Festivities include screening of Money, Madness… Jimi Hendrix in Maui and more
The City of London is honoring Jimi Hendrix with a prestigious Blue Plaque, to be located at the Hard Rock Hotel in Marble Arch on June 10th. Experience Hendrix LLC, together with the Hard Rock Hotel London, will unveil this permanent historical marker which commemorates Hendrix’s last London residence, known then as the Cumberland Hotel, before his untimely death in 1970. As part of the festivities, there will be a screening of the documentary Music, Money, Madness… Jimi Hendrix in Maui, which received a Grammy nomination for Best Music Film last year. There will also be an exclusive Q&A with Jimi’s sister Janie Hendrix, his producer/engineer Eddie Kramer, and the film’s director John McDermott.
This new honor is bestowed by the Nubian Jak Community Trust (NJCT). Founded in 2006, NJCT is the only commemorative plaque and sculpture scheme focused on memorializing the historic contributions of Black and minority people of various ethnic origins in Britain and beyond. The NJCT has since installed more than 62 commemorative Blue and Black Plaques throughout the UK, including those celebrating the life and work of Bob Marley. The English Heritage organization which oversees the original Blue Plaque in London, dates to 1866, and celebrates the links between notable figures of the past and the buildings in which they lived and worked, and has similarly celebrated Jimi Hendrix. The first Blue Plaque recognizing Jimi Hendrix was unveiled in 1997 at his 1968-69 Mayfair residence. There is also a Blue Plaque at that same address — 25 Brook Street — commemorating the fact that German-born composer George Frideric Handel lived there from 1723 until his death in 1759. The Hard Rock/Cumberland connection is manifested in the fact that Hendrix wrote song lyrics on the hotel’s stationary that survive to this day and are vaulted in the archives of Experience Hendrix.
With two Blue Plaques, Jimi Hendrix is in rarified company of the few who have their name grace multiple Blue Plaques. These notables include Mahatma Gandhi, Prime Ministers Lord Palmerston and William Gladstone, and author William Makepeace Thackeray.
Directed by John McDermott and produced by Janie Hendrix, George Scott and McDermott, Music, Money, Madness… Jimi Hendrix In Maui incorporates never before released original footage and new interviews with firsthand participants and key players such as bassist Billy Cox, recording engineer Eddie Kramer, Warner Bros. executives and several Rainbow Bridge cast members, as well as its director Chuck Wein. Their fascinating account tells the definitive story about one of the most controversial independent films ever made.
Music, Money, Madness… Jimi Hendrix In Maui was released on Blu-ray, CD and vinyl in November 2020 by Experience Hendrix and Legacy Recordings. The sets contain the complete audio recordings of both July 30, 1970 live performances. Every second of existing concert footage from that day is included on the Blu-ray with the audio newly restored and mixed by longtime Jimi Hendrix engineer Eddie Kramer, and mastered by Bernie Grundman.
