded by The Rolling Stones, On With The Show (1967) and The Beatles, You Know My Name (Look Up The Number) (recorded in 1967 and 1969, released in 1970.)