Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys (Live at the Fillmore East)

Made less than a year before his death in September 1970, Band of Gypsys was an album recorded live to fulfill a contractual obligation for a long-forgotten deal Jimi Hendrix signed when he still spelled his name "Jimmy." Hendrix had just disbanded the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and in order to dispense with the album as quickly as possible, he put together a new trio featuring Billy Cox (an old Army buddy) and drummer Buddy Miles, whose bombastic singing and thudding drum style would soon pollute FM airwaves across the nation. (Former Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell refers to him here as "William the Concreter," for his cement-mixer sense of rhythm.) They booked the Fillmore East with the idea of recording the shows for a live album, and this DVD features recently unearthed film footage of that historic performance, with Hendrix at the top of his powers (despite Miles's excesses). It also offers several other rare live performances from British clubs in the mid-1960s. The musical moments are mixed with new interview footage, including conversations with the self-effacing Cox and the self-aggrandizing Miles. If you've only heard the CDs (Band of Gypsys and Jimi Hendrix: Live at the Fillmore East), you've only gotten half of this particular Jimi Hendrix experience. --Marshall Fine

1 4.5 stars for a flawed documentary and B&W concert video
I originally wrote a somewhat negative review of this album and after watching the DVD again I realized that I was very wrong.

The DVD is divided into an hour plus documentary and an hour of black and white concert footage from the first of the Fillmore shows. The documentary offers a good deal of information about the Band of Gypsys, its formation and what the impact of race played on the music scene and Jimi's music and management. There are no interviews with Jimi on this subject, although excerpts of Jimi's interview on the Dick Cavett show is shown along with some of the live performance. We do get interviews with Lenny Kravitz, Slash and Vernon Reid of Living Color to explain what Hendrix and the BOG meant to them as musicians of color. Vernons interview and opinions, in my view, hold more weight than either Kravitz or Slash simply because I respect him as a musician. But I have to say I could have done without any of the interviews with contemporary musicians. I would rather more interview time was given to people who actually knew Hendrix. There are some very good interviews with people that knew and played with Hendrix such as Buddy Miles, Billy Cox, Mitch Mitchell, The Ghetto Fighters, and Noel Redding. Not to mention Jimi's road manager Gerry Stickells and Mike Jeffrey's assistant who gives the management perspective on the Band Of Gypsies. None of the interviews are especially in-depth with the exception of Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's engineer. He has a lot to tell and is very informative as to how Billy Cox, Buddy Miles and Jimi worked togther in the studio. The documentary does present a good deal of good information regarding the dissolution of the Experience and the formation of the Band of Gypsys and it's cultural and musical impact. But little information as to why it broke up. I want the dirt dammit! On the plus side there are many excellent stills, TV show appearances, and color movies of the Experience playing.

The most compelling reason to buy this DVD is to see about an hours worth of B&W concert footage videotaped at the first Fillmore show. There are great versions of Power of Love, the stunning Machine Gun and Them Changes, and the best version of Foxy Lady I've ever heard and I've heard a lot of versions. Its facinating to Hendrix really play and in a different and much funkier context than with the Experience. It's worth the price of the DVD to watch Jimi play the version of Machine Gun from the Band of Gypsies album. You get to see some comical asides and between song patter with the audience. There's one humorous part where Hendrix fluffs the lyrics to Power of Love and starts to laugh, he catches Buddys eye and they both crack up.

Which is fantastic, but the black 'n white is just such a tease, especially when the camera dork focuses on the light show going on in back of the band. "Um, its like, um, in black and white man." Gray blobs just aren't that interesting.
The quality of the videotape is at best primitive. There are ghosts a plenty, out of focus camera work and really only two angles: one from Jimi's side and one from Billy's. Of course the sound quality varies and is poor at times. Why didn't they dub in the proper recorded live versions of these songs? It sometimes sounds as though they used a different source tape than from the Band of Gypsys album. Which is odd since several of the songs from that album are what was filmed. My biggest complaint though is that the video is not always in sync with the sound. This is the 21st century folks, I could have syncronized the material on my home freaking computer. Also, the concert footage is entirely in black and white, however during the documentary several songs are shown in COLOR. Why didn't they include those songs in their entirety in a different section? Even if it were only two songs it would have been worth it. The color shots are stunning and very psychedelic, while the black and white footage is drab and somewhat depressing looking. What a huge difference between the two.

Ah well, I'll take what I can get but "Band of Gypsys (Live at the Fillmore East)" is somewhat flawed. The special features are scanty. I was disappointed the photo stills section wasn't bigger and that the color concert film wasn't given its own section: you can see it only in the documentary. But the good far outweighs the bad. The documentary is fairly informative and the live footage of the Band of Gypsys is very interesting. The guys really play well together. Recommended.

2 Band of Gypsys: DVD
The DVD expounds upon the tracks on the CD of the same name. The insights provided by people who "knew" or heard of Jimi provide a tolerable look at fellow "artist's" interpretation of Jimi's desires in changing the "Are You Experienced" band to the Hendrix, Mitch Mitchell and Buddy Cox. Mitchell was dumped for Buddy Miles and the "Band of Gypsys" was born. An excellent feature of the DVD (among others) is the ability to avoid the talk and enjoy the music. The visual quality is quite amazing since only a few cameras were used and the lighting is poor but it really doesn't matter...the music is great...the music is great Jimi.

3 good, but not as your first Hendrix dvd
This is a good dvd, but I dont know why they call it "Live at the fillmore East" it's not really a live show.for hardcore jimi fans like myself, anything Hendrix is good. However, you should not get this as your first hendrix dvd. I'd say start off with a live show like "Blue wild angel", or "Jimi plays Berkely", so you can see the legend at work, then go to something like this, so you can get some background info on Jimi. Overall, a very good video.

