Valleys of Neptune (song)
Encyclopedia
"Valleys of Neptune" is a song by American rock
musician Jimi Hendrix
, featured on his 2010 posthumous studio album Valleys of Neptune
. Written and produced by Hendrix, the song was originally recorded between 1969 and 1970, and was released on March 8, 2010.
The song is featured as downloadable content in the video game, Rock Band
, as a playable single. The song was released alongside his album, Axis: Bold as Love
, on the week of March 30th, 2010.
in London on February 22 & 26, 1969 – three takes on guitar and piano and one take on guitar, respectively. Hendrix wrote the lyrics for the song under the title of "Valleys of Neptune... Arising" on June 7, 1969 while staying at the Beverly Rodeo Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Bassist Noel Redding
left The Jimi Hendrix Experience
following a show on June 26, 1969 in Denver, Colorado, at which point Hendrix began to form a new band to continue work on his new compositions.
Hendrix wanted to play the song as the encore at Woodstock but could not remember the words. This can be heard just before the band go into Hey Joe on the album Live at Woodstock.
During and following the formation of The Jimi Hendrix Experience
successor Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, "Valleys of Neptune" began to take more shape, and the first full-band recording of the song took place on September 6, 1969 at The Hit Factory
in New York City.
A few weeks later, on September 23, 1969, the first master recording
of "Valleys of Neptune" was recorded at New York City's Record Plant Studios
with bassist Billy Cox
, drummer Mitch Mitchell
(later stated by Hendrix and his management as the Experience in 1970) and percussionist Juma Sultan
, in addition to seven instrumental takes of the track. Another full take was completed a week later, featuring Hendrix on bass with Stephen Stills
on guitar and piano, John Sebastian
on guitar and Buddy Miles
on drums.
Gypsy Sun and Rainbows broke up in late 1969, and the Band of Gypsys was formed with bassist Cox and drummer Miles. The band recorded rough takes of the song on January 21, 1970 at the Record Plant, but ultimately the song was left to the Mitchell/Cox rhythm section of the reformed Experience to complete later in the year. An instrumental take on May 15, 1970 provided the musical master track, and the track featured on the 2010 album was completed. Further recordings took place on June 15, 1970 (with keyboardist Steve Winwood
, flute player Chris Wood
, drummer Dave Palmer and an unknown bassist), June 16, June 25 (with Juma Sultan
), and June 26, 1970 (15 takes). Hendrix died in September 1970, ultimately without completing "Valleys of Neptune" to his satisfaction.
for "Valleys of Neptune", produced by String Theory Design, is centered around a 1957 painting by Hendrix used as the cover for the single, and debuted on AOL
's Spinner.com
on February 18, 2010.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
musician Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, featured on his 2010 posthumous studio album Valleys of Neptune
Valleys of Neptune
-Recording details:All recording details are included in the Valleys of Neptune booklet, except for the Target tracks, which are listed on the inside of the Digipack behind the CD.Target bonus tracks-Album artwork:...
. Written and produced by Hendrix, the song was originally recorded between 1969 and 1970, and was released on March 8, 2010.
The song is featured as downloadable content in the video game, Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
, as a playable single. The song was released alongside his album, Axis: Bold as Love
Axis: Bold as Love
Axis: Bold as Love is the second studio album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Under pressure from their record company to follow-up the successful debut of their May 1967 album Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love was released on Track Records in the UK in December 1967...
, on the week of March 30th, 2010.
Composition and recording
Hendrix began work on the musical composition for "Valleys of Neptune", under the title of "Gypsy Blood", in February 1969, with the first recordings taking place at Olympic Sound StudiosOlympic Studios
Olympic Studios was a renowned independent commercial recording studio located at 117 Church Road, Barnes, South West London, England. The studio is best known for the huge number of famous rock and pop recordings made there from the late 1960s onward....
in London on February 22 & 26, 1969 – three takes on guitar and piano and one take on guitar, respectively. Hendrix wrote the lyrics for the song under the title of "Valleys of Neptune... Arising" on June 7, 1969 while staying at the Beverly Rodeo Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Bassist Noel Redding
Noel Redding
Noel Redding was an English rock and roll guitarist best known as the bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Biography:...
left The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Jimi Hendrix Experience were an English-American psychedelic rock band that formed in London in October 1966. Comprising eponymous singer-songwriter and guitarist Jimi Hendrix, bassist and backing vocalist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, the band was active until June 1969, in which...
following a show on June 26, 1969 in Denver, Colorado, at which point Hendrix began to form a new band to continue work on his new compositions.
Hendrix wanted to play the song as the encore at Woodstock but could not remember the words. This can be heard just before the band go into Hey Joe on the album Live at Woodstock.
