Midnight Lightning is a posthumous compilation album by American rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix.[1] It was released in November 1975 by Reprise Records in the US and Polydor Records in the UK.[1] It was the second to be produced by Alan Douglas and Tony Bongiovi and contains demo-type recordings that were overdubbed with musicians who had never played with Hendrix. Despite including reworkings of the popular live songs "Hear My Train" and "Machine Gun", the album was not as well received as its predecessor, peaking at numbers 43 in the US[2] and 46 in the UK.[3]
| Midnight Lightning | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | November 1975 | |||
| Recorded | 1968–1970; 1975 (overdubs) | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 35:58 | |||
| Label | Polydor (UK) Reprise (US) | |||
| Producer | Alan Douglas, Tony Bongiovi | |||
| Jimi Hendrix chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editDouglas continued the controversial methods he had adopted on Crash Landing and brought in many of the same session musicians to overdub parts of songs.[4] The only original recording (apart from those by Hendrix) was Mitchell's drumming on "Hear My Train".[4] In response to the previous outcry from fans and critics, Douglas did not claim co-writer credit for any songs on Midnight Lightning. After Experience Hendrix secured the rights to Hendrix's recordings in 1997, original versions of the tracks have been released on further albums and boxsets.
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+[5] |
In Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Robert Christgau regarded Midnight Lightning as an improvement by Douglas over Crash Landing because of highlight instrumentals such as "Trash Man", overdubbed guitar from Jeff Mironov and Lance Quinn, and "the blues playing — as opposed to singing or writing".[5] AllMusic's Joe Viglione later said the enduring quality of Hendrix's music was retained in spite of Douglas's "doctoring and musicians jamming with his art after the fact."[4]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Jimi Hendrix, except where noted
| No. | Title | Post-Douglas release(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Trash Man" | Hear My Music Valleys of Neptune (Target edition) | 3:15 |
| 2. | "Midnight Lightning" | 3:49 | |
| 3. | "Hear My Train" | Valleys of Neptune[6] | 5:43 |
| 4. | "Gypsy Boy (New Rising Sun)" | People, Hell and Angels[7] | 3:45 |
| No. | Title | Post-Douglas release(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blue Suede Shoes" (Carl Perkins) | 3:29 | |
| 2. | "Machine Gun" | 7:36 | |
| 3. | "Once I Had a Woman" | Blues | 5:20 |
| 4. | "Beginnings" (Mitch Mitchell) | 3:02 |
Personnel
edit- Jimi Hendrix – guitars, vocals
- Mitch Mitchell – drums on "Hear My Train"
Added in 1975
edit- Jeff Mironov – guitar on tracks 1, 2, 3, 5 and 8
- Lance Quinn – guitar on tracks 2, 4, 6 and 7
- Allan Schwartzberg – drums on tracks 1, 2, 4–8, percussion on tracks 3 and 4
- Bob Babbitt – bass guitar
- Jimmy Maelen – percussion on tracks 2 and 8
- Maeretha Stewart – backing vocals on tracks 2, 4 and 7
- Barbara Massey – backing vocals on tracks 2, 4 and 7
- Vivian Cherry – backing vocals on tracks 2, 4 and 7
- Buddy Lucas – harmonica on track 7
References
edit- ^ a b Moskowitz, David (2010). The Words and Music of Jimi Hendrix. ABC-CLIO. pp. 102, 165. ISBN 978-0313375927. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
- ^ "Jimi Hendrix: Chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
- ^ "Jimi Hendrix". Official Charts. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Viglione, Joe. "Jimi Hendrix: Midnight Lightning - Review". AllMusic. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: H". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 26, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Valleys of Neptune uses the title "Hear My Train A Comin'".
- ^ People Hell and Angels uses the title "Hey Gypsy Boy".
External links
edit- Midnight Lightning at Discogs (list of releases)