Axis: Bold As Love
Jimi Hendrix
1967
Album Summary
Axis: Bold as Love is the second studio album by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Track Records first released it in the United Kingdom on December 1, 1967, only seven months after the release of the group's highly successful debut, Are You Experienced. In the United States, Reprise Records delayed the release until the following month. The album reached the top ten in the album charts in both countries. For the album, the group displayed several musical styles and critics saw it as demonstrating Jimi Hendrix's growth as a songwriter. The album introduced "Spanish Castle Magic" and "Little Wing", two Hendrix compositions which draw on his roots performing with rhythm and blues bands, that would remain in his live repertoire throughout his career. The album cover, which draws on Hindu religious iconography, has generated controversy. It was designed without Hendrix's approval, and he publicly expressed his dissatisfaction. However, the album went on to become quite successful and was certified platinum in the US and silver in the UK. In 2000, Axis: Bold as Love was voted number 147 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000). Rolling Stone ranked Axis: Bold as Love number 92 on its 2020 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
WikipediaNice. I listened to this while insanely drunk and it enhanced my experience. I'm still not sober, so I don't even know what I'm writing right now. Man's got a lot of arms. They should call him Slimmy Jimi. I don't remember it that well, but I don't think it's exactly the album's fault.
Hot, sexy, soulful, groovy and trippy improv from the late great! No doubt other trios like Nirvana followed closely into the age of complex songs with minimalistic instrumentation. Back-to-back Little Wing & If 6 Was 9 is killer example of the diversity this record expresses. You Got Me Floatin’ & Castles Made Of Sand is another 1-2 punch of heavy lyrics and grooves. Really diggin’ in the hot tub. Thought of tipping some Hennessy into my coffee out here. Cannabis is probably too much before work. Shiiiiiit....Jimi, much obliged.
Never got Hendrix, never will. Fantastically skilled music and but just not my taste
5.0 + What a gift - one of the few records that realizes a fully psychedelic vision, in true technicolor fluorescence. Jimi is a science fiction superhero flying in swirls of brilliant pink, neon green and magenta.
There are days when this is the best Jimi Hendrix record. Surely it has some of his best songs on it. The production and sound on this, for 1967, is HUGE. The stereo panning is a nice touch. It’s a succinct record that covers a lot of the sounds Hendrix was trying to make and isn’t as radio forward as his previous. This is a banger. Favorite song: all of em baby Least favorite song: none
Great, consistent experience from start to finish. Hard not to get up and jam out. Highlights: Spanish Castle Magic, Castles Made of Sand, Bold as Love, Little Wing. Really the whole album
This guy was so far ahead of his time it's incredible. To think this album was released in 1967. Amazing. Little Wing is one of the most beautiful songs ever written. 4.5 stars, rounding up to 5.
This album features better songwriting than his debut and much more interesting arrangements. Songs like ‘little wing’ and ‘bold as love’ illustrate this well.
Dunno if I should give this a 4 or a 5... On the one hand maybe not quite strong enough for a 5, but on the other, the stuff that's good is so good ...
To describe an album as being full of album cuts seems ungenerous (as well as illogical). But there we have it. Lots of noodles and doodling, some esoteric songwriting, but nothing of note, really.
I know this is like, blasphemous, or whatever. But I've always found Jimi Hendrix so incredibly boring. He's got skills, yes. He's got some hits, sure. But this album has nothing remotely interesting on it. This album is Hendrix at his worst, it's just so self-indulgent and obnoxious. The 39 minute runtime might as well be 39 years, it's just such a slog to get through.
One of the greats to me. Listened to this so many times but I'm still struck by the variety in a not particularly long album. Engaged from beginning to end.
This was pretty sweet, another legend I’ve never really listened to and definitely should have before now.
Next level Creativity + craftsmanship and musicianship of these 3 is worthy of praise
Beginning is strange with a kinda random allotment of sounds but the album grows, after Little Wing most songs are great. Hendrix has great guitar as always.
