Crosstown Traffic: Jimi Hendrix and the Post-War Rock 'n' Roll Revolution

by Charles Shaar Murray

Traces the history and music of Jimi Hendrix and discusses the influence and impact of one of rock music's most innovative guitarists on a generation

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, History, Music Biography, African American, Essays

247 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Srđan Strajnić · Rating 5 out of 5]

Older fans of rock music have known Charles Schar Murray since the seventies of the last century as one of the sharpest writers of the then leading music weekly "New Musical Express". Sharp language and characteristic style, he never wrote in gloves. Often his opinion was provocative and never yielded to that of the majority. I expected such an approach in the book I'm talking about, but my expectations were only partially fulfilled. Instead of a provocative reading, we got an analytical one, and that of the kind that places the main character in the widest possible context, which the subtitle "...and Post War Pop" certainly hints at. Someone will say that in Hendrix's biography he does not need quite detailed biographical information about Robert Johnson, Charlie Kristian, Bob Marley, the group Public Enemy, Muddy Waters and many others (whole sections of the book are devoted to some of the mentioned), but, if we know that each phenomenon has its own causes and reasons, and also consequences, it will be clear to us why Murray opted for this approach. Fifteen years later, Grayle Marcus did the same in a book about The Doors, in which I said that this approach was not for hardcore fans of the group. That goes for Murray's book and Hendrix fans as well. If I tell you that Jimi Hendrix died in Murray's book on page 68 (the book has 381 pages), it will be clear to you that Hendrix is, roughly speaking, just the (super)glue that holds together the topics covered by Charles Shar Murray. And the topics are more than serious, both general ones and those related to pop culture. Of the general ones, interracial relations are elaborated in the most detail, with a focus on Hendrix's delicate position as a black man singing to whites, as well as his controversial relationship with women. Let's deal with the latter first, noting that in the sixties there was no "cancel" culture, these things were viewed in a patriarchal way, because if there was, the song "Hey Joe" (which Jimi Hendrix did not write but made famous) would never be a hit. The song speaks directly and without any fences about femicide, which is justified by the "infidelity" of the murdered woman. On the other side of the same single is the song "Stone Free", which talks about how women don't understand men's need for promiscuity. A classic double standard for the same thing. Hendrix, if we will simplify things as much as possible, portrayed women in his songs in two ways - as whores and as saints. There was nothing in between with him. The "whore" as the heroine of his songs is the real, realistic woman, with whom one lives, who loves, who leaves or is abandoned by (Foxy Lady, Dolly Dagger, Stepping Stone...), and the "saint" is an ideal woman to which he strives but that ideal is never reached (May This Be Love, Little Wing, Gypsy Eyes, Angel...). Murray elaborated on this topic not only by Hendrix, but by providing a comparative analysis of other prominent blues and rock artists of the time. As for Hendrix's relationship with women in real life, it is well known that Hendrix was, as it used to be said, a "womanizer". He loved women and women loved him. It is not known how many of them he was with. There are interesting anecdotes in the book about his magnetic attraction to women. Pete Townshend and Mick Jagger know a thing or two about this, and they learned the hard way. However, Charles Shaar Murray claims that Jagger returned the favor a few years later. According to the testimonies of those present, he was one of those "I move the chair, hold the coat, light a cigarette" type, at least until he won the one in question, and after that, God bless her. Is that true - I don't know, I hedge with that "I don't know, but I've been told".
As far as the race is concerned, here's the thing: As you know, Hendrix was born in Seattle, a city in the far northwest of the US that at the time didn't have a significant black population and no us-them antagonism, so he's not in his childhood. built a sense of belonging to the "black" community. Simply put, he was not burdened by the issue of race, so he built his personal and business relationships without taking into account the skin color of his partners, friends and associates. This cost him the support of the revolutionary section of the "black" community - he was always seen as a guy playing to the whites. Even Robert Christgau, a well-known rock critic (who, by the way, is white) called him a "psychedelic Uncle Tom" in one of his first articles about him. It must be said that his so-called collaboration with white people never resembled Louis Armstrong-type "Uncle Tom Syndrome" - not that Hendrix was not servile, but on the contrary, he always had a slightly arrogant attitude on stage, some would say "macho ". He acted like someone who realized something his white audience didn't. He learned about universal music that knows and does not recognize borders - neither racial nor national. As Murray lucidly noted, America's "black" population has its counterparts in "white" music - its classical music is jazz, church is gospel, folk is blues, and pop music is soul and R&B, with "black" pop coming primarily from the gospel. Hendrix, as can be clearly seen from the sixth, seventh and eighth chapters of the book, "doctored" all those forms (except gospel, at least not directly). His roots lie in the blues, this is clear to anyone who has heard his music, but in the first, non-authorial part of his career, he "doctored" soul and R&B by working in the supporting groups of the most eminent performers of that style of music (The Isley Brothers, Little Richard, Curtis Knight ...). He had the intention of getting more serious with jazz (the sessions with Miles Davis and Gil Evans never materialized), but he was prevented by his premature death, although it can be said that his music (especially that performed at concerts) has elements of jazz in a broader sense. , if we identify jazz with improvisation. It is no accident that Charles Shaar Murray devoted several pages to free jazz and Ornette Coleman. Both Davis and especially Evans spoke with respect about his potential in that field, regardless of the fact that they did not really care about self-taught people who do not know music theory, which includes Hendrix. Gil Evans with his big band even recorded a live album with Hendrix's music as a kind of tribute to Hendrix, and Miles also paid tribute to him in a way with the albums "Jack Johnson" (1971) and "Agharta" (1976) which contained music that Hendrix's music was an inspiration.

