Billy Cox and his Band Of Gypsys Experience bring the music of Jimi Hendrix to Northampton at 7PM, Wednesday, June 19th at the Iron Horse

Billy Cox, the bassist who worked with Jimi Hendrix in concert and in the studio as part of both the Band of Gypsys and the Jimi Hendrix Experience, kicks off a US tour at the Iron Horse in Northampton on Wednesday, June 19th with his own band. In addition to Hendrix classics such as "Machine Gun" and "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" Cox will also showcase his impressive blues roots--drawing upon the trove of performances and recording sessions he made with such legends as Slim Harpo, Little Milton, Gatemouth Brown and Freddie King.

Joining Cox will be two exciting guitarists he personally picked for these special performances.  "It was Jimi's dream to use a second guitarist.  He was getting into a new phase of his music and he felt that one guitar limited the band and limited the new music that he was creating,” explains Cox “There were glimpses of what he was trying to do at Woodstock with Larry Lee as the second guitarist.  But that idea was not able to continue.  Now almost 43 years later, I am grateful that I have the opportunity to continue the dream with two dynamic guitarists, Dani Robinson and Byron Bordeaux.”  

 
Billy Cox (click for high res)

Cox is, of course, the stellar bassist who first joined forces with Jimi Hendrix when they chanced to meet while serving in the US Army more than 50 years ago.  After they were discharged, Hendrix and Cox moved to Nashville and played the southern ‘chitlin circuit’ backing up big names of the era including Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson and with their own band, The King Kasuals.   They lost touch with each other after Hendrix was ‘discovered’ by Animals bassist Chas Chandler who brought Jimi Hendrix to England where the Jimi Hendrix Experience was founded in London In October of 1966.

When Noel Redding departed the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Hendrix sought and found his old buddy and thereafter formed Gypsy Sun & Rainbows, the expanded ensemble that Hendrix featured at the Woodstock festival and then the Band of Gypsys with drummer Buddy Miles.  Following that, Cox and Hendrix remained together in the re-envisioned version of the Jimi Hendrix Experience that headlined major pop music festivals as the Isle Of Wight and continued to tour until Jimi’s untimely death. Cox’s most recent studio album Old School Blue Blues has been a critical success since its release October of 2011. Billy Cox is also featured as a musician on the current Jimi Hendrix release People, Hell & Angels, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard Charts earlier this year.

“Our show could be described as triangular in context, we perform not only Hendrix, but some originals and some old school,” says Cox describing his forthcoming tour dates “We are most especially committed to giving the audience an evening of good listening and fun.  Dani and Byron embody the spirit of guitar showmanship."

Tickets are $20 at Northampton Box Office, 76 Main Street, 413 586 8686 and online at IHEG.com.

The Cry of Love was the name retroactively applied to Hendrix’s post-Experience band, named after 1970’s Cry of Love tour (where he mostly premiered new material for his uncompleted fourth album). However this trio still referred to themselves as The Jimi Hendrix Experience. It consisted of the Experience’s Mitch Mitchell and Jimi’s old army friend Billy Cox (who also joined him in late ‘69’s brief Band of Gypsys project, this time with Buddy Miles on drums).