You Don't Turn Off Jimi Hendrix

Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock

Sorry for another extended absence. Work seems to occupy just about all my spare time, not to
mention my actual work time. I hate when work gets in the way of important life endeavors. The things that really matter. Like 10,000 word essays on things like who's the cooler hero mentor: Viper from Top Gun or Morpheus in the Matrix (Viper, obvs. He got BOTH Maverick AND Iceman. You've got to have #baller game to do that).

So here's a quick hitter. A few days ago I was driving up South Congress on a beautiful Spring day. I had the top down, natch, and was just stopping at a traffic light. I had my satellite radio blaring, and Jimi Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary" just came on. Just as I stopped, I changed the channel to see what else was on.

A number of people were waiting at a bus stop at the light, and at that moment, as I was messing with the channels, an older black man waiting for the bus waded out into the traffic lane at my car and was saying something to me. Though I became a bit apprehensive, I turned down the radio to hear what he was saying. "Was that Jimi Hendrix?" he asked. "Yeah," I answered. He became upset and yelled to me, in that ubiquitous, disapproving, fatherly way in which older men can yell, "Put it back on! You don't turn off Jimi Hendrix!"

Hey, there's nothing more important in this world than knowing when someone drops some serious truth on you. And that, my friends, was some serious truth. Never, NEVER turn off Jimi Hendrix. Ever.

It just goes to show, you can learn something important any time, anywhere.

I put it back on quickly and waved to him. Then the light changed.

But I started thinking, who else should you just never, ever turn off? That every song they performed is better than just about anything else that could possibly be on. Here's a list (I know, I know. I've said lists aren't really writing, but you take what you can get).

Miley Cyrus. Just kidding. (Of course, there's probs millions of people in this country who would totally say that in all seriousness. This is why the Chinese are beating us.)

Ella Fitzgerald
Louis Armstrong
Frank Sinatra
Duke Ellington

The Beatles
The Rolling Stones (everything through Tattoo You)
The Who (until Keith Moon died)
Marvin Gaye
The Supremes
Roy Orbison
Elvis Presley (before 1965)
Otis Redding
Ray Charles
John Coltrane
Hank Williams

Muddy Waters
BB King
Led Zeppelin
James Brown
The Beach Boys (up until Smile)
Buddy Holly
Patsy Cline
The Ramones
Sam Cooke
Chuck Berry
Nat King Cole
Stevie Wonder (except Ebony and Ivory)


What music would you never turn off?