Murray's book has eight chapters, the topics of which I have more or less covered in my review, plus a very short last one, which was added to the 2012 edition of this book. It tells the story of the book's author visiting a large record store and trying to find a Ray Charles record. He searched all the genres Charles was involved in in his career, and practically "invented" some of them - jazz and soul and blues and R&B, even pop - his records were nowhere to be found. When he asked the salesman for help, he directed him to the "easy listening music" section. He found Hendrix in the "heavy metal" section. The harsh laws of the market have reduced significant authors who marked their epochs to banal (and inaccurate) labels. Perhaps that is why Murray should have reserved the final chapter for Hendrix's legacy - how and to what extent his work influenced the development of music. He spoke about it indirectly, through a fictitious interview with Hendrix conducted around 2000, based on the assumption that Hendrix survived the overdose. I have to admit that that part of the book is not my favorite, because it all boils down to rather predictable "what if" assumptions. For musicians, the appendix that talks about Hendrix's guitars, amplifiers and other equipment will be more interesting, and for me personally, the "Bibliography" with a list of a large number of books about Hendrix and other authors mentioned in the book. There are also "Videoography" and "Discography", which from today's perspective is quite sparse, because from 1989 until today a lot of new material was released, although there was nothing essential in those recent releases.
Fortunately, there are no speculations like the CIA killed him, various conspiracy theories, fights between ex-girlfriends and friends in the book. You will find that elsewhere. You won't find such a high-quality cause-and-effect analysis of Hendrix's era and his character and work anywhere else!
(Translated from Serbian with Google translate)

[Paul Cowdell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wide-ranging and brilliant attempt to locate Hendrix and his genius in the web of musical, social, racial history.

This isn't to say the book's perfect - some of the arguments don't quite work, and the appendices feel (in one case) whimsical or (in the other) just not quite to cut it - but CSM is the perfect guide. There's something heroic and quixotic about his writing that is irresistible (and eminently quotable - he's bending your ear, certainly, but it's highly entertaining).

He's informed, he's clever, and his take on things is always worth reading, even if you don't agree with it. His intelligent writing always has a frenetic passion and wit, but (unlike some of the rock scribes of that generation) he never becomes pompous, portentous or self-important. It's difficult to think of many other writers who could fulminate at such length while still keeping their prose taut.