Amazing album that beats Electric Ladyland for me. Any track could be my favourite, but Exp and Little Wing are great. 9/10, nice
Not for me. Talented musicians. Just not talented enough to shut the fuck up
Jimi, talentoso el shavo. El sonido 8d del intro está lol. Menciones especiales al build up de 'if 6 was 9', me resulta emocionante y satisfactorio, y a 'She's so fine', que es una canción rápida y pegajosa. Mood: frito
All in all, a fantastic album. Are You Experienced is the quintessential Hendrix album, but I’ll be dammed if Axis isn’t just as good. Always liked this one when I was younger, and that opinion has not changed.
Durante más de 10 o 12 años Hendrix me parecía bien pero no lo escuchaba, no me interesaba. Formaba parte del panteón del rock clásico que pues uno escucha en la pubertad y luego ya, a otra cosa, ¿no? Lo bueno es que uno cambia de parecer muy fácil. En los últimos años he vuelto a escucharlo y pues, lo obvio, es brillantísimo. Una revolución en la guitarra, una tan radical, tan tabula rasa, que pues mucho de la mamonería y cosas de hueva que uno atribuye a la guitarra, solos interminables y demás, viene de este wey. Pero el lo hizo bien, lo hizo genial, el resto, pues no tanto. Este disco demuestra que su música no estaba centrada solo en sus riffs y sus solos, también era un gran compositor, buen letrista y muy creativo en cuanto a influencias: hay mucho soul, mucho R&B, mucho de eso que será llamado funk, mucho blues obviamente y un sonido indeterminado que es totalmente personal que mezcla todo esto y más: country-funk-blues-jazz-r&B-garage-dylanelbardo-destruccióndelmundocomoestadosalvajedelser. Alguna mamada así. Es muy fácil dar por sentado lo que hizo, han pasado más de 50 años, pero quiero ser muy enfático, esto no existía antes. Otro concepto difícil de entender actualmente cuando somos post todo. Pero neta, no existía, no así. Y la neta, después de él, no volvió a existir. Muy disfrutable el disco. Le doy 3 millones de estrellas, 1 kilo de ácido y 2 de mandarinas.
Debo confesar que de Jimi Hendrix solo había escuchado sus grandes éxitos, tipo “Foxy Lady” o “Purple Haze”. Me dio gusto toparme con él en esta página (?). Disfruté mucho el disco con todo ese sonido tan distintivo del rock psicodélico de su época, pero me gusta además que era un artista muy sutil, sabía cuándo darle voz protagonista a su guitarra sin atascarse. Me gustaron mucho “Little Wing”, “Castles Made of Sand” y “Little Miss Lover”.
Incredible production, listening on good headphones reveals so many awesome psychedelic layers to this and it has some of the most famous and best songs of this era of rock.
One of the greatest albums ever made. Hendrix's guitar work is phenomenal and still amazes me to this day. So many other musicians cannot come anywhere close to the level of this album.
It’s Hendrix so of course it’s a 5-star album. Some great songs on here including ‘Little Wing’ and ‘Bold as Love’. It’s crazy how many innovative guitar techniques Hendrix showcases on this album.
terrific album. everything song a classic. Stereo effects are outstanding.
Just an amazing album that showcases all of the band members talents in really tight compositions
Fantastic album, lots of great songs. In the opening track you canhear them struggling with pan effects, is it genuinely disorienting with headphones on. Great lyrics and Hendrix guitar playing.
Non chitarracentrico come mi aspettavo! Godibile dall'inizio alla fine. Da riascoltare!
great album, some hit songs on there. finishing on bold as love is superb
Just brilliant. Never sat down to listen to his albums, just the ones still in common rotation today. This is brilliant all the way through.
Good stuff. I listened to this a lot in 9th grade. Feels like floating.
Intro spaziale! Spanish Castle Magic <3 Una chicca dopo l'altra, una bomba direi. Dove ho vissuto fino ad ora?! Little Wing è meravigliosa. Tutto l'album è su questa falsariga: fantastico.
So, the greatest, most visionary, most talented, most virtuosic, most charismatic musician of the sixies releases a second album. And of course it's wonderful. What did you expect? That Hendrix would make bad songs? In his pomp, he simply didn't have the capacity to offer substandard material. The Noel Redding song is a duffer, but in no way does it, or can it, diminish from the sheer wizardry of Hendrix, The album starts with a radio interview asking if Hendrix descended from a UFO. That's as good an explanation as any. And I have Electric Ladyland to come. What delights will come. I was listening to this on Spotify, and the album was interrupted by an ad for the 20th anniversary of a Travis album. What a fucking pollutant.