4 This won a Grammy and is over 35 years old: reality check!!!
I am hoping that the negative reviews are geared towards the original **VHS** version, because the DVD version is sensational...so much so that it even won a Grammy! The Ghetto Fighters/ The Allen Brothers WERE there---they sang backup vocals on "Freedom", for one of many examples....and they appear in the 1973 movie "Jimi Hendrix." The uninterrupted concert footage IS available on the DVD...and why in the world are people upset about the quality of priceless, one-of-a-kind BOOTLEG footage that was made circa 12/31/69-1/1/70: hey, that was the state of technology then (remember, this wasn't shot during the age of the internet, KBOX, DVDs, and digital technology)! This is close to the Holy Grail for Hendrix fans---I was suprised to see this much footage of those performances existed to begin with!
As for the documentary part, I enjoyed all the insights and, again, the uninterrupted concert footage is available as a bonus: what's the problem??? Let's face it: just to see the entire song "Machine Gun" performed is worth the price of admission alone.
So ignore the nitpickers and those obviously reviewing the VHS version...this DVD is excellent (although I will concede, Grammy or no Grammy, I wouldn't START with this DVD if you were a new or mild-mannered fan...start with the 1973 movie "Jimi Hendrix").
BUY THIS ASAP!!!!

5 Band of Thieves
I took a chance on this DVD because I'm a Jimi Hendrix fan and always loved "The Band of Gypys" album. Unfortunately, this DVD isn't worth $5 let alone $10. The mere thought of putting this slop out for sale is a crime in itself.

Consider the following before purchasing:

1) No production booklet (it clearly doesn't merit one).

2) Concert footage is fuzzy black & white with ghost trail images. The camera work is worse than home amateur video quality. The pans are jerky, the focus is erratic, the zooms are unprofessional, and there are only two camera angles - bad and worse. All this with the obnoxious artifact of ghost trail images whereas an image moves and a blurry trail follows.

3) The audio volume and quality fluctuates dramatically. At first, it sounds like a bootleg copy of the CD, then it sounds like it was recorded in a high school gymnasium by someone in the bleachers with a hollow, echoey quality together with a major drop in volume.

4) The performance is fair, but is boring to watch after the first viewing. All you think about is how you could have better spent even just $10. It could have gone towards the purchase of a truly quality DVD, for example.

The people who put this out should be ashamed of themselves. This production is so bad that it would have at least benefited by colorizing it or providing that option. They didn't even bother to balance the audio levels. The net experience is that you've been suckered.

Don't be a sucker. Apply your entertainment dollar towards something that merits your expense. Besides, this garbage will ruin any appreciation you may already have of the "Band of Gypsys" album.

6 Watch the interviews once and ENJOY THE CONCERT!
When I was 15 years old and in mt cousins' basement as we rocked out to "Power of Soul," "Message to Love," "Who Knows," etc in the late 70s-early 80s, I often longed to see film of this concert whose music moved me so much them and now. When I saw the 1973 "Jimi Hendrix" documetnary, my jaw DROPPED to see a snippet of James Marshall Hendrix doing his thing with MACHINE GUN from this concert! I wondered if the whole thing would ever be available on DVD or VCR, especially since I learned my beloved Voices of East Harlem was the opening act.

Well, the VOEH appear only breifly in a snippet during the documentary section, but you have the Band of Gypsys Concert on DVD! Forget the interviews filled with second guesses and Monday morning quarterbacking! Enjoy the show and ROCK ON!

7 Hendrix is hypnotic.
This dvd rates 4 stars for one reason. Hendrix. He is hypnotic.I sat spellbound watching Hendrix effortlessly, sensuously, and brilliantly play his guitar. Truly, he was amazing. There are two parts to this dvd. One part is concert footage and the other part consists of about 90 minutes of people talking about Hendrix.The folks that actually knew Hendrix had some pretty interesting things to say. I could have done without the pontificating of the likes of Lenny Kravitz and Slash. They didn't know Hendrix and are talentless compared to him. I could have cared less about anything they had to say. I was was also a bit skeptical about the guys who called themselves the Ghetto Fighters. I saw those know-it-alls in another Hendrix documentery which I believe was entitled "Jimi Hendrix" and I wondered then what I wondered as I wathced Fillmore East, in what capacity did those know-it-alls really know Hendrix? The gratutitous inclusion of Buddy Miles(circa 200) playing his drums and sining along with the 1970 version of "Them Changes" was ridiculous, embarassing, and difficult to watch. The scary close-ups of Buddy contorting his face as he got into playing his drums would have been hilarious had it not been so pathetic. The concert footage was good despite the fact that it was filmed in black and white and the pothead who was filming the concert at times arbitrarily decided to focus on walls and lights instead of focusing on the musicians,specifically Hendrix. In spite of its shortcomings,"Live at the Fillmore East" is wonderful because it gives the Hendrix lover an opportunity to see Hendrix play his guitar.

8 JIMI AT HIS GREATEST!!
FINALLY Jimi got to play the Rhythm Rock and Blues he wanted to play before his untimely death. Still greatest rock guitarist ever. Even though the concert footage is in black and white the impact is still tremendous!! Wow! The Machine Gun performance is still the greatest rock performance I ever heard. Just to see Machine Gun is worth the price of the DVD alone.

