Wait Until Tomorrow
Encyclopedia
"Wait Until Tomorrow" is a song by English/American psychedelic rock
band The Jimi Hendrix Experience
, featured on their 1967 second album Axis: Bold as Love
. Written by lead vocalist and guitarist Jimi Hendrix
, the song details the scenario of a male protagonist addressing his female love with whom he plans to leave home, only to be shot dead by her father. Despite not being released as a single, "Wait Until Tomorrow" has been recognised as one of the strongest songs on the album.
artists such as The Isley Brothers
(with whom Hendrix performed before forming The Experience) and stylistically similar to guitarist Steve Cropper
. A "head-on boy–girl song," "Wait Until Tomorrow" was one of the final songs recorded for the album on October 26, 1967, before the album was completed with the recording of title track "Bold as Love
" three days later. In a review for music website allmusic, Matthew Greenwald described the progression and style of the song thus:
describes it as a "taut, funky, could've-been-hit." In reviewing the album for the BBC
, Chris Jones summarised "Wait Until Tomorrow" as "a wry, funky little tale," while Sputnikmusic
reviewer "Broken Arrow" had the following to say about the song:
Additional personnel
band the John Mayer Trio
have performed "Wait Until Tomorrow" a number of times, with live performances featured on their 2005 live album Try! and lead vocalist and guitarist John Mayer
's 2008 live album Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles.
Brazilian musicians and social activists Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso covered "Wait Until Tomorrow" on their 1994 CD, Tropicalia 2. Gil's & Veloso's adaptation takes the song outside it's original timing and puts it into Brazilian rhythm. While the lyrical spirit of the song is consistent with the original, Gil's & Veloso's history of activism in Brazil adds a social element to the personal "situation song" style that Hendrix was experimenting with in his writing at the time. See Wikipedia entries for Gilberto Gil (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilberto_Gil) and Caetano Veloso (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caetano_Veloso) for additional references.
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
band 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...
, featured on their 1967 second 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...
. Written by lead vocalist and guitarist Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, the song details the scenario of a male protagonist addressing his female love with whom he plans to leave home, only to be shot dead by her father. Despite not being released as a single, "Wait Until Tomorrow" has been recognised as one of the strongest songs on the album.
Background and style
"Wait Until Tomorrow" was one of the first "situation song[s]" written by Hendrix and is said to be influenced by soulSoul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
artists such as The Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers are a highly influential, successful and long-running American music group consisting of different line-ups of six brothers, and a brother-in-law, Chris Jasper...
(with whom Hendrix performed before forming The Experience) and stylistically similar to guitarist Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper , also known as Steve "The Colonel" Cropper, is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T...
. A "head-on boy–girl song," "Wait Until Tomorrow" was one of the final songs recorded for the album on October 26, 1967, before the album was completed with the recording of title track "Bold as Love
Bold as Love (song)
"Bold as Love" is a song by Jimi Hendrix, the final song and title track of the Jimi Hendrix Experience's 1967 album Axis: Bold as Love.-Recording:...
" three days later. In a review for music website allmusic, Matthew Greenwald described the progression and style of the song thus:
Reception
Reviews of Axis: Bold as Love have generally mentioned "Wait Until Tomorrow" in a positive light. Matthew Greenwald of allmusic identifies the "playful song" as "one of the low-key highlights" of the album, while Parke Puterbaugh of music magazine Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
describes it as a "taut, funky, could've-been-hit." In reviewing the album for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, Chris Jones summarised "Wait Until Tomorrow" as "a wry, funky little tale," while Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic, or simply Sputnik, is a music website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites...
reviewer "Broken Arrow" had the following to say about the song:
Personnel
The Jimi Hendrix Experience- Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
– lead vocalsLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
, 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 - Noel ReddingNoel ReddingNoel Redding was an English rock and roll guitarist best known as the bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Biography:...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... - 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 ....
, tambourineTambourineThe tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
, backing vocals
Additional personnel
- Chas ChandlerChas ChandlerBryan James "Chas" Chandler was an English musician, record producer and manager of several successful music acts....
– 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... - Eddie KramerEddie KramerEdwin H. Kramer is an audio engineer and producer who has worked with, among others, Led Zeppelin, Triumph, Kiss , Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Spooky Tooth, Peter Frampton, Curtis Mayfield, Santana, Anthrax, Carly Simon, Loudness, and Robin Trower.-1960s:Eddie...
– engineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
Cover versions
American blues-rockBlues-rock
Blues rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, piano, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a...
band the John Mayer Trio
John Mayer Trio
In February 2005, the trio played Mayer's single "Daughters" at the 47th Grammy Awards, for which Mayer went on to win the award for Best Male Vocal Performance later that night . The Trio released "Come When I Call" exclusively to iTunes...
have performed "Wait Until Tomorrow" a number of times, with live performances featured on their 2005 live album Try! and lead vocalist and guitarist John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
's 2008 live album Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles.
Brazilian musicians and social activists Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso covered "Wait Until Tomorrow" on their 1994 CD, Tropicalia 2. Gil's & Veloso's adaptation takes the song outside it's original timing and puts it into Brazilian rhythm. While the lyrical spirit of the song is consistent with the original, Gil's & Veloso's history of activism in Brazil adds a social element to the personal "situation song" style that Hendrix was experimenting with in his writing at the time. See Wikipedia entries for Gilberto Gil (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilberto_Gil) and Caetano Veloso (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caetano_Veloso) for additional references.