(S4 Ep 27) The Jimi Hendrix Experience Axis: Bold as Love
Released December 1967 and recorded mostly May -June 1967 (Reprise in the USA and Polydor in the UK)
Axis: Bold As Love is the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s pivotal second album. Produced by Chas Chandler and engineered by Eddie Kramer, it arrived just seven months after Are You Experienced, showcasing Hendrix’s rapid artistic growth. The album bridges raw psychedelia and the jazz-inflected soul of Electric Ladyland, with standout tracks like “Little Wing,” “Spanish Castle Magic,” and the epic closer “Bold as Love.” Studio innovations—including stereo panning, backward guitar, and flanging—are evident on tracks like “EXP.” Though less commercially successful than its predecessor, Axis is now hailed as a masterpiece. Hendrix's lyrical introspection, technical guitar wizardry, and the trio’s cohesive interplay marked a new direction for rock. The album’s blend of soul, blues, and psychedelia cements Hendrix as one of the most innovative artists of the 1960s, rivaled only by The Beatles.
Signature Tracks: "Little Wing," "Castles Made of Sand," "Bold As Love"