Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #32747 in DVD
• Released on: 1999-07-06
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Live, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 57 minutes

Amazon.com
Jimi Hendrix's appearance at Woodstock may have been one of his most celebrated performances, as the producers of this DVD put it. But it would be a stretch to call it one of his greatest. By the time the guitarist finally took the stage, weather and endless logistical delays had pushed the show to Monday morning, a day after the festival was supposed to have ended. By then, the audience was too tired, hungry, wet, and stoned for Hendrix's set to be the expected apocalyptic finale. Hendrix himself was reportedly so wasted that he collapsed from exhaustion as soon as he left the stage.

Woodstock was the first gig by the Gypsy Sun and Rainbows band, a cross between the song-oriented focus of the original Experience (with drummer Mitch Mitchell) and the jam-happy Band of Gypsys (with bass player Billy Cox). Three other musicians, a rhythm guitarist and two percussionists, were on hand as well, but they are virtually inaudible in the audio mix and all but invisible in the film. That's not all bad; what we get instead are many close-ups of the guitarist at work, including shots of his enormous hands effortlessly navigating the frets and strings of his Stratocaster. And this is Jimi Hendrix we're talking about here, still the greatest rock guitar player ever. So while some of the set--a combination of familiar hits ("Fire," "Purple Haze," "Red House"), newer material "(Izabella"), and several jams--is perfunctory, there are moments of brilliance, like the blazing white noise he musters up on "Voodoo Child." In the end, any footage of Jimi Hendrix is worth having, as there isn't all that much of it around. But from a strictly musical standpoint, there's plenty of better live Hendrix out there, including on the four-CD box set The Jimi Hendrix Experience. --Sam Graham

From the Back Cover
The honor of closing the greatest rock festival ever conceived had been bestowed to Jimi Hendrix. The renowned guitarist had earned that right on the strength of three groundbreaking albums and scores of memorable performances throughout the world. Inclement weather and seemingly endless delays forced Hendrix to wait until Monday morning before he took the stage and delivered one of his most celebrated performances. Jimi Hendrix: Live At Woodstock features highlights from Jimi's legendary festival appearance. Exciting performances of "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)," "Fire," and "Purple Haze" are capped by the guitarist's unforgettable rendition of "Star Spangled Banner."

Includes:
Message To Love
Fire
Izabella
Red House
Jam Back At The House
Voodoo Child (Slight Return)
Star Spangled Banner
Purple Haze
Woodstock Improvisation
Villanova Junction
Hear My Train A Comin'

Customer Reviews

Greatest performer at his greatest concert
Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock is disputabily the greatest concert ever given. I am an avid Hendrix fan and was elated to see this DVD. This is by far the best DVD I have and shows Hendrix at his greatest. Izabella is revolutionary, Fire is rock solid, Red House is great (Jimi broke his high E string), his Woodstock Improvisation is incredible and his Star Spangled Banner is priceless. That being considered, it deserves 5+ stars.

Although Expericnce Hendrix has done a great job releasing material since they won Jimi's legacy a few years ago, this DVD, contrary to the CD version, was disappointing in its length. There are many songs missing. I owned the CDs first and will list my disappointments: (1) I desperately wanted to hear and see all of Message to Love and Hear my Train a Comin', two of Jimi's new songs as he broke away from the Experience. (2) I also wanted to see Spanish Castle Magic, Foxy Lady, Hey Joe and Lover Man, all not included on the DVD. (3) The order of the songs was jumbled on the DVD and I wanted to see the actual chronological order of the songs. (4) Many of Jimi's comments, some pretty interesting (a la those before Izabella for those who own the CDs), were totally cut out. (5) If it replaced another of the aformentioned left-out songs, I really did not need to hear Larry Lee being backed up be Jimi on Jam Back at the House. Considering they cut out Larry Lee's other songs from the CD I was amazed that this one even made it.

I guess I wanted a DVD identical to the CDs, which is not what this is. However, this is a must for any fan of rock music in general, but I felt I had to voice my completist complaints. Without a doubt, a must have.

Frustrating and Brilliant
I have watched and listened to this DVD about six times so far; each time I grumble at the editors for the super close-up shots of Jimi's face. I can count his molars! The entire video is one big close-up. I can only guess at what the other band members are doing, since we rarely see them. But two of the most important missing parts are Jimi's feet. What the heck was he doing with pedals and other electronics to make such as fasinating sound? I wanted to know! I think the synchronization of sound to video also is a bit lacking, but not as bad as some noteworthy messes (Yessongs).

But it was the fingers, the hands, the words and the sound that first attracted me to this DVD, and I am not dissapointed. There is no viable comparison to any living individual. Jimi left a magnificent work of art and the editors captured it for us to experience 30 years later. Pretty cool.

Great concert! Questionable packaging.
The concert is legendary, but the DVD package fall short of definitive.

Here is what you get:
This DVD contains 10 full length songs from Hendrix's Woodstock concert, namely: "Fire", "Izabella", "Red House", "Jam Back at the House", "Voodoo Child", "Star Spangled Banner", "Purple Haze", "Woodstock Improvisation", and "Villanova Junction." A small segment of, "Message to Love" and, "Hear My Train a Comin'" is played over the opening and closing credits respectfully.

Here is what you don't get:
1. There is no fotage of Hendrix playing six songs from the concert, namely: "Message to Love", "Spanish Castle Magic", "Lover Man", "Hear My Train a Comin'", "Foxey Lady", and "Hey Joe."
2. The set list song order has been rearranged. This is unfortunate because there was a natural flow of momentum with the original song order. The concert started off loose and Jamming, then it tightened and rocked in the middle of the set, the climax being, "Star Spangled Banner." At the end of the original set list Jimi calms the mood down with, "Villanova Junction." For some odd reason Alan Douglas enjoys reconfiguring Jimi's set lists, his trademark is to start all concerts with, "Fire", Jimi NEVER opened with this song.
3. The picture has not been cleaned up. Although the image quality is very good it would be nice to see a widescreen version of this concert. The Woodstock movie is now available on DVD widescreen so why not this concert?
4. The original audio mix was used on this DVD. The two percussionists are inaudible and Jimi is mixed right up front.
5. There are no DVD extras, no interviews, no 5.1 mix, nothing.
6. There is NO BOOKLET contained in the DVD package. A booklet might answer some questions about the missing songs and the audio mix. Maybe the percussionists were not recorded to audio tape? Maybe some of the songs were not filmed? Maybe the original negative has been damaged or lost? Maybe the original muli-track audio tape has been lost? A small booklet with the history of this concert and DVD release could answer these questions.