9 THE JEWEL OF THIS DVD IS THE CONCERT FOOTAGE!!!!
You'd want to buy this dvd for the black and white concert footage alone. The concert footage was recorded on January 1 , 1970. It was the first of two shows performed that day.
When you watch the footage you'll feel as if you were snuck into a Jimi Hendrix concert. The footage is filmed with amateur black and white cameras set up at different areas of the theatre. If you are a real Hendrix/Band of Gypsys fan you will not mind the quality of the footage. You do get the legendary performance of "Machine Gun" thats on the Band of Gypsys cd so that alone makes it worth buying.
One performance that I love is the last song played at the concert ; "Earth Blues". The performance isn't in its entirety (1 of 3 that isn't. The others are "Stop" and "Who Knows". In "Who Knows" Miles' scatting is cut short.) but , from what you get , it is awesome. The dvd picks up the performance during the guitar solo. You see Jimi putting total concentration into this song. Its nice to see Jimi , Billy , and Buddy just jam during this particular performance. Its fun to listen to and , at times , very intense. Check it out and see for yourself.
The interview segment is very good. I found just about everyone interviewed compelling but the segment is only gravy as far as I'm concerned. You can live with it or without it. The real jewel of this dvd is the black and white Fillmore East concert footage. Although during the interview segment they do show a couple of songs from the December 31st and January 1 concerts. The concert clips that are in color are from the December 31st concert.

10 The Best Hendrix Music Ever
On this DVD you'll find two things: 1) a documentary, 2) an hour of uninterrupted Band of Gypsies concert footage. The documentary could've been better. They focus more on Jimi and less on the Band of Gypsies. The footage is spread out, poorly presented, and no one song is presented in full. The concert footage, on the other hand, is amazing. Eight songs are presented, all are complete and uninterrupted. Buy the DVD, but skip the documentary and go straight for the concert footage.

11 Courtesy of the 101st Airborne
I may be being generous wih 4 stars, but they are just for the concert footage and the meaningful interviews. The only meaningful ones for me are the ones with Mitch, Noel, Billy and Buddy and the engineer in the studio, whose name escapes me right now - but he was good.

No, I don't care what Slash, Vernon Reid or Lenny Kravitz think, although I think Vernon Reid rocked with Living Color.

The other reviewers have got it all right. Far too much talk from inconsequential people, no color footage from the main concert, a lot of wasted time, Race being retrofitted into the picture by people with their own agendas, and so on...

One guy, it might have been the opinionated talker from The Ghetto Fighters, whoever they were, suggested that this was the band that Jimi really wanted after all, not the band that he was given to play with in England.

Reality check... Jimi had FOUR top ten hits in the UK before the US even realized what that God-gifted Seattle boy was worth. He liked England, and England liked him.

As for the band he was given... does this clown think a man like Jimi would have stayed with a band who didn't work for him? It has long been discussed that the Experience days were Jimi's happiest time. He was cushioned by being part of a band, and they produced some stunning music.

An interview with Slash, but not Chas Chandler, the man who discovered Jimi, managed him, and whom Jimi called during his last desperate hours because of the bond the men always had...

Band of Gypsies is a good album, a timeless album, but it ain't Voodoo Chile, Purple Haze, Wind Cries Mary, Hey Joe, Burning Of The Midnight Lamp, Red House, Spanish Castle Magic, All Along The Watchtower... need I go on?

The actual Band of Gypsies trio were actually good. Billy Cox was no more than an adequate bass player, but Buddy Miles, while lacking Mitch Mitchell's subtle jazz flair, was a very solid and capable drummer.

I also remember his work with Billy Rich on guitar genius John McLaughlin's classic psychedelia album Devotion, so the man does have talent.

Incredible to think that two thirds of the band were Screaming Eagles - 101st Airborne Vets, as Jimi met Billy in the Airborne. Thankfully, the boys were out before the Airmobile shipped out to Vietnam.

The DVD is worth having for the serious Hendrix fan, if only for the unique concert footage, but as other fans have said, there are waaay better Jimi DVDs around.

12 Terrible Interviews
Ok... the back of the DVD fooled me by saying that this was the only black and white and color footage of the Band of Gypsys ar Fillmore East. I don't see any color! The black and white footage is a big dissappointment, especially when the camera man points the camera at the ceiling to show the lightshow thing, which you can't see because it's in BLACK AND WHITE!!!

Ok again... JImi Hendrix was not an African American leader. He didn't want to be one. The people on the DVD have no business saying he was one. All Jimi Hendrix was was a great musician. He wasn't trying to make black people play rock n' roll, he was just doing his thing. It's kind of pathetic that they focus the whole interview on his race when they should be discussint the depth of his music, which only Jimi himself could understand (if he even could).

As my closing statement let it be known that this is a great show, but it means even more if you just listen to it. Buy the CD

13 Hit the Nail: Just Not as Good as the CDs Already Released
Get the "Jimi Hendrix" movie instead: it reduces the documentary value of this Gypsies DVD to nothing, the music isn't nearly as good (nor the same) as the original Band of Gypsies LP, and the basic thrill of seeing Hendrix live on the second DVD doesn't overwhelm these too-obvious flaws. Just don't bother. It isn't horrible, but it's uniquely disappointing considering how phenomenal the Band of Gypsies album is. Get "Jimi Hendrix": now that's a great movie, all around.

14 Video Overun by Interviews
The Hendrix Family Money Trust has taken rare, decades old legally embroiled classic film footage of absolute historical significance and reduced it to unwatchable frustrating rubbish. After waiting 3 decades to watch this footage, my heart sank when I heard the likes of Slush or Slash or whomever talk over the Man and His Guitar. JUST SHUT UP AND LET THE MUSIC SPEAK! I don't believe anyone who would want to hear Jimi play gives a rats #*& what the interviewees have to say, talking over the man doing his thing. The Family trust should reissue this material, uncut, un-overdubbed with nonsense, and appologise to all who paid good money to listen to mediocre musicians pontificate about someone they have no right to comment on. Leave Slash and Lenny Krapvitz to comment on Brittany Spears, or some other commercial hack that they can more relate to. Skip the DVD and buy the 2cd Live at The Fillmore music instead!

