Jimi Hendrix "Hey Joe"

Here's one from the mailbag, that forced me to put on my Program Director's thinking cap . . .

I got an email from a listener who asked if we could stop playing "Hey Joe" by Jimi Hendrix.

The email was very personal, so I don't want to say to much about it her, to protect the writer's privacy.

But the long and short of it, was that she, herself, had had a gun held to her head by a man who suspected her of cheating.  And she had been friends with another person who was killed, in the same scenario.

She found the Hendrix track upsetting and asked, Could we please stop playing that song?


"Offensive" is a word that gets tossed around a lot.  But it's pretty difficult to pin down what is offensive, because there is so much subjective judgement involved.

A good rule of thumb, as far as potentially offensive content goes on MVY, is to ask if a significant percentage of listeners would find a particular song offensive.  It wouldn't have to be a majority of listeners.  But enough to believe that every time you were playing the song, you were upsetting a good number of people.

"Cousin Dupree" is a pretty good example.  Despite it being a hit in its time, it didn't have a long shelf life at MVY, because enough listeners complained about the implication of an lecherous relative, trying to get a kiss from an underage girl.

"Hey Joe" is a little different, in that it's not a new song.  It's been around for over 40 years at this point.  You would think a song with that much history would have cleared the hurdle.

But I have to say, prior to this listener's note, I would occasionally hear the song and think, "That's pretty explicit."

This is not something that is hinted at, or sketched out, or otherwise alluded to.

And this is not "Folsom Prison Blues" where the shooter faces consequence and penalty.

"I'm going down to shoot my old lady/I caught her messing 'round with another man."

I can actually see why this listener finds the song upsetting.

That being said, can we stop playing every song that someone finds upsetting or deems offensive?

Good Lord, we'd lose half our library.  ALL songs (practically) are about Lust, Greed, Murder, Infidelity and Crapulence.**

On the other hand, is the Hendrix tune essential to MVY?  If we took it out of rotation, would anyone notice?

I spent a good week thinking about it.  Here is what I finally wrote, as a reply:

Thanks for taking the time to write and thanks for sharing your concern.

While we probably can't remove every song that contains troubling images or stories, I do agree with you that the lyrics of "Hey Joe" are very upfront and could be upsetting.

I wanted you to know that I took Jimi Hendrix "Hey Joe" out of regular rotation.

This means that the song won't be a regular part of the station's mix anymore.  It is possible that we will get an occasional request for it, so it may infrequently appear.  But consider it a rarity.

Thanks for writing and thanks for listening.

PJ

It felt good to tell the listener that she had been heard, and that there was a response.

Is it the right move?  I'm not sure.


Hear the song on Youtube.

** I have been trying for years to work the word "crapulence" into a blog post.  Success!

Jimi Hendrix "Auld Lang Syne"

Instead of the usual Weekend Post, on weekends in December, I think I'll post some fun, weird holiday tunes.

Yesterday, I was complaining that there aren't really any great weird New Year's tunes. At least, here's a cool version of "Auld Lang Syne" with Jimi Hendrix.

Ben Harper "Red House"

I was rooting around in the garage during my vacation, looking for an old photo of Steve Earle for a future post, and I came across this picture of me interviewing Ben Harper.

Notice me, nervously staring at my notes, hoping Ben is not judging my cheap cassette tape recorder. Notice Ben, answering my stock questions, secretly thinking about burritos and burning one down?


Here's another scorching Hendrix cover from Ben.

Ben Harper "Voodoo Child"

The Life Is Good Festival happens in Canton, MA this weekend. So this week's blog posts feature artists appearing on the bill.

I already knew Ben Harper was hungry.

He’d made it through a whole receiving line of fans, and had been extremely engaged and generous with his time, with each of the Meet-and-Greeters. He’s one of those guys who makes full, sincere eye-contact and seems to shut out the rest of the world when he’s talking to you.

But when he got to me, his Record Label rep, said “PJ is here to interview you,” and you could see him sink just a little bit, knowing that it’d be another 10 minutes or so before he’d get that burrito.

I was young. I was nervous. I had a list of questions. And I now know from experience, they were questions he’d answered 1,000 times before.

He was patient. He was kind. He tried to answer thoughtfully. And I now know from experience, that when he was asked the obvious question about Jimi Hendrix, he was on auto-pilot.

I asked him about his recent cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child,” and what was it about that particular Hendrix tune that drew him to it.

He talked about what a great and challenging song it is. Then he said:

“Hendrix had a lot to say about fantasy, fiction and . . . . . .”

He lost his train of thought.

“Fantasy, fiction and . . . . . .“

Nope, still not there.

“Fantasy, fiction and . . . life.”

In retrospect, I’m sure Ben had a great, stock line about Jimi Hendrix in his back pocket.

But the “. . . . . .” was mind wandering off to the food court. He couldn’t say “fantasy, fiction and burritos” so instead his mental gears ground to a halt.

So I jumped to the end of my list and asked him the obligatory question about “the next album,” thanked him for his time and let him go.

