Rainbow Bridge (album)

Rainbow Bridge (Original Motion Picture Sound Track)
Studio album by Jimi Hendrix
Released	October 1971
Recorded	1968-70 at TTG Studios, Record Plant Studios and Electric Lady Studios, New York City, New York and Berkeley Community Theatre, Berkeley, California
Genre	Psychedelic rock, blues rock, hard rock, funk rock, acid rock
Length	42:22
Language	English
Label	Reprise
Producer	Jimi Hendrix, Mitch Mitchell, Eddie Kramer, John Jansen
Jimi Hendrix chronology
The Cry of Love (1971) Rainbow Bridge (1971) War Heroes (1972)
Singles from Rainbow Bridge
"Dolly Dagger" Released: October 23, 1971

Rainbow Bridge (Original Motion Picture Sound Track) is a posthumous fifth studio album by American guitarist Jimi Hendrix, released in October and November 1971 in the US and UK, respectively. It was the second Hendrix studio album released after his death and was engineered, mixed and compiled by Eddie Kramer, John Jansen and Mitch Mitchell.

Overview

The pairing of Rainbow Bridge with The Cry of Love comprises the bulk of the most realized tracks that Hendrix was intending to release on his next (double) LP, First Rays of the New Rising Sun. All songs on the album were written by Hendrix, except the cover of "The Star-Spangled Banner", and recorded throughout 1969 and '70, with the exception of "Look Over Yonder", which was recorded in 1968. "Hear My Train A Comin'" was recorded live at the Berkeley Community Theatre on May 30, 1970 (first show). The album was the second to be produced by Eddie Kramer and Mitch Mitchell, with the help of Jansen, and was again fairly well received, reaching #15 and #16 in the US and the UK respectively. "Dolly Dagger" b/w "Star Spangled Banner" was released as a single in the US, but only reached #74. Four songs from Rainbow Bridge are featured on the 1997 compilation First Rays of the New Rising Sun. Two songs are featured on another 1997 compilation South Saturn Delta. The (studio) version of "The Star Spangled Banner" can be found in the 2000 box set The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Box set) Simeon from the Silver Apples has claimed that it features him playing six bass oscillators, although there is no audible evidence of this and he is not credited or mentioned by anyone else. Though misconstrued to be a live album of the famed concert uptop the Haleakala Crater (but actually nowhere near the crater, it was held in pasture not far from Seabury Hall, just outside Makawao); it actually feature most of the songs on the original soundtrack of the film Rainbow Bridge that are played as background to various scenes. The one song on the album that does not feature in the film is the Berkeley performance of "Hear My Train A Comin'". On the actual film soundtrack this is the live version from the Maui concerts, which is not played as background music, but is only heard as part of the concert sequence. Four songs by Hendrix that feature on the film soundtrack are missing from the album: his unique arrangement of Elmore James' "Bleeding Heart" - it was released on the next LP War Heroes, a 1968 instrumental "New Rising Sun", released on West Coast Seattle Boy, "Bolero", also on West Coast Seattle Boy and the still officially unreleased "Ezy Rider" (played as background to a surfing clip) which is from the Maui concerts. For details of recordings of the live Maui concerts, see Rainbow Bridge Concert.

Track listing

These original 1971 Reprise album mixes found on later releases

Rainbow Bridge, as an album, was never released on compact disc. However, all of the original Reprise mix masters from the original Rainbow Bridge album have been issued on subsequent compilations.

• "Dolly Dagger" appears on First Rays of the New Rising Sun (1997).
• "Earth Blues" appears on First Rays of the New Rising Sun.
• "Pali Gap" appears on South Saturn Delta (1997).
• "Room Full of Mirrors" appears on First Rays of the New Rising Sun.
• "Star Spangled Banner" appears on The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Box set) (2000).
• "Look Over Yonder" appears on South Saturn Delta.
• "Hear My Train A Comin'" with a slightly truncated end applause fade, appears on Voodoo Child: The Jimi Hendrix Collection (2001).
• "Hey Baby (New Rising Sun)" appears on First Rays of the New Rising Sun.

Non album tracks that appear in the film

• "Bleeding Heart" (Recorded at Record Plant Studios, New York City, New York, March 24, 1970) was released on War Heroes in 1972 and later on South Saturn Delta in 1997.

• "New Rising Sun" (Recorded Fall 1968, TTG Studios) was partially used in the John Jansen created composite track "MLK", later renamed "Captain Coconut" on the 1975 Alan Douglas produced Crash Landing and as the opening track to 1995's deleted Voodoo Soup. An unaltered and full length version of this track was finally released on 2010's West Coast Seattle Boy: The Jimi Hendrix Anthology boxset.

• "Bolero" (Recorded July 1970 at Electric Lady Studios) Originally intended as a prelude to segue into "Hey Baby (New Rising)", this track remained officially unreleased until 2010's West Coast Seattle Boy: The Jimi Hendrix Anthology boxset.

• "Room Full of Mirrors" (Alternate mix) (Recorded at Record Plant Studios, November 17, 1969 and Electric Lady Studios, October 22, 1970) This alternate mix has Buddy Miles' original drum tracks replaced with that of Mitch Mitchell, recorded onto open tracks on the original 16-track master reel, while saving Miles' parts. This alternate mix only appears very briefly in the movie and has not seen release elsewhere, bootleg or official, and is still in the Hendrix tape archive.

• "Beginnings" (Recorded July 1970 at Electric Lady Studios) Released on War Heroes and the 1997 Experience Hendrix compilation First Rays of the New Rising Sun. An alternate take was later erased of the original backing tracks and replaced with session musicians for use on the second Alan Douglas/Hendrix release Midnight Lightning.

Personnel

• Jimi Hendrix – guitars, lead vocals, backing vocals (tracks 1, 2)
• Mitch Mitchell – drums (all tracks except 4)
• Billy Cox – bass guitar (all tracks except 6)
• Juma Sultan – congas, percussion
• Albert Allen – backing vocals (track 1)
• Buddy Miles – drums (tracks 2 (prior to 1970 overdubs by Mitchell) and 4), backing vocals (track 2)
• The Ronettes (Veronica Bennett, Estelle Bennett, Nedra Talley) – backing vocals (track 2)
• Noel Redding – bass guitar (track 6)

Recording details

• Tracks 1, 3 and 8 recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York City, New York on July 1, 1970
• Track 2 recorded at Record Plant Studios in New York City, New York on December 19, 1969 and Electric Lady Studios, July 1970
• Track 4 recorded at Record Plant Studios on November 17, 1969 and Electric Lady Studios, July 1970
• Track 5 recorded at Record Plant Studios on March 18, 1969
• Track 6 recorded at TTG Studios in New York City, New York on October 22, 1968
• Track 7 recorded at Berkeley Community Theatre in Berkeley, California on May 30, 1970 (First show)

References

• Shapiro, Harry; Caesar Glebbeek (1995-08-15). "Appendix 1: Music, Sweet Music: The Discography". Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy (3rd Edition ed.). New York: St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 540–541. ISBN 978-0-312-13062-6.  Unknown parameter |origdate= ignored (|origyear= suggested) (help); Cite uses deprecated parameters (help)