15 it's ALL about Race.....
Yes, this documentary, which could have been well produced and entertaining, was very nearly ruined by the producer's obsession with the whole boring, over-played, tired race issue. As an aside, Vernon Reid nor Lenny Kravitz, et. al., have any business commenting on Jimi...for any legitimate reason. The only significant draw in this video is the concert footage and a minimal amount of backround info. Also, as touched upon in the piece, we all know that Jimi was obviously correct to have fired and replaced Buddy Miles shortly after these historic gigs. Jimi could see that Buddy's skill level was not equal to the other two group members and the music itself. Don't expect too much other than some formerly unseen but remarkable concert footage. The double CD that goes with this is the real star.

16 JIMI JAMS AT THE FILLMORE EAST
Jimi Rock's the FIllmore East is what this video should be called. Rare footage shot on B/W video is not what one expects but the audio is GREAT and the energy between Hendrix , Billy Cox and Buddy Miles is so charged that I had to watch it three times because I didn' t know who to focus my attention on. I kid you not! The only bone I have to pick is with the Documentry part, which is too long on interviews that seemed self indulgent and grandizing the already influential Hendrix by old road managers, producers, lawyers, etc...the best parts are the moments with Billy Cox and Buddy Miles. Why? because they were right next to him in so many ways and they know how to articulate that very well.

17 THIS ONE GOES OUT 2 THE SOLDIERS IN CHICAGO!
"This one goes out to the soldiers in Chicago," speaks Jimi hendrix from the Fillmore East stage, December 1970. Hendrix was refering to the FBI witch hunt of the Black Panthers in Chicago..he then plays Machine Gun. Backed by Buddy Miles and Billy Cox...this power house trio's performance is captured on raw B/W video..but that didn't lessen my enjoyment of the video. The audio alone is excellent. In fact the only bone I have is with the documentry part. It's too long on grand-eye-see-ing! Yes, I brake it down to that because there is s much fodder coming from former Hendrix road managers, producers and radio announcers. The worst was Lenny Kravitz, who had very little to say...except...WOW!
The best interviews, however, are from the former Band of Gypsys members, Billy Cox and Buddy Miles. Both come of sincere and articulate about their time with Hendrix....One actually picks up on the fact that Miles(drummer) was not an ego maniac or any such thing but a great musician who with Billy Cox(bass) and Jimi Hendrix, were able to fuse R&B, Rock, Gospel and Jazz all in one. What we get is a great performance.
If you have a projector...I suggest you use it for the Band of Gypsys!

18 what the heck
THIS VIDEO SUCKS!!!!!!!!!
THE LIVE footage of the show is the best ,but who cares what Slash has to say about JIMI.When i bought it i didn't realize it was more interviews than footage.so be aware of this.
i think they should have selected a better title for it and had the footage a bonus.THE WORSE part is when jimi breaks into
MACHINE GUN and it cuts to an interview.WHAT THE @*#$.Anyways we all know the story ,so stick with the live footage

3452

19 No way to remember a giant.
The music is, to be kind - fair. Jimi is worth 3 stars but I have to subtract one star for Buddy Miles playing - boooooring. Where was Mitch Mitchel when you needed him? I LOVE Hendrix I own all the records and repurchased the music on cd later. I was inspired to play guitar because of Jimi and later the Allmans. Like most guitar players I have spent hours coping Jimis songs. Despite my honest worship of Jimi, much of his live work was many cuts below his studio efforts. He recorded 'live' in an era with poor to non-exsistant monitering systems and played at stage volumes that made recording hit or. In addition, his affection for partying and showmanship took center stage and often overshawed his playing. Want a great live recording - listen to Red House recorded 'live' in studio by the great Edie Krammer.

20 I'd like more concert footage, but belive me, IT'S THERE!
I own this DVD and the documentary is about 2 hrs if I'm not mistaken and is very informative. There is a separate part of the disc after the film is over where it goes back to the main menu under the heading of "Concert Footage." Yes, people, there is footage separate from the film! I know! A little attention goes a long way. It lasts about an hour and is in black and white. "Who Knows," "Machine Gun," "Changes," "Power of Soul," "Stepping Stone," "Foxey Lady," "Stop," "Earth Blues." Yes, there is uninterrupted concert footage. Anyone who tells you otherwise is a liar.

21 HENDRIX AND THE BAND OF GYPSY
This DVD should have been more concert material. Instead its more about interviews with people like Lenny Kravits, also Eddie Kramer. This DVD covers some concert material I think the CD was alot better than the DVD. I rated it 3 stars and no more because its an average DVD. The Band Of Gypsys were powerful the footage includes Machine Gun, Foxy Lady, and a few others ENJOY!!!!!!!

22 Nice profile of historic Jimi but buy the DVD not the VHS
I agree with the assessment of others here; the VHS version of this release, which only contains the documentary, contains a lot of talk and not much footage. Unlike the VHS, the DVD release also provides about an hour of raw black and white Fillmore concert footage that has been on the boot circuit for years.

Without Jimi or the rest of the band's knowledge, someone shot black and white video of one show in the concert series. The quality is poor but its addition to the DVD release is wonderful!

The primary feature of this release is a very good documentary about the Fillmore concerts. The documentary contains valuable interviews and memories recounted by Jimi's friends and associates. Hendrix' Band of Gypsies was arguably his best live performing band. Their groove is solid and, at these performances, Hendrix' soloing is fantastic. Very polished and totally Jimi! A profile of these concerts is quite interesting.