CSM's best quality as a writer is his reflexivity and self-awareness. He's a merciless skewer of pretensions and stupidity - /including, unfailingly, his own/ - without ever losing sight of the need for passionate enthusiasm. He champions the reasons for his passion without allowing it to crush his critical faculties. The result is an achievement like this.

[Jennifer Ozawa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Should really be titled “Jimi Hendrix and post-war music nobody listens to”. Interesting only to jazz nerds and music snobs.

[Niklas Braun · Rating 2 out of 5]

It had some interesting things in it. There were long, passionate thoughts from the author on the historical issues of race and music, soul and jazz influences, what rock is and where it's from, how white people influenced Jimi Hendrix's fame, etc. I didn't really like it, however, because it often strayed into unconvincing, rambling territory. Not to mention that there was not that much on Hendrix! I was trying to find a good biography on him, but it just doesn't cut it.

[Adrian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn’t even get through the first chapter. I thought it was a biography of Jimi Hendrix but it’s actually a super annoying, ‘splainy history of rock and roll that’s written in the most boring style ever.

[Malcolm Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have seen one sniffy review here who made no allowance for the fact that the book was written in 1989, when vinyl still outsold CD's and therefore that was why a lot of the music recommendations seem 'out of date' by the standards of modern CD releases and downloads that have become the norm since.

If that person had said 'use the fourteen pages or so of lists of artists and albums at the back as material for making youtube playlists' then the sneer would have gone out what they said in an instant. Alas, even with the help of Charles Shaar Murray any youtube interrogation of the Hendrix discography would be harder to do than it suggests it should be; we are now in the age of boxed sets of full recordings of gigs, and alternate studio takes by Hendrix with both band of Gypsies and the Jimi Hendrix Experience, so the the discography at the back is less than useful even as a guide for using youtube-but try that anyway.

I used to be a fan of Mr Murray when he was star reviewer for the NME, I remember the seriousness with which searched David Bowie's 'Low' album in Jan '77 and over-misread the album by several country miles, but it was still brilliant writing. I read this book the way somebody would go to a bar to hear a raconteur speak, for the sheer flow of words and facts that they let fly as they speak. I enjoyed how much the book was a survey of the grand sweep of different types of popular music as they presented themselves in 1989.

Some people want all the facts neatly laid out on a late for them. I was happy for the facts to be messy, and the prose scattershot. What I was impressed with most was how often the literate expert on Hendrix that Murray turned to was Robert Wyatt, who in the back of the book is the second most listed source/subject after Hendrix himself. I have a fair amount of time and patience for Robert Wyatt who I see as as a most intelligent, not-quite retired, musician who chooses his projects carefully.

The introduction itself is dynamic argument again nostalgia and pickling memories until they become comforting falsehoods. That the life of Jim Hendrix can be summed up in three tight chapters accurately echoes how he lived; he was not a person for hanging around. He spent four years backing other musicians where often as not he got sacked for being unable to submit to the tight 'show band' discipline, and another four years as a star, whether he was famous or not yet famous. In the four years fronting his Experience he never stopped recording or playing live. And still he showed few signs of being tired in that four years, such that the reader can only wonder at the drug intake he must have required to maintain such a hectic schedule. Hendrix was not the first to get caught on contractual difficulties with his management. The Everly Brothers and John Lennon did the same before him. The difference between those acts and Hendrix was that the latter left far more a legacy behind amid contractual difficulties than ever he could have imagined he was leaving. He did not even imagine that he was leaving when actually he was.

The author here could easily have written much more about all the incomplete studio work that Hendrix left behind, and written in much more detail about the Electric Lady Studio, that Hendrix planned to use as his base for further recordings.

The other five chapters of the book are solid surveys of the music that was being made and broadcast around the time of Hendrix growing up and after, a chapter each covering rural blues, jazz, modern jazz, and the sprawling white male heavy rock scene that took up and trampled on everything that Hendrix intuited so lightly, and made it so leaden that that heavy rock became genre and a teen male fantasy world all of it's own.

