"Hey Joe" by Jimi Hendrix

"Hey Joe" is an American popular song from the 1960s that has become a rock standard and as such, has been performed in a multitude of musical styles by hundreds of different artists since it was first written. "Hey Joe" tells the story of a man who is on the run and planning to head to Mexico after shooting his wife. However, diverse credits and claims have led to confusion as to the song's true authorship and genesis. 
The earliest known commercial recording of the song is the late 1965 single by the Los Angeles garage band, The Leaves, who also had the first hit version of the song with a re-recording in 1966. Currently the best-known version is The Jimi Hendrix Experience's 1966 recording their debut single. The song title is sometimes given as "Hey Joe, Where You Gonna Go?" or similar variations.

LYRICS AND CHORDS

Chords

C#4/E    044000

Em7        055000

E             022100

C             032010

G             320003

D             000232

A             002220

Intro |E Em7 C#4/E | E

C G D A E E

Verse 1 Hey Joe, where you goin’ with that gun of yours?

C G D A E E

Hey Joe, I said where you goin’ with that gun in your hand,

C G

I’m goin’ down to shoot my lady,

D A E

E

You know I caught her messin’ ‘round with a – nother man.

C G

Yeah, I’m goin’ down to shoot my lady

D A E

You know I caught her messin’ ‘round with another man

E

Huh! And that ain’t cool.

C G D A E

Verse 2 A hey Joe, I heard you shot your woman down,

E

You shot her down now,

C G D A E

A hey Joe, I heard you shot your old lady down,

E

You shot her down in the ground, Yeah”

C G

Yes, I did, I shot her,

D A E

E

You know I caught her messin’ ‘round, messin’ ‘round town,

C G

Uh, yes I did, I shot her.

D A E

You Know I caught my old Lady messin’ ‘round town,

E

And have her the gun,

And I shot her.

C G D A E

Guitar solo Alright, shoot her one more time again baby!

C G D A E

Yeah! Dig it.

C G D A E E

Oh alright.

C G

Verse 3 Hey Joe

D A E E

Where you gonna run to now, where you gonna go?

C G

Hey Joe, I said

D A E E

Where you gonna run to now, where you gonna go?

C G

I’m goin’ way down south,

D A E E

Way down to Mexico way.

C G

I’m goin’ way down south,

D A E

Way down where I can be free,

E

Ain’t no one gonna find me.

C G

Outro Ain’t no hang-man gonna,

D A E

He ain’t gonna put a rope around me,

E

You better believe it right now,

I gotta go now,

C G

Hey Joe,

D A E

You better run on down

E

Goodbye everybody. Ow!

Fade out

SOLO

key:

BU= Bend up to the pitch of note signalled

BD= Bend down to pitch of note signalled

P= Pull off.

H= Hammer on.

#/(#)= e.g. 9/(14) This means sound the first note in this case 9 (the grace note) then

immediately slide to the next note indicated do not pluck this note it should ring out anyway if

your fast enough.

X= Pick rake (mute string with fretting hand).

FHT= Fretting hand tap (this is just like a hammer on but you don’t sound any note before it.

~= Trill

ENJOY!

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Jimi Hendrix Short Biography

This is how the story goes in this blog. Every new post will be a research of the ins and outs of the song's and the artist's from the posted lists. 

Starting from an English songs and ...no I would never be so rule oriented and predictable. Actually, what I'm going to do is to let the music and my inspiration guide me through this journey.  In order to keep my promise on predictability I will start with the mighty, never ending, one of a kind, Jimi Hendrix and “Hey Joe”.

James Marshall Hendrix was born Johnny Allen Hendrix on the 27th of November, 1942 in Seattle, Washington. When he was 9 years old, his parents got divorced, and his mother passed away when he was 16. So he went to live with his grandmother who was a Cherokee.  Jimi learned to play guitar at the age of 12, while growing up in Seattle, Washington, drawing influence from blues legends like B.B. King and Robert Johnson. At first he would play in local bands for Cokes and burgers.  In 1959, Hendrix dropped out of high school and worked odd jobs while continuing to follow his musical aspirations. Hendrix enlisted in the United States Army in 1961 and trained to become a paratrooper. Even as a soldier, he found time for music, creating a band named The King Casuals. Hendrix served in the army until 1962 when he was discharged due to an injury.  After leaving the military, Hendrix pursued his music, working as a session musician and playing backup for such performers as Little Richard, Sam Cooke, and the Isley Brothers. He also formed a group of his own called Jimmy James and the Blue Flames, which played gigs around New York City's Greenwich Village neighborhood.  Though left handed, he used right handed model guitars and played them upside down.  In mid-1966, Hendrix met Chas Chandler, a former member of the Animals, a successful rock group, who became his manager. Chandler convinced Hendrix to go to London where he joined forces with musicians Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell to create The Jimi Hendrix Experience. While there, Hendrix built up quite a following among England's rock royalty. Members of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Who, and Eric Clapton were all great admirers of Hendrix's work. One critic for the British music magazine Melody Maker said that he "had great stage presence" and looked at times as if he was playing "with no hands at all."  

