Hendrix’s musical career did not take off until he abandoned a career as a largely anonymous R&B sideman on the racially segregated Chitlin Circuit and began playing his music before largely white audiences in Greenwich Village, London, England. Greenwich is where Hendrix truly started getting support and recognition for his talents. Under the patronage of Linda Keith, girlfriend of Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Hendrix found a manager and assembled a three-piece band, Jimmy James and the Blue Flames (Wenner).

By launching his career in England, Hendrix allowed himself to get some distance from the racial conflict in his own country. This distance allowed him to fully engross himself in his music. His debut album with The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced, received critical acclaim for its virtuosic guitar playing, first-rate songwriting, and eclectic psychedelic interpretations of blues, soul, and rock and blue.

Hendrix recorded only three fully-conceived albums during his lifetime: Are You Experienced in 1967, Axis: Bold as Love in 1967, and Electric Ladyland in 1968 (“Jimi Hendrix”). The two albums after Are You Experienced introduced the kind of instrumental experimentation Hendrix would come to be known for. He pioneered the use of the recording studio as an instrument in itself to create an otherworldly aesthetic. He created new techniques in distortion, echo, and volume which are now hallmarks of rock and roll.

Hendrix’ experimentation on the guitar was completely revolutionary to white audiences who were not familiar with old blues players. There were other black artists who were equally as experimental on the guitar and who were regionally popular. It could be argued that Jimi Hendrix place in the history of rock and roll has been so dramaticized because of his willingness to step and exist in white worlds, “here after all was a Black artist who stepped way on the other side of America’s racial/musical/political divide at a time when lines were being drawn” (Tate). The Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Who, and Eric Clapton all praised his work. This popularity was in contrast to Hendrix’ near invisibility in black music circles: “In London and East Village he was The Man. In Harlem, he was the invisible man” (Tate).

Even his shows, which scandalized white audiences, were typical of popular black artists of the time. His theatrical performance style included unmistakably sexual movements, and tricks like playing the guitar with his tongue and behind his back (Wells). Most of his performances were under the influence of hard drugs like LSD and often ended with him lighting his guitar on fire or smashing it to pieces. He created a public image for himself that exuded swag, confidence, and a devil-can-do attitude.