Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr had first seen The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing on 11 January 1967 at the Bag O’Nails club in London. On this night McCartney and George Harrison watched them headline a bill at the city’s Saville Theatre.
The bill also included the Stormsville Shakers, Procol Harum, The Chiffons and Denny Laine & His Electric String Band. Hendrix opened his set with a version of the title track from The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album, which had been released just three days before.
It would be one of his first gigs in London. Jimi was a sweetie, a very nice guy. I remember him opening at the Saville on a Sunday night, 4 June 1967. Brian Epstein used to rent it when it was usually dark on the Sunday. Jimi opened, the curtains flew back and he came walking forward, playing ‘Sgt. Pepper’, and it had only been released on the Thursday so that was like the ultimate compliment. It’s still obviously a shining memory for me, because I admired him so much anyway, he was so accomplished. To think that that album had meant so much to him as to actually do it by the Sunday night, three days after the release. He must have been so into it, because normally it might take a day for rehearsal and then you might wonder whether you’d put it in, but he just opened with it. It’s a pretty major compliment in anyone’s book. I put that down as one of the great honours of my career. I mean, I’m sure he wouldn’t have thought of it as an honour, I’m sure he thought it was the other way round, but to me that was like a great boost.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
Hendrix’s set included eight songs: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Foxy Lady, Like A Rolling Stone, Manic Depression, Hey Joe, Purple Haze, The Wind Cries Mary, and Are You Experienced.
Here’s a performance of Sgt Pepper by The Jimi Hendrix Experience, recorded on 22 December 1967:
Good, very good times !
2 words. Awe sum! ;o)
So, was this show on June 4, 1967 or December 22, 1967? Both dates are listed above
The show attended by the Beatles was on June 4th and was not recorded. The recorded one is from December 22nd, hope this helps
Here is Jimi Hendrix performing “Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” on YouTube (Watch your ears!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLEboBA-Xzk
Neither Jane Asher or Patti Boyd were at this concert. In a Box were Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Mick Jagger & Marianne Faithful and me.
Hello,
Know this comes out of nowhere, but am trying to find a list of musicians in the audience at the Saville Theater the night Jimi Hendrix played SPLHCB. Am hoping you might know of such a list or could tell me from memory. In particular, I am curious if Alan Parsons might have been there.
Thanks!
Steve
The Sgt.Pepper recording. Shown here by the Jimi Hendrix experience is from Monterey Pop Festival Sunday night 6/18/1967 in California U.S.A.
NOT 6/4/67. AND NOT 12/22/67……..thanyou ..Paul Knudsen. Copiague N.Y.
The above video is absolutely not Monterey but ‘Christmas On Earth Continued’ Grand & National Halls Olympia, London, U.K., 22nd December 1967. I am a Hendrix freak and have heard every live bootleg thats out there from the guy 🙂
Also if anyone wants to hear the BEST Sgt Pepper cover he ever did look up Jimi Hendrix @ Capitol Theatre Ottawa. Stockholm 67s is close also
I wonder if Paul actually met up with Denny Laine during the evening, given that they would later cross paths again with Wings.
Probably took note of him, anyway!
Why then is McCartney credted for ‘heavy metal’ inspiration when Jimi isn’t? Paul heard Jimi a year before he recorded Helter Skelter’ that he claimed was inspired by Townsend and not Jimi’s thrash metal version of SPLHCB which was definitely ‘nastier’?