During and following the formation of The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Jimi Hendrix Experience were an English-American psychedelic rock band that formed in London in October 1966. Comprising eponymous singer-songwriter and guitarist Jimi Hendrix, bassist and backing vocalist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, the band was active until June 1969, in which...
successor Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, "Valleys of Neptune" began to take more shape, and the first full-band recording of the song took place on September 6, 1969 at The Hit Factory
The Hit Factory
The Hit Factory was a recording studio in New York City famous for its clientele. It was officially closed for business April 1, 2005 whereas other Hit Factory studio locations remained open, such as in Miami, Florida.-History:...
in New York City.
A few weeks later, on September 23, 1969, the first master recording
Master recording
A multitrack recording master tape, disk or computer files on which productions are developed for later mixing, is known as the multi-track master, while the tape, disk or computer files holding a mix is called a mixed master.It is standard practice to make a copy of a master recording, known as...
of "Valleys of Neptune" was recorded at New York City's Record Plant Studios
Record Plant Studios
The Record Plant was a series of three famous recording studios which were founded by Gary Kellgren and Chris Stone, beginning in New York City in 1968. The next year, Kellgren and Stone opened a second studio in Los Angeles. In 1972, the company expanded again with a third location in Sausalito,...
with bassist Billy Cox
Billy Cox
William "Billy" Cox is an American bassist, best known for performing with Jimi Hendrix.-Early years:Born in Wheeling, West Virginia, Cox was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended Schenley High School. He first met Jimi Hendrix in the early 1960s, when they were both in the United States...
, drummer Mitch Mitchell
Mitch Mitchell
John Ronald "Mitch" Mitchell was an English drummer, best known for his work in The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Early life and the Jimi Hendrix Experience:...
(later stated by Hendrix and his management as the Experience in 1970) and percussionist Juma Sultan
Juma Sultan
Juma Sultan is an American percussionist best known for his brief stint playing with rock legend Jimi Hendrix....
, in addition to seven instrumental takes of the track. Another full take was completed a week later, featuring Hendrix on bass with Stephen Stills
Stephen Stills
Stephen Arthur Stills is an American guitarist and singer/songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills & Nash . He has performed on a professional level in several other bands as well as maintaining a solo career at the same time...
on guitar and piano, John Sebastian
John Sebastian
John Benson Sebastian Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and autoharpist. He is best known as a founder of The Lovin' Spoonful, a band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000...
on guitar and Buddy Miles
Buddy Miles
George Allen Miles, Jr. , known as Buddy Miles, was an American rock and funk drummer, most known as a founding member of The Electric Flag in 1967, then as a member of Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys from 1969 through to January 1970.-Early life:George Allen Miles was born in Omaha, Nebraska on...
on drums.
Gypsy Sun and Rainbows broke up in late 1969, and the Band of Gypsys was formed with bassist Cox and drummer Miles. The band recorded rough takes of the song on January 21, 1970 at the Record Plant, but ultimately the song was left to the Mitchell/Cox rhythm section of the reformed Experience to complete later in the year. An instrumental take on May 15, 1970 provided the musical master track, and the track featured on the 2010 album was completed. Further recordings took place on June 15, 1970 (with keyboardist Steve Winwood
Steve Winwood
Stephen Lawrence "Steve" Winwood is an English international recording artist whose career spans nearly 50 years. He is a songwriter and a musician whose genres include soul music , R&B, rock, blues-rock, pop-rock, and jazz...
, flute player Chris Wood
Chris Wood (rock musician)
Christopher Gordon Blandford 'Chris' Wood was a founding member of the English rock band Traffic, along with Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, and Dave Mason....
, drummer Dave Palmer and an unknown bassist), June 16, June 25 (with Juma Sultan
Juma Sultan
Juma Sultan is an American percussionist best known for his brief stint playing with rock legend Jimi Hendrix....
), and June 26, 1970 (15 takes). Hendrix died in September 1970, ultimately without completing "Valleys of Neptune" to his satisfaction.
Music video
The music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Valleys of Neptune", produced by String Theory Design, is centered around a 1957 painting by Hendrix used as the cover for the single, and debuted on AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
's Spinner.com
Spinner.com
Spinner is an AOL Music property, which bills itself as "the ultimate music blog for free MP3s, free CD listening, [and] discovering new artists."...
on February 18, 2010.
Personnel
- Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s, productionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Billy CoxBilly CoxWilliam "Billy" Cox is an American bassist, best known for performing with Jimi Hendrix.-Early years:Born in Wheeling, West Virginia, Cox was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended Schenley High School. He first met Jimi Hendrix in the early 1960s, when they were both in the United States...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Mitch MitchellMitch MitchellJohn Ronald "Mitch" Mitchell was an English drummer, best known for his work in The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Early life and the Jimi Hendrix Experience:...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Juma SultanJuma SultanJuma Sultan is an American percussionist best known for his brief stint playing with rock legend Jimi Hendrix....
– percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...