By this time, I was hungry myself.

Ben Harper And The Relentless 7 perform this weekend at the Life Is Good Festival.

Jimi Hendrix “The Star Spangled Banner”

I had a real, visceral, reaction, to just seeing this song mentioned in print on a track listing last week. And as so often is the case, one post begets another.

I was doing research on “Rattle And Hum” by U2 last week, and was reminded that U2 used a snippet of Jimi Hendrix’ take on our National Anthem on their record.

And I was immediately taken back to what is perhaps the moment in my music career that I regret more deeply than any other.

It was just a couple of days after September 11th. And people were just, just, just barely coming out of shock, to begin to mount some level of emotional response to such an overwhelming tragedy.

Somewhere, someone came up with the idea that all radio station across the country should play “The Star Spangled Banner” at the same time, as a show of solidarity, patriotism and strength.

On any other week of the year, I would have discussed exactly how to handle the delivery of this piece of music, the words I would use around it, and the context to give it, with Barbara Dacey.

In the Fall 2001, Barbara was mvyradio’s seasoned, tested, thoughtful Program Director. She oversaw all decisions about what went on the air and how it was delivered. And had the terrorist attacks of 2001 happened on any other week, Barbara would have known the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, Barbara was on vacation, in New York State, no less, when it all happened. She was able to coordinate and shape much of our coverage that week by phone. And in hindsight, I should have talked to her about how to handle the playing of the National Anthem.

Instead, trying to take the initiative, I looked around the studio, and realized that the only version of “The Star Spangled Banner” that we seemed to own, was the Jimi Hendrix version.

My thought process went > “It’s Rock N Roll” > “mvyradio plays Jimi Hendrix” > “It will sound better than an orchestral version” > “I’ll play it.”

Not 20 seconds in, I knew I had done the wrong thing.

Jimi Hendrix’ version of “The Star Spangled Banner” is one of the most passionate pieces of modern rock guitar ever committed to tape.

Unfortunately, the passion being expressed is passionately angry. The song is violent and defiant and tremendously noisy.

It is not what we needed, so soon after such pain. And I knew it as soon as I heard it.

I got a call from a listener who was horrified, at the terrible, terrible version of our Anthem.

But even more vividly, my girlfriend at the time, who was also a co-worker, came into the studio, with an almost tearful expression, and said simply, “Not today. This wasn’t a song for today.”

I will tell you that I got compliments too. Encouragement from folks who thought “defiance” WAS the appropriate emotion of the day.

But I knew I had done the wrong thing. I knew that it was the wrong song for the wrong moment, and that people who had perhaps turned to the radio for solidarity and patriotism and strength, and the comfort that comes from having those things, were instead assaulted.

And when I hear that song, which is one of the greatest musical acts of rebellious patriotism, I can only hear the day I failed most egregiously at what I expect from myself every day on the air: to connect with people and bring them comfort and pleasure.



Hear the full version

Parliament “Flashlight”

I’ve never been confused with someone who is funky. But I can always dream, right?

A few years ago, we visited the Experience Music Project in Seattle, an interactive music museum. On top of having some pretty cool exhibits (dozens of Hendrix guitars; Gene Simmons outifits; footage of the Beatles only visit to Seattle), the whole third floor was like a Children’s Science Museum, for music loving adults. It's called The Sound Lab.

There were interactive guitars, and DJ scratch turntables, and keyboards and mixing boards. You could mix the vocals on The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations,” and pull up or down each different vocal part. There was a harmony singing station, where you went in a soundbooth, with microphones and headphones, and followed a video hosted by the women of Seattle’s own Heart. Ann led my wife on the lead vocal line for “Crazy On You” and Nancy showed me the harmony. Then we put them together.

But the Highlight, was “Flashlight.”

In a small, closetly room, was a large drum kit, with a couple of drumsticks, and a big button that said “Start.”

On “Start” the room lights go down, and a big, bassy, baritone starts the instruction:

“Today, we’re going to learn how to play ‘Flashlight’ by Parliament/Funkadelic.”

Suddenly, the whole kit rumbled to life, with a music track on the speakers, the drum kit started playing itself, banging out the funky beat of “Flashlight.”

“Okay, that’s ‘Flashlight.’ Now you’re going to do it. This big drum at your feet is the kick drum.” The kick drum lit up, and banged out a few beats. “Hit the kick drum on the 1 and the 3. Ready? ONE, two, THREE, four, ONE, two, THREE, four.Good! Now with your right hand, you’re going to hit the snare on the 2 and the 4. Ready? One, TWO, three, FOUR, one, TWO, three, FOUR. Now let’s put it together.”

The tutorial went on for several minutes, breaking down the parts of “Flashlight” then slowly putting them together, until, What do you know? I’m giving up the Funk!

Amazing!

Hear Parliament “Flashlight”

See the George Clinton perform "Flashlight" in 1978, here

See a kid trying to learn "Flashlight" at the Experience Music Project, here