The Jimi Hendrix Experience
"The Wind Cries Mary"
Single / B-side: "Highway Chile" (UK); "Purple Haze" (US)
Released: 5 May 1967 (UK), June 1967 (US)
Album: Are You Experienced (Released: 12 May 1967)
Writer: Jimi Hendrix
Label: Track
"The Wind Cries Mary" is a rock ballad written by Jimi Hendrix and released by the Jimi Hendrix Experience as the band's third single on May 5, 1967. It reached no. 6 in the UK Charts. Today, it is number 379 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time. It has been covered by musicians such as Jamie Cullum, John Mayer, Xavier Rudd, Richie Sambora, Sting, Popa Chubby, Pat Boone and Caron Wheeler.
"The Wind Cries Mary"
Single / B-side: "Highway Chile" (UK); "Purple Haze" (US)
Released: 5 May 1967 (UK), June 1967 (US)
Album: Are You Experienced (Released: 12 May 1967)
Writer: Jimi Hendrix
Label: Track
"The Wind Cries Mary" is a rock ballad written by Jimi Hendrix and released by the Jimi Hendrix Experience as the band's third single on May 5, 1967. It reached no. 6 in the UK Charts. Today, it is number 379 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time. It has been covered by musicians such as Jamie Cullum, John Mayer, Xavier Rudd, Richie Sambora, Sting, Popa Chubby, Pat Boone and Caron Wheeler.
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| The Jimi Hendrix Experience's UK single: "The Wind Cries Mary" (1967) |
Jimi Hendrix- Wind Cries Mary (Music Video)
In the United States, the song was first released as the b-side to the "Purple Haze" single in June 1967 and later appeared on the August 1967 American version of the album Are You Experienced, where three tracks were deleted from the British LP version to make way for the band's three singles that had been issued in the United Kingdom.
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| The Jimi Hendrix Experience's US single: "The Wind Cries Mary" (1967) |
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - "The Wind Cries Mary"
(Behind the Scenes)
The song was recorded at the end of the "Fire" sessions. It is said to have been inspired when Hendrix and his then girlfriend, Kathy Etchingham, had an argument over her cooking; after she stormed out of their apartment; Hendrix wrote "The Wind Cries Mary", as Mary was Etchingham's middle name.
Kathy Mary recalled, "We'd had a row over food. Jimi didn't like lumpy mashed potato. There were thrown plates and I ran off. When I came back the next day, he'd written that song about me. It's incredibly flattering." (Source Q magazine February 2013).
Another possible inspiration could be the poem "To Mary" by the English poet John Clare. Kathy Etchingham has said that many of the Dylanesque lyrics describe the test card that appeared at the end of BBC television transmissions at that time. However, this is probably a mistake on her part as that particular testcard was not first broadcast until July 1967, while the song had been written long before that.
Billy Cox, who was the bassist for the Band of Gypsys and long-time friend of Hendrix has cited Curtis Mayfield's influence on the song: "'The Wind Cries Mary' was a riff that was influenced by Curtis Mayfield, who was a big influence for Jimi."
Another possible inspiration could be the poem "To Mary" by the English poet John Clare. Kathy Etchingham has said that many of the Dylanesque lyrics describe the test card that appeared at the end of BBC television transmissions at that time. However, this is probably a mistake on her part as that particular testcard was not first broadcast until July 1967, while the song had been written long before that.
Billy Cox, who was the bassist for the Band of Gypsys and long-time friend of Hendrix has cited Curtis Mayfield's influence on the song: "'The Wind Cries Mary' was a riff that was influenced by Curtis Mayfield, who was a big influence for Jimi."
A lot of people assumed this was about marijuana, which is also known as "Mary Jane."
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| The Jimi Hendrix Experience's single: "The Wind Cries Mary" |
Jimi Hendrix Experience - "The Wind Cries Mary" (Stockholm, 1967)
This song begins with a distinctive and recognizable introduction, in which three chromatically ascending 'five' chords are played in second inversion. A 'five' chord consists of two notes (first or "root," and fifth) instead of three (root, third and fifth). The missing middle note gives the chord a more 'open' or 'bare' sound. A second inversion "flips" the notes in the chord, so that the fifth, not the root, is the lowest sounding note. This makes it more difficult for the listener to immediately identify what key the song is being played in. In addition, a syncopated rhythm makes it difficult for the listener to identify the "down beats" of the song. This combination of musical elements creates a unique and disorienting experience when the song is heard for the first time.
Jimi Hendrix Experience - "The Wind Cries Mary" (music video)
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| Jimi Hendrix art (photo courtesy of lmoptics.2ap.pl) |
The song was in included in Guitar Hero World Tour along with a live version of Purple Haze. It was also included as a downloadable track for the Rock Band series. "The Wind Cries Mary" and "Highway Chile" were re-released in 1983, on The Singles Album compilation.
Line-up / Musicians:
Jimi Hendrix — vocals, guitars
Noel Redding — bass
Mitch Mitchell — drums
Link / Review:
wikipedia: The Wind Cries Mary
songfacts: The Wind Cries Mary by Jimi Hendrix