In 1967 he released his first album called ‘Are You Experienced’ with his ‘Jimi Hendrix Experience’ band which reached the number one spot on the UK charts. They also toured Europe. This helped Jimi develop his stage presence. In 1967 he played in London’s Saville Theatre. The show was attended by the whos-who of the music scene including Paul McCartney and George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Spencer Davis, Brian Epstein and many more.    Released in 1967, the band's first single, "Hey Joe" was an instant smash in Britain, and was soon followed by other hits such as "Purple Haze" and "The Wind Cried Mary." On tour to support his first album, Are You Experienced? (1967), Hendrix delighted audiences with his outrageous guitar-playing skills and his innovative, experimental sound. He won over American music fans with his stunning performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967, which ended with Hendrix lighting his guitar on fire.  Quickly becoming a rock music superstar, Hendrix scored again with his second album, Axis: Bold as Love (1968). His final album as part of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Electric Ladyland (1968), was released and featured the hit "All Along the Watchtower," which was written by Bob Dylan. The band continued to tour until it split up in 1969. That same year, Hendrix performed at another legendary musical event: the Woodstock Festival. His rock rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" amazed the crowds and demonstrated his considerable talents as a musician. 

He was also an accomplished songwriter and musical experimenter. Hendrix even had his own recording studio in which he could work with different performers and try out new songs and sounds.  Hendrix tried his luck with another group, forming Band of Gypsys in late 1969 with his army buddy Billy Cox and drummer Buddy Miles. The band never really took off, and Hendrix began working on a new album tentatively named First Rays of the New Rising Sun, with Cox and Mitch Mitchell from the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Unfortunately Hendrix did not live to complete the project. In the morning of the 18th of September, 1970, Jimi Hendrix was found dead. His death is surrounded by a variety of versions. The most well known is that he went to bed drunk and took sleeping pills. Then he died by choking on his own vomit. He is buried in Greenwood Memorial Park in Washington.  

Hendrix recorded a massive amount of unreleased studio material during his lifetime. Much of this (as well as entire live concerts) was issued posthumously. There were many claims placed on his estate, including one by his later to be legally recognized young son. After a lengthy legal dispute, the rights to Hendrix's estate, including all of his recordings, was turned over to Al Hendrix, the guitarist's father, in July of 1995. It was after this that many of the better posthumous albums were released, minus the 1970s overdubs use on some earlier releases. Hendrix's family would also launched Dagger Records, an authorized bootleg label to supply hardcore fans with material that would be of limited commercial appeal, including several live concerts and a collection of studio jams and demos called Morning Symphony Ideas.  

If there ever was a shooting star, it was Jimi Hendrix. In the four short years that he was a superstar, he did more with the electric guitar than any other guitarist before or after him ever would. Even to this day, Jimi Hendrix is still rightfully known as the greatest player to ever lay his hands on a guitar, and I don't think that will ever change.  I'm intentionally omitting some parts of his carrier and life as well as mentioning his whole work not because I believe that they are not important but because this is supposed to be a brief BIO that was extended just a bit to cover all in all the most important stuff.

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The Greatest songs of all times Part II - Greek Songs

Greek Songs

I know this doesn't sound very international and it narrows the people that can find interest on this post, but we are talking about great music. Below you will find a list of Greek Songs that represent mostly the authors past (again i love the "third person" speaking) and probably some of them future as well.  I hope everyone enjoys. After all it's all Greek to me... I will try to Gather everything about this songs as well.

