Classic Rock Musings, Rants & Raves

A while back, I went up to Seattle to take a look around. Rock and roll is huge up in the Pacific Northwest, so I fit right in. I wandered into the Experience Music Project over by the Space Needle and marveled at the displays of all the bands and artists from the area — Heart, Queensrÿche, Nirvana, even Paul Revere & the Raiders. Seattle’s favorite son is undoubtedly Jimi Hendrix, and the EMP (founded by Microsoft co-founder and Hendrix fanatic Paul Allen) spared no expense when it came to honoring him with a huge exhibit of his own. We’re talking a veritable goldmine of Hendrix artifacts with lots of letters, photographs, guitars, amps, clothing, recordings, you name it.

If you’re a Hendrix fan and you go to Seattle, you’ll probably want to head inland from the Sea-Tac airport and visit the Greenwood Memorial Park. This is where Jimi’s father Al built a memorial for his son. But it’s more than Jimi’s final resting place; it’s a plot for the entire Hendrix family.

On September 24, 1999, Al and other members of the family held a press conference at the site to unveil the initial design. Sadly, on April 17, 2002, Al passed away at the age of 82, and he didn’t live to see the memorial. Today, it’s still a work in progress, but Al may be happy to know that he, Jimi and his stepmother Ayako have permanent burial sites around the memorial. All I can say is when I saw it, the heavens opened up, a tear formed in my eye, and the wind cried Mary…