I've never actual sat and listened to one of Jimi's albums from front to back. It's always been collections, best ofs, soundtracks, etc. I don't think I had heard a single one of these songs before and yet, the album was incredible front to back.
Wow! Loved listening to this. Recorded in 1967, this is way ahead of its time. A glorious album that is truly experimental . The guitar is the star and I can hear how his inimitable style has influenced so much music after this. Great album.
I'm glad I finally listened to one of his albums, the guy definitely did a lot for music. A great album to be sure.
A much different vibe than 'Are You Experienced' or 'Electric Ladyland', often leaning towards a far more mellow, almost experimental sound, such as the more laid back groove of songs like 'Up From the Skies', 'Wait Until Tomorrow', and 'Little Wing', or the creative dynamics and transitions in 'If 6 Was 9'. The results are nothing short of incredible, particularly with 'Little Wing' - while only about 2 and a half minutes in length, Hendrix packs more soul and feeling into his guitar playing than many other artists can in a lifetime. On the other hand, songs like 'Spanish Castle Magic' or 'You Got Me Floatin'', you see the album mirroring the more frenetic energy of 'Are You Experienced', with Jimi's bombastic guitar virtuosity is put on full display as he oscillates seamlessly between rich, full rhythm playing and his technically marvelous solos. Additionally, it bears saying that, while Jimi Hendrix is always the one who gets the (well-deserved) recognition, Mitch Mitchell's drumming is incredible throughout. It's not easy to rhythmically complement Hendrix's guitar work, but Mitchell rises to the occasion. Moreover, I'm a huge fan of 'She's So Fine', where bassist Noel Redding took on vocal duties. The song has an infectious rhythm and energy, with Mitchell's ceaseless wholloping on the drums going hand in hand with Hendrix's drive. So yeah, there's a ton to enjoy here.
Great album. "Little Wing", "Castles Made of Sand" and "Bold As Love" my favourite songs on the album.
This album is a revelation. First some background I'm 60 years old and Hendrix was the music of my older siblings...at least Are You Experienced was, and I love that album. But I never heard anything else, other than Smash Hits and Band of Gypsys. Recently I've listened to Electric Ladyland but I haven't been able to connect with it. My conclusion; Hendrix is not for me. Today was the first time I ever listened to Axis Bold as Love and I love it. I think it's a stronger album than Are You Experienced. Where AYE has some filler in my opinion, while every song on ABL is substantial. The songwriting is very strong and shows off more variety...jazzy and funkier than AYE and Electric Ladyland it seems that the production is cleaner and you can here more interplay between the instruments. A 5 🌟 album without a doubt.
Trippy, groovy, fantastic. The noises hendrix squeals out of his guitar blow my mind
Plenty of saliva, blood, sex in this album. Musically tight and appealing
I love this album. Little Wing, Spanish Castle Magic and Bold As Love already make the album worth 5 stars. Favorite tracks: The ones I mentioned.
It's surprising that I've never sat down and listened to this album from start to finish in a single setting. It still sounds fresh as it does almost 60 years later. There is a reason that Hendrix is held in such high regard.
