New Movie Unveils Lost Hendrix Footage

A documentary about Jimi Hendrix's concerts at London's Royal Albert Hall in February 1969 will be released next year, according to his half-sister Janie Hendrix, president and CEO of Experience Hendrix. The film, which Janie describes as "a day in the life of Jimi," was put together from footage collected at those concerts and Jimi's tour of Europe that year.

"There were about four cameras that followed Jimi and the guys around in Europe and filmed the two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as them coming off trains, planes and automobiles, signing autographs, Jimi backstage getting ready, in his apartment doing little apartment jams with his friends and then later playing [nightclub] the Speakeasy," Janie told Billboard . "It's not an actor playing Jimi; it's Jimi, and he really does forget the cameras are rolling and you see those sides of him, the stage and the sweetness with different girlfriends — there's several that are in the film — and how he was around friends and how he was really into listening to the [recording of] the night before's performance."

Hendrix said she aims to release the documentary theatrically and possibly on pay-per-view, as well as on DVD. There will also be a soundtrack album of live performances from the Royal Albert Hall, which have been previously released over the years but never to the satisfaction of Experience Hendrix.

Other projects in the works include a film of his May 1968 performance at the Miami Pop Festival — which is slated to be released in 2012, commemorating what would have been Jimi's 70th birthday — and a collection of recordings Hendrix made with Stephen Stills.

Exclusive Audio: Jimi Hendrix Covers Bob Dylan's "Tears Of Rage"

In other news, a guitar formerly owned by Hendrix is up for auction next month. The instrument, on which he reportedly wrote a number of songs and used on his iconic version of Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower," is expected to fetch nearly $200,000. In 2008, a guitar that Hendrix set on fire at a 1967 London gig sold for nearly half a million dollars.

Jimi Hendrix's Family Talks 'Anthology,' 'Day in the Life' Documentary [Billboard]

Jimi Hendrix's guitar set to sell for £120,000 at auction [NME]

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Song Stories

“Tonight's the Night”

The Shirelles | 1960

The lead cut and title track from this girl group's debut album, "Tonight's the Night" was written by 19-year-old bandmember Shirley Owens, who sings lead, and producer Luther Dixon. The band from Passaic, New Jersey met in high school, first calling themselves the Pequellos. The song's frank thoughts about sexual and emotional surrender was racy for the time, but that didn't stop the Chiffons from cutting a similar version immediately after the original came out. "We were the first female group to write some of our own material," band member Beverly Lee recalls. "We did have some say-so in our writing."

More Song Stories entries »

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