Once again, Jimi Hendrix only had a four-year recording career -- 1967 to 1970 -- and in that time released just four studio albums. Yet, he has arguably released more albums than any of his contemporaries, and so-called
"unreleased tapes" keep surfacing.
The latest, which are being auctioned, are demos from 1968 that are said to be “very different in sound and length” from their released versions. They include "Up From the Skies," "Ain’t No Telling," "Little Miss Lover" and "Stone Free."
The November 15th auction in London will be livestreamed, and Mark Hochman, music consultant for the auctioneer, Propstore, says, “These versions have never been heard before, circulated or broadcast and are very different in sound and length to the more common examples.
“They’re a lot tighter and smoother. You can hear more guitar, which is obviously what Hendrix was famous for. The experts who have visited and heard the recordings all agree that these are far superior to all the other versions of these tracks.”
They are being sold by Patricia “Trixie” Sullivan, who worked as a personal assistant to Jimi's manager, Mike Jeffery. Following his death in 1973, she took possession of the tapes and other items, which are also being auctioned.
The one caveat is that whoever buys them has to agree that they are for their ears only and cannot be released.
We reached out to a spokesman for the Hendrix estate who tells us "they have the material contained on these tapes so nothing they’d be trying to acquire." He added that Janie Hendrix, his half-sister who oversees the estate, has no comment.
The tapes are estimated to sell for over $260,000.