4/13/2022 Today's Album: "Axis: Bold As Love" by Jimi Hendrix - Crisp, warm, soulful, trippy, soulful, groovy, perfect. This record is so beyond reviewing and I think because of that I am just going to spend this time explaining why it's so amazing. From the very start, you have one of the best pieces of noise music I have ever heard in Exp. It is so abrasive and off-putting and I feel like it's the perfect test for the listener, as if it's saying, "There's a ton of cool shit that's coming up, but if this is too much for you, turn back now." The next few tracks are an immaculate display of Hendrix's expert level production, beyond-comparison guitar work, and just overall what he is capable as a single musician. The track Spanish Castle Magic reminds me of much of what I've heard from Electric Ladyland and in the best ways. The track Little Wing is just perfect in so many ways and is truly a standout performance amongst standout performances on this record. It's psychedelic and lovely and just feels like there isn't a single piece out of place. If 6 Was 9 is absolutely stunning, from it's invasive production to the cutting lyrics and vocal performance. This song gets in your face and shows you some of the most insane noise music you've likely ever heard. A clopping sound effect echoes above and just creates this absolutely crushing atmosphere for this noisy, distorted guitar to go berserk over. Castles Made of Sand has one of the sweetest choruses on the record and generally just has a really digestible and cozy vibe to it. There's also some really great sounding guitar work isolated to the left channel every so often and it really spices things up when Hendrix does that. One Rainy Wish has some really cool guitar work with these stuttering riffs and descending arpeggios and generally has this really dreamy, swaying feel to it. The closer of the album and title track, Bold as Love is a really endearing and poetic song with an absolutely killer guitar solo that ends by cranking up a really treble-heavy guitar and just going to town for a minute. It's super distorted and sort of trails off in a really pleasing way sonically to end the record. The whole album is somewhat difficult to listen to at moments with some really overbearing production and frankly horrific noises, but when you give this record the time to show you what's great about it, it really does not disappoint. It feels like one of those album that needs no alterations and is just perfect as it is. If I am not liking a part of it, it feels like it's because my musical palette cannot handle it yet and I just need to give it another try. If you enjoy well produced and densely packed psychedelic music, do yourself a favor and listen to this absolutely amazing classic record. You are bound to have a strong reaction to it one way or another because it just has so many ear-gasmic and/or productionally impressive moments. Bravo. Score: 10/10 Will blow your entire mind. Highlights: Up From The Skies, Spanish Castle Magic, Wait Until Tomorrow, Ain't No Telling, Little Wing, If 6 Was 9, You Got Me Floatin', Castles Made of Sand, One Rainy Wish, Bold As Love
The artistry really goes beyond Hendrix's guitar licks—what stands out to me now is the arrangement of the songs, the way he builds sonic structures out of noise and the basic instrumentation of rock with some surprises here and there of orchestral additions.
I’ve herd the first Hendrix album before (not on the generator) (love that) so I hope this is of similar quality… The album opens with Exp it’s a fun intro just like a radio interview then some noise a quite normal concept now for an album but not in the 60’s… The first song is up from the skies it’s a lot poppier than the harder bluesy Hendrix I’ve herd but I still like it especially the warped wah wah type sound. Now Spanish castle magic is what I was expecting it’s a really well made, clean rather heavy rock song with awesome guitar work. What else would you want? Wait until tomorrow is good too it’s poppy yet bluesy, a very solid love song again with great guitars. Ain’t no telling is short, fast paced and bluesy. The song isn’t the best but it works so well at this point on the album. Little wing has these little tapping glass sounds that make just an average slower song into a dreamy psychedelic lullaby it’s cool. If six was nine ends side one and it does that great it’s a slow blues song that slowly grows into insanity. You got me floating starts off side two it’s a good blend of all his sounds a short pop rock song with great guitars. Castles made of sand is a really good slow rocker with psychedelic overtones it especially ends awesomely with stereo headphones on. She’s so fine is written by noel redding (a member of the band) it’s a good song slightly Beatles sounding and I like that he was allowed to have a song as I enjoyed it quite a bit. One rainy wish has this really cool rain effect made with the instruments at the beginning which I loved. The song itself is an s tier ballad! The penultimate track little miss lover has a groove that would be perfect for a hip hop sonic the song itself is alright just a little filler for Hendrix. It all comes to a stop with bold as love it’s not my favourite but still a solid slow song. Yeah I can’t not give that a 5.
Really aweomse rock. He dives into some more experimental stuff here which I also enjoy
Only really knew little wing. What's to say, it's hendrix man! Fuckin rules
Jimi is one of the greatest of all time. But considering they only had three albums, this feels a little lacking in 💥Killer Hits💥. It’s not an issue of the quality of the tracks though, it’s the fact I’ve not listened to this album enough and am not familiar with all of the intricacies. In need to listen to most Hendrix.
This album is brilliant, first time listening to it, more familiar with Hendrix debut, really enjoyed the experimental tracks. A real 60’s rock masterpiece.