For those interested in owning audio of the entire concert series, keep an eye out for a released called "Box of Gypsies" on CD. This release compiles all four shows in a box set of CDs. The audio was taken from the soundboard and is very good quality. If you do a search on eBay, you'll probably surface a copy. It's historic Hendrix.

23 Mixed feelings - needs more music
This band was the greatest of Jimi Hendrix. Tempos are steady, groove is deep and true. It avoids excessive studio meanderings and shows Jimi really playing. He was certainly put together with a couple of white musicians in order to appeal to white audiences, but when you put Jimi together with players that can really groove, it's a whole different world.

However, this video has everyone and his brother talking over the music. It's a good documentary, but the concert footage could be more complete. "Band Of Gypsies" is a brilliant disc, so I hope that the CD release of this material lives up to it, but this video becomes more and more annoying, as there's not a lot of uncut music.

24 Perhaps Not For The Casual Fan
While the makers of this DVD splice in enough interview footage to make this DVD interesting once, the quality of the actual performance is vintage video. If you've ever seen live TV shows from the early fifties, this is what you have in store for you. Blurry B&W images, ghosts, and brutal contrast are what you find here, but this is a landmark show for Jimmy and a must have for any Hendrix fan. If you are looking for a DVD to buy someone who kind of likes Hendrix, there are better selections. But any true Hendrix fan knows this performance is one of Jimi's peaks, and any footage at all was a gift from above.

25 Where's the Music?
If you enjoy listenting to the beginning of Jimi live, and then have his music talked over by, doesn't matter, then you'll love this. I threw the damn thing away....

26 Poorly executed
Here we are promised Band of Gypsies Live...perhaps Hendrix's finest hour. What we get are EXERPTS of the concert (brilliant though they are) interupted by interviews. There is not a SINGLE song presented in it's entirety! WHY?! Yes, ANY footage of the concert is welcome but do NOT destroy it by interruptions! I'll wait for an uncut version to come out before I buy it.

27 Poorly executed
Here we are promised Band of Gypsies Live...perhaps Hendrix's finest hour. What we get are EXERPTS of the concert (brilliant though they are) interupted by interviews. There is not a SINGLE song presented in it's entirety! WHY?! Yes, ANY footage of the concert is welcome but do NOT destroy it by interruptions! I'll wait for an uncut version to come out before I buy it.

28 The best guitar playing ever caught on film
Skip straight to the end of the DVD, to the 57 1/2 minutes of uninterrupted concert footage from the Fillmore East on New Years eve 1969/70. This is Hendrix at his absolute peak, the most intense, passionate, virtuostic playing I've ever heard, and the cameras were rolling. If, like me, you've been enjoying the Band of Gypsies album for 30 years, it's a real thrill to actually see Jimi playing from that concert.

Who Knows and Machine Gun are the vesions that appeared on the album. The rest of the show, Them Changes, Power of Soul (or "Shoot Down Some Of Those Airplanes"), Foxy Lady, Stop, and the incindiary Earth Blues did not appear on the band of Gypsies first album, but are equally superb.

29 disappointment
I wan disappointed when i heard this album, especially since his earlier albums were so good, this album took a little bit away from the jimi hendrix legacy!

30 good stuff but it needs more concert footage!
I like this dvd I really think it is cool. But where's the rest of the footage? they really screw this one up! It does not show him playing with his teeth or any thing like that. jimi played wild thing and did an amazing solo with his teeth! but they just don't show it. it's only on the cd. If they re-release it with something better, then I would be satisfied. The interviews are good but this dvd definately needs more footage. then it would be much better. however. if you want to see some real action, get Jimi plays Monterey. He pulls it all out.

31 Just for real fans
The music on this disc is great, but the video portion of the concert is just for big time fans. Granted, the video technology was cutting edge for the times, but watching it just gave me a headache. Don't get me wrong, I love Jimi, but the footage included here left we wanting. Black and white is OK, but FOCUS. I think the cameramen were more buzzed than Jimi!

32 Essential Jimi Hendrix DVD.
I bought the VHS version of this in the dark days before I joined the rest of the digital generation and was sufficiently pleased with it...I knew going in that it was primarily a documentary, so missing the actual Fillmore gig wasn't that much of a letdown at the time.
>
Having said that, the DVD really is the way to go, as the documentary is of course included in its entirety, BUT SO IS THE GIG (or at least the lion's share of one of the shows). The concert presented here seems to be the one that was recorded for the original "Band of Gypsys" album from 1970 (which included, in my opinion, the strongest take of "Machine Gun", my personal favorite of all Jimi's songs). The video quality is bootleg at best, with only one (maybe two) camera angles used during the entire concert, and the camera never gets close enough to enable you to get a good look at Jimi's technique (which may be disappointing to musicians trying to cop a riff); the view you get is one of someone seated at the show. Even so, the performance of "Foxey Lady" (inexplicably not included on either the original "Band of Gypsys" or the double-CD "Live at the Fillmore East") is worth the price of ownership for this DVD alone; he blows one of the lyrics near the end, but it's an imperfection not worth considering in the face of the song's performance...it really slams home the level of talent caried by th entire band, to say nothing of Jimi's own mind-blowing six-string sexuality. Buy this before the Woodstock, Isle of Wight, or any other live Jimi Hendrix performance DVD...it covers all the bases and the quality of the show is unsurpassed.