1. O Mpagasas - Nikolas Asimos
2. Kourossivo - Nikos Kavvadias
3. Mpolero – Nikos Kavvadias
4. To peiratiko tou kapten tzimi - Nikos Kavvadias
5. Eromeni mou - Termites  
6. Poso se thelo - Termites
7. Dimosthenous lexis - Dionysis Savvopoulos
8. Na me prosexeis - Dionysis Savvopoulos
9. Sinnefoula - Dionysis Savvopoulos
10. Piso mou Selides - Dionysis Savvopoulos
11. Aggelos Exaggelos – Dionysis Savvopolos
12. Agapao kai Adiaforo - Vasillis Papakonstantinou
13. Cambay’s Water - Vasillis Papakonstantinou
14. S’akoloutho - Vasillis Papakonstantinou
15. To mahairi- Vasillis Papakonstantinou
16. Thessaloniki - Vasillis Papakonstantinou
17. Naylon Ntefia - Spiridoula
18. To 69 - Pavlos Sidiripoulos
19. En kataklidi – Pavlos Sidiropoulos
20. O mpampis o flou – Pavlos Sidiropoulos
21. Stin K – Pavlos Sidiropoulos
22. Na m’agapas- Pavlos Sidiropoulos
23. An Isoun Aggelos - Vasillis Kazoulis
24. Avra - Vasillis Kazoulis
25. Fani - Vasillis Kazoulis
26. Xirokrotima - Alkistis Protopsalti
27. Vradi Savvatou - Harris & Panos Katsimihas
28. Ela sto oneiro mou - Harris & Panos Katsimihas
29. Nytose Nyhta- Harris & Panos Katsimihas
30. Fanis - Harris & Panos Katsimihas
31. Esi mou pes pos m’agapas – 2002GR
32. Ilie mou - Poll
33. To filaraki – Sofia Vossou
34. O vasilias tis skonis – Xylina Spathia
35. Oneiro – Nikos Papazoglou
36. To baglamadaki – Nikos Papazoglou
37. Enas tourkos sto parisi – Lavrentis Mahairitsas

The list is non exhaustive and will definitely be updated and extended over time.

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The Greatest songs of all times Part I - English Songs

English Songs

The whole idea is nothing more than a music repository of the author's favorite songs and in particular those that can be performed by the same person using his beloved guitar. It is very funny when i talk about myself in a "third person" way.

So to start with, below you will find a list of these songs and all i can find about them.

1.    Hey Joe - Jimmy Herdrix

2.    Foxy lady- Jimmy Hendrix

3.    Stairway to Heaven – Led zeppelin

4.    Tears In Heaven – Eric Clapton

5.    Layla - Eric Clapton 

6.    Wonderful tonight - Eric Clapton

7.    Viva la vida – Coldplay

8.    Clocks- Coldplay

9.    Sweet home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd

10. Black magic woman – Santana

11. Dust In the Wind – Kansas

12. Let Me Entertain You - Robbie Williams

13. I got a feeling – Black eyed pease

14. One -U2

15. With or without you - U2

16. Yesterday - Beatles

17. Like a rolling stone - Bob Dylan

18. Nothing else matters – Metallica

19. The Unforgiven - Metallica

20. Wish you were here – Pink Floyd

21. Black - Purle jam

22. Holiday - Scorpions

23. Knocking on the heavens door - Guns n Roses

24. Don’t cry - Guns n Roses

25. Sound of silence - Simon and Garfunkel

26. More Than Words – Extreme

27. Light my fire – The Doors

28. Break on through – The Doors

29. Riders on the storm– The Doors

30. People are strange – The Doors

31. The End – The Doors

32.  Angie - The Rolling Stones

33. Satisfaction - The Rolling Stones

34. Under my thump - The Rolling Stones

35. Sympathy for the Devil - The Rolling Stones

36. Painted Black - The Rolling Stones

37. Black in Black - ACDC

38. Thunderstuck – ACDC

39. Highway to hell - ACDC

By All means this list is not exhaustive and hopefully will be updated and extended over time.

 

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The Greatest songs of all times

The GREATEST SONGS of all times are the songs we can listen for ever and for thousand times and versions and never get bored.

These are the songs that we choose to sing in the street, the bathroom and everywhere we stand.

These are the songs that we choose to play if we play or try to play a music instrument even if this is a spoon and a table.

These are "The GuitarSongs" theme and we 'll go a long journey in discovering the who's and why's and how's of their essence.

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