Charles Shaar Murray comes down hard against the white teenage 'she done me wrong' blues that clogged up the music business in the 1970's for it's lack of light and shade and lack of humour and the author can do that because he can, and does, point to the light and shade, and humour, in the work that Hendrix released in his lifetime.

A subject like Hendrix will always leave the reader feeling that the ending was wrong, and that there should have been more to his life. The manner of his death was a shock to everyone, both in it's quiet mediocrity and what it put an end to. His death left so many loose ends that over fifty years and countless law suits and revisions and overhauls of his career since still won't neatly tie themselves up.

In the mess of his life and death there is a vibrancy that ensures Hendrix will still be read about and listened to. That is why this book is still worth reading.

[Neil Kernohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is by far a better book about Jimi Hendrix than most other biographies and hagiographies on the market. Murray is a superb rock critic and writer and here he examines in some depth the musical and cultural influences on Hendrix the artist - jazz, soul and blues - as well as the cultural and technological revolutions that helped shape the 1960s as the most significant decade in the history of popular music. In a series of well argued and very informative chapters he explains how Hendrix went from talented session man to godfather of psychedelic rock guitar in the space of 4 years and how his musical sensibilities originated in the Delta and Chicago blues of Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters, the bebop jazz of Charlie Parker and Miles Davis and the soul of Ray Charles and Sly Stone. The book closes with a rather interesting chapter on the development of electric guitars by Gibson and Fender and, for Hendrix fans and collectors, an excellent detailed discography. Here Murray sums up in elegant prose the significance of Hendrix's epoch making rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" at Woodstock in 1969 "..That clear pure tone - somewhere between a trumpet and a high pealing bell - is continually invaded by ghostly rogue overtones; the stately unreeling of the melody derailed by the sounds of riot and war, sirens and screams, chaos and alarm....Hendrix presented a compelling musical allegory of a nation bloodily tearing itself apart, in its own ghettos and campuses, and in a foreign land which had never done anything to harm its tormentors".

[Simon Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful read and presents a compelling argument to view Hendrix in a broader context. Murray does let his feelings on heavy metal colour his judgements and the concluding chapter on Hendrix and jazz is, I think, a stretch too far and pitches something few would really want to hear.

[Jon Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most intelligent and astute books I've read about pop music. It's not a biography: it's a discussion of the meanings, influences, and inspirations of Hendrix' music and place in popular culture.

[Jack Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a bit worried about this as it was originally published in 1989 (revised in 2012) and 1989 is a looong time ago, particularly when considering all kinds of things that might, as it were, raise their heads in a book (mostly) about Hendrix and black musicians more generally. But actually although it would be interesting to see how this would be written now, it was fine. Loads of people were still alive in 1989 as well, who have subsequently died, and Murray spoke to lots of them, so that's a good thing. This is very well researched and there's a lot of stuff about jazz which I might not otherwise have read about, since I wouldn't (probably?) choose to read a book about Miles Davis/Ornette Coleman/Charlie Parker. Loads of stuff about the blues as well, which I'd be more likely to read about anyway what's my point? My point is this is a good all round introduction to what Hendrix's influences were and also what he influenced. No one would talk about the people in 'that stupid club' if they weren't hugely influential, and if their early deaths hadn't robbed us of more good stuff, so there's always an air of melancholy with these things.

[Nicola Paccagnani · Rating 2 out of 5]

“He was, first and foremost, a musician and his entire focus was on being a musician, improving his craft as a musician, express his inner life through his role as a musician and - most fundamentally - being able to make some kind of living as a musician.”