33 Hendrix rocks the Fillmore East.
The DVD contains a documentary about Hendrix and The Band of Gypsy's (Billy Cox and Buddy Miles), and B&W Footage from the concerts at The Fillmore East. The Documentary contains tons of interviews with those around Hendrix, and is very comprehensive in covering that period of Hendrix's History. It is very revealing and a must see for those who want to know about Hendrix during this time period in his career, It contains a lot of archival footage and recordings as well, Listen to Jimi Jams never heard before. The Raw B&W footage of the concert's is fantastic. Its Hendrix need I say more; Machine Gun baby. I love this DVD; and its a must for any Hendrix fanatic like me.

34 Papa's got a brand new bag!
So you have a great musician, as Hendrix undoubtedly was, and you throw him onstage with a couple other musicians. Do you think that so-called band is going to be happy? Well, I don't. But that's what happened with the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Not to say they weren't good, but Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchel were not who Hendrix wanted to play music with. Rather than a regular concert video, this video has interviews with members of the band about how the Band Of Gypsies was created and what it meant, as well as clips from the four concerts. The interviews are very interesting and you can learn a lot from them. You should be aware that these interviews are accompanied by black-and-white concert footage -- you read right -- black-and-white concert footage. It looks nothing like how it looks in color. Even he CD has some amazing color shots. Let me conclude by giving you a suggestion: For those of you who want to learn how and why the Band of Gypsies was created, as well as the concert clips, get this video. For those of you who just want a concert, get the double album "Live At The Fillmore East."

35 Good concert, but stick to the CD.
I bought this video because at the time when I wanted another Hendrix album, I couldn't afford the 2-CD set. Well I enjoyed hearing about how the band got put together and about why they made the album. This video contains interviews mixed in with black and white concert footage. That's right -- black and white. It looks nothing like how it would have looked in color. Still, this is one of Jimi's best concerts. "Machine Gun" blew me away. "Who Knows?" is a wonderful track, and the interviews really make you realize what kind of band this really was. It's an incredible story. Here's my reccomendation: if you want to hear more about the Band of Gypsies, as well as concert clips, get this video. But if you want solely the concert, get the double album "Live at the Fillmore East."

36 Addendum
I watched the documentary again and I have to make a modification to my review: I agree with what others have said about the documentary (although I recommend that people watch it more than just once - there are high points) but I also have to question whether Jimi put the BOG together simply to sell to the "black market," as was suggested in the documentary. I think Jimi's music was most important to him and he simply wanted to play with musicians - as many of them as possible - regardless of their race. This is evidenced by the quite confusing last 3 minutes of the documentary where the producers skip quickly over the point in history where Jimi brought Mitchell back into the band (on the eve of his tragic death). The producers clearly implied that the whole episode "was the low point in Hendrix's career." Miles was a terrific drummer; Jimi, however, was an experimental genius who continually moved forward to deliberately break artistic barriers - not racial ones. If racial barriers were broken in the process, however, that was a (fortunate) by-product. Jimi Hendrix, however, was not a walking political statement - he even shunned the very type of politics that the producers suggest he embraced (e.g., Dick Cavett show excerpt where Jimi says that art, not politics, has soul). I appreciate that he was a genius - and, yes, a black genius. I also appreciate the pride black people should have that he achieved what he did. Personally, however, I believe Jimi deserves all of the pride. Everyone else in the world - black, white, yellow, or blue - should just be thankful that he lived.

What I believe Hendrix fans would love: 100 hours of Kramer (who was terrific) in the studio taking apart copius amounts of tape with, perhaps, insightful commentary - about the music - by people who actually played with Hendrix. No, it wouldn't get boring (my God would it be not boring). Also - ALL the video footage in existence in a volume-like format. Bits and pieces are so frustrating. Give us everything and give it to us in a format that respects the music above all else. That said, thanks to the producers who brought this to us. Every little bit is so appreciated. (Disclosure: I BOUGHT this and I'll buy anything Hendrix that is well done. I support.)

37 Hendrix, hold the fries.
It's a shame that the producers of this video thought it necessary to put the black/white thing at the forefront of the presentation; also too bad that such an agenda determines how/what footage is revealed to the world (why won't the people in charge produce some of the miles of Experience footage???). Note too all: Skip the documentary. IF ANY DECISION-MAKERS SEE THIS: PLEASE GIVE US LIVE, UNINTERRUPTED JIMI. I'D PAY 10 TIMES AS MUCH FOR GREAT, UNTAMPERED FOOTAGE (and twice as much as that not to hear Lenny Kravitz and Slash, etc. talking during great footage that ISN'T included in the concert footage portion of the DVD). I did, however, like the sections with Kramer and Jimi's bandmembers.

Here's a (sarcastic) idea: Why not re-release all of Jimi's albums and have Britney Spears give us a running commentary over every song Jimi plays? As you can see, I want more uncut Jimi! Read the reviews: SO DOES THE REST OF THE WORLD. What does one have to do to get some service in this place? 5 Stars because of Jimi's massive feedback.

38 Band of Gypsys
This is a must have for any Jimi Hendrix or Buddy Miles fans!! The video isn't the best, but the sound is great. I would absolutely recommend this DVD to anyone that loves the rock/blues sound.

39 Jimi -1, Phonies - 0
I gave this one 4 stars because I only watched the documentary once. I disliked it to such a degree that I never watched it again.

It really angered me to see the likes of the late DJ Frankie Crocker and Don Cornelious of Soul Train wax nostalgic about Hendrix when they were the early trend-setters of Black media who did absolutely nothing to promote Hendrix' music in his lifetime or afterwards.

Lenny Kravitz??!!!?? Where's Ike Turner? Where's Ron Isley? Where's Little Richard? Where are the Chambers Brothers? Where's Sly Stone? Where's George Clinton? Where's Curtis Knight? Where's Bobby Womack? Where's B. B. King? These were all his contemporaries, for the most part -- each more equipped to discuss Jimi or the nuances of his music than Lenny Kravitz.

