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D.A. Pennebaker’s film of the stunning Jimi Hendrix Experience performance at Monteray Pop in 1967 makes it to DVD, at last.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey (The Definitive Edition)

Forty years ago Jimi Hendrix returned to his native country and, in one fell swoop changed the musical landscape for all time. It was the galvanizing, US debut performance of The Jimi Hendrix Experience at The Monterey International Pop Festival that propelled Hendrix and his band mates: Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding, to the top ranks of international rock royalty. Now - for the first time ever, The Jimi Hendrix Experience at Monterey is available on DVD. It’s a remarkable visual and aural document that reconfirms what the Monterey audience bore witness to on 18 June 1967: Hendrix’s unbridled talent and flair for showmanship are unparalleled in the annals of music.

The set of songs that the Jimi Hendrix Experience performed at Monterey was introduced by Rolling Stones’ guitarist Brian Jones. He knew full well who he was introducing as Hendrix had moved to London fewer than nine months earlier and achieved icon status in the U.K. in very short order. His conquest of his native land, though, would be achieved almost instantaneously at Monterey Pop.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey offers all existing film footage of that epochal performance presented in its original sequence. The original 16mm camera reversal footage shot by D.A. Pennebaker’s (Don't Look Back, Eat The Menu) Monterey Pop film crew has been transferred to high-definition specs and is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The DVD soundtrack features new 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo mixes by Eddie Kramer, the engineer so closely associated with the Jimi Hendrix and his legacy, from the original eight-track live recordings made at the concert by remote engineer Wally Heider.

Monteray Pop

Beyond the performance of the band’s set, The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey offers numerous bonus features. 'A Second Look', a unique interactive feature allows the viewer to switch between multiple, previously unseen camera angles to view several of the performances as never before. In addition, American Landing, a new documentary that includes previously unreleased interviews with Mitchell and Redding – and Jimi Hendrix, himself - is included. There’s also 'Music, Love and Flowers', an inside look at the Monterey International Pop Festival with co-founder Lou Adler. Live performances of Stone Free and Like A Rolling Stone, the two earliest known unreleased Jimi Hendrix Experience performances, shot 25 February, 1967 in Chelmsford are also part of the package.

Voluminous liner notes by Mitch Mitchell and Hendrix scholar John McDermott, as well as numerous rare and previously unpublished photos of Hendrix, the band and memorabilia of the time are also part of the lavish package that is The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey.

Two companion audio releases of the concert - on CD and vinyl - are also available now from Experience Hendrix/Geffen/UMe. All three were produced by Experience Hendrix CEO Janie Hendrix and McDermott, the DVD was directed by Bob Smeaton. His directorial credits include Festival Express, Jimi Hendrix: The Dick Cavett Show; Hendrix: Band of Gypsys; The Beatles Anthology and numerous other music titles.

See also on Lifestyle: Glam Racket - 1972 T Rex concert film gets a DVD and CD release.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live At Monterey (The Definitive Edition) is in the shops now on HD DVD and regular DVD.

More information available in DVD / Home Video, Music, Festivals