#Migliore che se lo stesso libro fosse stato, per dire, sui Backstreet Boys

#Peggiore di un libro in cui si parli di Jimi Hendrix per almeno una trentina di pagine

#Uguale ad aprire il dizionario a caso cercando un filo conduttore tra le parole

[Meghan Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and rambling. This wasn’t more than 1/5 about Hendrix, but was modern music history from a critic’s perspective. The format is also odd - the first chapter is a lot of philosophy, the second is a factual summary of Hendrix’ life. When the book was 15% in and he was dead, I was confused. Once that’s done, the book starts over earlier again and does more of a deep dive into 20th century music. Worth a read, just know what to expect.

[Robert Hoogstad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Misschien is de benadering van Charles Shaar M mij wel wat te intellectueel. Maar hij kan goed achtergronden en gedrag van mensen schetsen. Leuk zijn in ieder geval de details, dat de bassist geen noten voorgekauwd wilde krijgen, dat dat slaande ruzie gaf. Dat Jimi afwilde van dat hardrock imago. Wij van
Pale Blue Stone doen die nummers ieg nog steeds met veel plezier.

[jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This IS an exceptional book.

[Carole Tyrrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s been over 20 years since I acquired my autographed copy of this and I have written my review on this edition.
This was a fascinating read as it told me so much I didn’t know about Jimi Hendrix. He appeared to have a guitar permanently welded to his body and even slept with it.
Murray describes in detail Hendrix’s pre-fame years on the ‘chittlin circuit’ which was a circuit of exclusively black clubs where a lot of black musicians started out. They paid their dues in this way and Hendrix was always getting fired from bands for his guitar tricks and his playing. He was scuffling around for gigs when Chas Chandler, the manager of the Animals, saw him playing, brought him to England and the rest is History.
At last Hendrix was in the right place at the right time and his career took off into the stratosphere. He formed The Experience with drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding and made his classic album, ‘Are You Experienced?’ with them. t was the summer of love and Hendrix was a handsome, talented dandy. He frightened Eric Clapton who saw him playing and came out shivering. Suddenly he wasn’t God anymore.
Murray portrays Hendrix as a likeable, shy, soft spoken man who was restless and soon frustrated by being forced into the roles of the Wildman of pop, sex magnet and spaceboy. He always had to trot out the hits and his tricks of playing guitar behind his back or setting light to it. It must become less entertaining on the 100th time. Hendrix liked to experiment and was becoming more interested in jazz when he formed Band of Gypsies. This was more freeform jazz and would have been an interesting direction for him to take. Hendrix’s version of ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ at Woodstock
in 1969 still sends shivers down the spine.

By the time of Hendrix’s death in 1971 he was a man embroiled in management problems, an audience who just wanted the hits all the time, and taking sleeping pills to help with insomnia. But the music shines through always.

Murray also links Hendrix’s music with other forms of black music including gospel, r & b, soul and the atmosphere of the ‘60’s with Civil Rights and riots.

Hendrix’s star burned very, very brightly but not for long and this is a biography I would recommend to anyone wanting to know more about the man.
There is a revised and updated edition of this book also available

[Russ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is supposed to be about Jimi Hendrix, but it doesn't have too many pages of information about its subject.

The author's style here is to give a history of different styles and subjects (blues, jazz, soul, etc.), discuss their impact on the culture of the 1960s, and then discuss how Jimi Hendrix fit in. The result is many pages of information about different styles and eras of music and very few mentions of Jimi.

As a music book, this is decent. There are interesting examinations of masculinity in popular music, the myths surrounding Robert Johnson, and developments in blues and jazz. As a Hendrix book, this is very poor.

I think the best chapters are those on blues and soul music. The author clearly connects Jimi to these musical traditions, as they influenced Hendrix and as Hendrix influenced them.

If you're looking for a book mostly about Jimi Hendrix's music, look elsewhere. If you're curious about music in general, this might interest you.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was familiar with Mr Shaar Murray from his numerous "talking head" type appearances on music-related shows with titles like the "Top 100 Rock Albums of all Time" or "We Love Seventies Disco" or "Did You Know, Your Dad Spent The Entire Sixties Out Of His Head Chasing Skirt and Listening to Santana?". I had a very negative view of Mr Murray, in fact I thought he was a pretentious, narcissistic, er, bloke.
I couldn't have been more wrong. This guy is a brilliant writer, a true music enthusiast and unbelievably knowledgeable. I enjoyed this book thoroughly. It's a very easy read and tells rock and roll stories in a thoroughly individual style. Charles Shaar Murray has a familiar tone which made me feel like he's talking directly to me. Whilst he obviously loves his subject, the book is irreverent and very funny. Give it a go.