Go directly to the concert footage and enjoy the show. The uninterrupted "Machine Gun" is well worth the price of admission.

40 BUTCHERED AND CONTAMINATED
FEW THINGS HAVE MOVED ME LIKE THAT NIGHT'S PERFORMANCE OF MACHINE GUN.NEXT, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY I HAVE NEVER LIKED THE MUSIC OF LENNY KRAVITZ.HIS MUSIC LACKS INNOVATION AND INSIGHT.LENNY TALKING OVER JIMI PLAYING MACHINE GUN IS LIKE A PHONE RINGING IN THE MIDDLE OF A CONVERSATION WITH GOD.I DON'T NEED TO HEAR/SEE SOMEONE INTERPRET HIS PERFORMANCE,MUSIC OR PHILOSOPHY FOR ME. I AM QUITE CAPABLE. NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE AUDIENCE,JIMI NEVER DID. THE FOLKS THAT PUT THIS VIDEO TOGETHER OBVIOUSLY LACK THE SUBTLE COMMUNICATION SKILLS JIMI SO MASTERFULLY DISPLAYED THAT NIGHT.THE COMPLETE PERFORMANCE WILL REMAIN A MYSTERY.

41 shame on those of you who made this...
jimi is officially rolling in his grave.

42 SHOW THE BAND PLAYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO SEE!!! ANYONE WHO DIGS JIMI HENDRIX DOES NOT GIVE A FLYING F#*K WHAT LENNY KRAVITZ HAS TO SAY ABOUT ANYTHING!!!! NO MATTER WHAT HE THINKS, DRESSING LIKE JIMI DOES NOT FOOL ANYONE... HE IS NOT IN THE SAME DIMENSION AS JIMI AND HE NEVER WILL BE. ALSO, THIS IS A "MESSAGE TO BUDDY": NO-ONE WANTS TO SEE YOU LIP-SYNCHING AND PRETEND-DRUMMING TO ANYTHING!!! OH, AND HERE'S A MESSAGE TO JIMI'S DAD: I'M SURE YR SON IS VERY HAPPY ABOUT HIS MUSIC BEING USED TO SELL HONDAS. THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES!

43 No Clue!!
Obviosly people forget why we purchase these films in the first place.To see Jimi play!Any footage of him playing live,(good or bad),should be shown without cutting it to peices. Save the interviews for VH1. I expected to SEE the concert I heard originally on vinyl,(which I still own),maybe with some stuff that wasn't on the album.I think Band of Gypsys was Jimi's best ever!!But not in this version. I'm disappointed with the video,but not the music. His playing,when he truly played, was nothing short of amazing.

44 Hendrix - Live At The Fillmore
There are far too many interviews and not nearly enough film footage of the concert(s). Who cares what Lenny Kravitz thinks...he's making a living ripping off Hendrix. His opinion is worthless. Eddie Kramer is the only one who's comments matter apart from Buddy Miles and Billy Cox. There must be tons of concert footage they didn't use...why??? They should have shown much more of the band playing and it would have been fabulous!

45 Too much talk interrupting the music!
I just completed viewing this DVD, and I must say it has left me a bit cool, particularly the documentary portion. While it had its highlights (Eddie Kramer especially), I was somewhat bothered by the "African-American band (BOG)" versus "white band (Experience)" political stuff. This is shame because Jimi's music transcended such issues- and that's what it should be about: the music. Instead they are cutting into the middle af great rare footage with rather uninsightful commentary by various guys like Don Cornelius (!). The B&W footage is basically amateur-video quality, with them panning and zooming all over the place. The performance is of course excellent, and this alone makes it probably worth the price of admission.

46 Band Of Gypsys, For the fans
Can't believe all the negative feedback I saw. This documentary is great, not only because of the live performances, also because of the inclusion of interviews with Buddy Miles and Billy Cox, who were, shall we say, a big part of the trio. To top that off, the video takes us into a cultural thing and tries to inform you why Hendrix did the gig and how he wanted to reach a broader audience. This video is great and gives props to Buddy and Billy which have been long, long overdue.

47 Jimi's first Grammy
I was surprised to hear that this video earned him his first Grammy. With all the great music he's produced over the years you would think he would have more than one Grammy. It's a shame that it was awarded to him after his death. Anyway, this video is worth a Grammy, especially the DVD with the hour of concert footage. Excellent interviews with Eddie Kramer and the Ghetto Fighters

48 at least i saw "some" of machine gun
like another reviewer i wish they had let us see all of machine gun and included more songs from the concert

49 eh....
Should not be advertised as a concert video. Not even worthy of a free veiwing on PBS. Take a pass on it.

50 One of the best Hendrix Documentaries ever
I'm glad to see that the concert footage has been added to the DVD version of this great documentary. I wish that someone would have made a film of the entire concert. Not that the interviews were terrible, mind you, but a concert film would have fit the bill.

51 ny gypsy
finally! some of the greatest music ever made is finally released!unfortunatly the vhs version doesn't have all the concrert footage! all the same it's great to finally see this incredible show. everybody in modern rock,funk, and progressive music has been influenced by these shows. imagine what's still out there!

52 oh well
talking heads video stop making sense is how concert videos should be made.the interveiws are fine,but why cut up concert videos?I waited 30 yrs to see machine gun and some idiot thinks he is an artist and chops it up.shame on the hendrix foundation.shame shame on you!

53 PIECE OF...
I think that this video was just another example of how misleading "music" videos are... The labels and back text all talked about the Footage, with interviews. This remackable piece of crap, spits on hendrix's grave!! Instead of letting him and his guitar tell you how great he was. They show you a clip of it and have some great aunt's best friends gas attendents brother in-laws father tell you how good band of gypsys were. If you want to watch people talk about hendrix, get this. Other wise SAVE YOUR MONEY FROM GREEDY CORPORATIONS WITH MISLEADING INFORMATION!!!!

