Long before Jimi Hendrix became the pinnacle figure of modern rock ‘n’ roll guitar, he was just another kid from Seattle, Washington, who dreamed of becoming a professional musician. Like many, Hendrix hustled and secured gigs at the local clubs. And by coincidence, he one time just happened to join one of the greatest pianists of all time, Ray Charles.
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Like Hendrix, Charles cut his musical teeth in Seattle. While coming up, Ray Charles played at the Rocking Chair Club and at the Black Elks Club. As a matter of fact, Atlantic Records discovered Ray Charles in Seattle, and that is when he met Jerry Wexler and recorded his first ever record. Though, before that happened, he had a young guitarist by the name of Jimi Hendrix help support him on several different occasions.
How Jimi Hendrix Landed the Gig
Jimi Hendrix and Ray Charles’ fleeting partnership came to fruition in a fairly non-significant way. In the novel, Wild Thing: The Short, Spellbinding Life Of Jimi Hendrix, Hendrix’s brother, Leon, recalled how his brother landed the gig. He stated in the book that “someone recommended Jimmy and he got the job.”
“Even our dad was a little bit impressed by that,” he said. “I was home again, and Jimmy was back to babysitting me, so he took me with him every night. It was a club called the Penthouse where all the big jazz names like Wes Montgomery used to hang out. Jimmy got on real well with Ray; they played together for a few weeks, and we’d have soul food afterwards.”
“I went backstage when I was 12 and Jimi was playing for Ray Charles,” Leon told Mouth Magazine in 2018. “That was Jimi’s first real gig.”
Following their partnership, Ray Charles and Jimi Hendrix went on to share a deep mutual admiration for one another. Regardless, Ray Charles went his way, and Hendrix went his. Needless to say, they both did more than just well for themselves. Though, if not for his time with Charles, Hendrix might not have secured his backing gigs with fellow rock ‘n’ roll legends such as Little Richard, Wilson Pickett, The Isley Brothers, Sam Cooke, and Ike and Tina Turner.
Furthermore, he might have gone on to become, well, you know, Jimi Hendrix. So, it seems Ray Charles incidentally got the ball rolling. However, he surely never imagined what that decision would lead to.
In essence, how awesome would it have been to be a fly on the wall during those performances? Well, one can only dream.
Photo by -/Svenska Dagbladet/AFP via Getty Images
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