October 25: Jimi Hendrix Experience Released Electric Ladyland

On October 25, 1968, Jimi Hendrix Experience released Electric Ladyland, their third and final album together. 

Known for his perfectionism in the studio and having insecurity about his voice, Hendrix would rerecord songs until they were just right. In fact, he and Mitch Mitchell did more than 50 takes for “Gypsy Eyes” for Electric Ladyland. This often caused tensions and resulted in producer, Chas Chandler, severing ties with Hendrix. 

As a result, Electric Ladyland was the only album that gave full production credit to Hendrix. This upset Chandler as he had produced some of the songs. 

Hendrix also played much of the bass on the album as bassist Noel Redding had a hard time playing due to the number of people in the studio. Hendrix would often invite friends and guests to sit in during the recording. As Redding explains it, “There were tons of people in the studio; you couldn't move. It was a party, not a session.”

Still, the Electric Ladyland was recorded successfully and became their most commercially successful release. It spent 12 weeks on the UK chart in its peak position of #6 and 2 weeks at #1 in the US. 

Other Notable Rock Events From October 25 

1961 - Mick Jagger and Keith Richards ran into each other after not seeing one another since primary school. They go on to form The Rolling Stones a year later. 

1962 - The Beatles gave their first radio interview on Radio Clatteridge. During the show, Paul McCartney said “John is, in fact, the leader of the group.”

1964 - The Rolling Stones debuted on The Ed Sullivan Show. They performed “Time Is On My Side” and a cover of “Around & Around” by Check Berry.  

1966 - Only 7 months old, Jeff Healey had his right eye removed and replaced with an artificial one due to retinoblastoma, a type of cancer. The same would happen to his left eye only 4 months later. 

1968 - Led Zeppelin performed at Surrey University, which is believed to be the first show they played after changing their name from the Yardbirds. 

1970 - Led Zeppelin’s third album went to #1. 

1970 - President Nixon asked programmers to ban songs that had drug references during a US radio conference. 

1976 - After saying he would never play in a large sports arena Bruce Springsteen played the Philidelphia Spectrum. 

1977 - Five days after he died in a plane crash, Ronnie Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd was laid to rest. Steve and Cassie Gaines died on the same plane and others were injured. 

1977 - Elton John performed “Crocodile Rock,” “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” and other songs on The Muppet Show.

1986 - Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet made it to #1. 

1989 - Nirvana, on the third night of their debut tour, performed at the Duchess Of York in Leeds, England.

1991 - Bill Graham, a concert promoter who produced many shows including the final concert of The Band’s Last Waltz and the Grateful Dead’s New Year’s shows, died at 60 years old in a helicopter accident. 

1993 - Ram Jam bassist, Howie Blauvet, died of a heart attack. During his career, he also played for The Hassles with Billy Joel. 

1993 - Eddie Vedder appears on the cover of Tim magazine, despite refusing to speak with them for a story about why young people listen to “angry rockers.”

1996 - Phoenix, Arizona hosts the first Ozzfest. Found by the Osbourne’s, the annual festival features performances by heavy metal and hard rock groups. 

1997 - Johnny Cash announced that he had Parkinson’s disease at a show in Michigan after falling over while reaching for a guitar pick. Many thought it was a joke until a formal statement was released 2 days later. 

1999 - Santana’s album Supernatural went to #1 on the US charts and stayed there for 12 weeks. 

2000 - Napster released a Mac-friendly version of their program despite massive amounts of pending litigation. 

2002 - An arsonist set fire to Aretha Franklin’s house outside of Detroit. The fire caused a lot of damage but luckily Franklin was not there. She primarily used the 12-bedroom home to store belongings.   

2003 - Rosey Nix Adam, Johnny Cash’s daughter was found dead on her tour bus along with fiddler Jimmy Campbell. 

2006 - Kurt Cobain becomes Forbes’ top-earning dead celebrity. 

2011 - Steven Tyler knocked out two teeth when he slipped in the shower at Paraguay Hotel. A dentist quickly repaired his teeth and Tyler performed the following day. 

2012 - Michael Jackson became Forbes’ highest-earning dead musician. He earned $145 million in 2021, while Elvis pulled in $55 million and Bob Marley earned $17 million. 

2014 - Jack Bruce, who was a member of Cream, died. 

2015 - Marlo Henerderon died at 67. He played guitar and saxophone and worked as a session artist for artists like Paul McCartney and Minnie Riperton. 

Rock Birthdays

1924 - Earl Palmer of Little Richard, Tom Waits, and others (drums)

1944 - Jon Anderson of Yes (vocals)

1949 - Glenn Tipton of Judas Priest (guitar)

1955 - Matthias Jabs of Scorpions (guitar)

1961 - Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers (drums)

1960 - Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies (guitar and vocals)

On This Day In History - October 25

October 25 has seen some incredible moments in the world of rock music. These events remind us of the timeless power of music to bring people together, inspire creativity, and create lasting memories. 

As fans, we continue to celebrate the influence of these events, keeping the spirit of rock alive for generations to come. 

So, take a moment to remember these significant rock milestones and let the music play on.

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