54 PRETTY GOOD EVEN THOUGH I WAS GOING TO BUY A CONCERT TAPE.
I ENJOYED THE INTERVIEWS AND THE BITS AND PIECES OF THE DEC 31-JAN 31 GIGS. I ALSO OWN THE CD SET. IT PRETTY MUCH STATES THAT JIMI HENDRIX WAS GOING THROUGH A FUNK MUSIC PHASE THROUGHOUT THE LAST YEAR OF HIS LIFE. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS TAPE TO ANY JIMI HENDRIX ENTHUSIAST .

55 Historical live footage and a so-so documentary
This DVD has two main sections 1) a recent hour+ long documentary covering Hendrix in his Band Of Gypsys phase and 2) an hour of black and white concert footage with Band of Gypsys from New Year's Eve 1969. There are also some color picture stills of the New Years' Eve show. Mainly consisting of interviews with folks like Buddy Miles, Billy Cox, Lenny Kravitz, Slash(!), the Ghetto Fighters and Eddie Kramer, the documentary is interesting and fairly well done, but not really all that insightful. The best parts are the Hendrix footage (unfortunately often interrupted) and the interview bits with Eddie Kramer. I especially like the footage of Kramer at the mixing board, playing tracks from "First Rays Of The New Rising Sun" while pointing out interesting bits or relating recording session stories. But too much of the documentary consists of unrevealing opinions of Hendrix. (Who really cares what Slash or Lenny Kravitz have to say about Jimi?) I give the documentary 2 stars. The concert footage from the New Years' Eve 1969 show with Buddy and Billy, recorded as a 2 camera shoot on prototype handheld Sony video recorders, is in fuzzy black and white and has only fair sound. Despite this, at least you get to see and hear the songs in uninterrupted form. This is a historical concert and I'm glad to have it captured on video despite its fair quality. 4 stars for the concert footage.

If you love the Band Of Gypsys you will probably like this DVD very much, especially the live concert footage -- the documentary has a few great moments, but too much filler. If you are looking for a Hendrix DVD with great video and sound quality, get the Hendrix at Woodstock DVD instead.

56 Great documentary
This is a five stars video. Im glad that the people who made this video werent just thinking about all those guitar feaks out there, but actually on making a serious rock documentary. If you wanted this video to copy Hendrix licks on your little guitars, go back to your guitar mags. This is a serious job. Well done

57 good, but...
this was pretty good, but next time they need to show the concert the way it was originally filmed THEN show the interviews with the random friends, family, etc NOT both at the same time thus ruining the reason we bought the tape - to see hendrix rock out on guitar!

58 Butchered Concert Footage
I don't mind the interviews. I prefer hearing from people that really knew him, not his self proclaimed prot�g�'s. But the butchered concert footage (especially guitar solos) is a criminal act. This is worse than Alan Douglas hiring session men to "finish" Jimi's unpolished studio work (Crash Landing).

59 Happy to relive the night.
I attended the second show on December 31st and I am just happy to be able to relive the experience through this video. Unlike some other reviewers, I enjoyed the insights from the participants. I just wish they had indicated which shows were being shown. If anyone knows which show was the black and white show that was shown most, please email me.

60 I thought I was buying a concert video
This movie was a monumental screw-up and a tremendous waiste of time. What live footage they've decided to put into the movie, they ruined with interviews. If they had really wanted to do Jimi's memory justice there would have been 83 min of concert footage. Unless you're a Hendrix fanatic who wants the movie just to have it (you'll spend your time watching Montery and Woodstock), don't get it. This one will sit on your shelf.

61 What were they thinking?
I loved seeing this footage but why must they destroy His solos? Especially in 'Machine Gun' Can't they just let us see Him play? I don't really care what those people had to say or think about Jimi, I bought the tape to see the footage of the Band of Gypsy's, not to hear some people's thought on Jimi. Can't anyone, besides bootleggers, give us what we want!? Complete shows! Not just some of the highlites.

62 Insight into the Band of Gypsies
I enjoyed the video tremendously because of the insight it provides into that whole episode of Jimi's career. Yes, it could have been better, it also could have been four hours long, I wouln't have complained!!! As it is, though, the video is great and the Hendrix family did a good job. I can't argue with anything they do because that's Jimi dad and sister. However, I wish they would release more studio jams and videos at a quicker pace.

63 HENDRIX BLOWS AWAY FANS AT THE FILLMORE
This CD, culled from the four shows over two day on the New Year 69-70, is tremendous in it's intensity and power. The group, comprised of Billy Cox and Buddy Miles, is extemely tight and ground breaking. Jimi rips through everything from "Stone Free" to "Burning Desire" a new tune the group was developing at the time. In fact, the entire CD is incredible. If you like the first Band of Gypisies, you will love this album. I personally think they should have released all four shows in their entirety, but that's just me. Overall, thr Cd is killer and the video documentary is incredible as well, I highly recommend both!

64 Good but could have been better
Twenty nine or so years later we finally get to see Hendrix playing at the Filmore East with the Band of Gypsies. The documentary is OK BUT why oh why do they show interviews with other people as Hendrix is playing away in the background?

What is the point of having the footage when you do not show it? For instance during the solos of Machine Gun just as Hendrix starts playing there is random footage of bombs dropping on Vietnam or an interview with somebody as Hendrix plays some of his greatest solos....we want to see Jimi play.

It makes me wonder if the Hendrix Estate really understands what Jimi's music was all about.

Groan....