[Graham Tennyson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a reread for me, actually read the new, updated, Kindle version! When I was but a lad a close friend was upset because I read and was influenced by NME (MM and Sounds) critics. My defence was that I was interested in critics I trusted and Charles Shaar Murray was at the head of that list. Now I'm old and curmudgeonly I still believe a good critic adds to our cultural life. This book is about Hendrix, but it is about so much more - if you are interested in Blues, Blues Rock, Soul and Jazz and Hendrix's position in this mix this book is vital. It covers a lot of ground and CSM is a great guide, he is also very funny. I wish I could write like this.

[Rog Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book to read on a train journey and was not sure what to expect. It is not a biography of Hendrix, though it does give some details of his life, but rather seeks to explain the influences on Hendrix and also the influence Hendrix has had on modern music. It's a fascinating read even if my tastes and the author's tastes are sometimes quite different. At the end the author conducts a what might have been ten page interview with Hendrix as if he had not died in 1970 which gives him the chance to speculate on what Hendrix might have achieved had he lived!

[Tim Brennan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tour de force by Murray. He proposes a range of narrative threads running through Hendrix’s life and work that crack open the stereotype of the virtuosic heavy rock guitarist. The relation to Robert Johnson and voodoo is especially insightful. Not so sure about Prince’s post-Hendrix inheritance. Elsewhere there are times when Murray is overly dismissive of other pre-punk rock sub-genres. A great read!

[Paneagle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Far more than a biography, Crosstown Traffic is exactly what it says it is, a well written education in the history of music and influences which went into the inspired fusion of the Jimi Hendrix Experience and the 1960's rhythm and blues revolution. I thought it one of the best books on music I have ever read.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crosstown Traffic explores the Jimi Hendrix mythos from an Englishman's perspective. This book contains less details on Hendrix life and more on who he played with when, how his music developed and why. Once again a fun read but recommend readers check out other Hendrix biographies for more insight into the man.

[James Rozoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

A unique take on the Jimi Hendrix story. If you read only one book on Jimi Hendrix, this is probably not the one you'll want to pick up. But if you have read one and are looking to pick up another, this should be the one. This book is not complete as far of details, but it gives you good understanding of the world Jimi was born into as well as the one he eventually found himself.

[Evan]

Half-way through this book right now... It's more of an analysis of the evolution of rock (from blues) than a Hendrix biography, and Murray's clearly got a great wealth of knowledge and some fascinating insights. But overall, it's a pretty boring read so I doubt I'll finish it.

[Lanaya · Rating 3 out of 5]

What can I say?! I love music. I tend to keep music related texts around. If you are interested in Jimi era, this text is very interesting. Race, sexuality, etc. I also learned about music groups I'd never been exposed to. Note: This book is not life changing!

[Neil Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just done! One of the best music books I've ever read. CSM writes like a dream and is so knowledgeable of the history of Hendrix, his place in music; all the genres he touched upon; what he was influenced by; what he was an influence on.
Simply a stunning read.

[Bas Vossen · Rating 5 out of 5]

(One of) the most comprehensive and informative books on Jimi Hendrix. In the back are sections with music the author thinks we all have to listen to, in order to understand more about the blues, funk, rock et cetera.

[Maishah]

This book was well written, however is not a biography. If you are looking for a good book on some of Hendrix's influences, this would be the one.

[Kiof · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite music books. I read it a long time ago, though. Might not hold up.

[Rhianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

didn't take much for me to love this. a powerful insight into one of the greatest guitar heroes that ever lived.