Nobody Cages Me

By Corey Washington

Jimi Hendrix is primarily looked at as a Rock musician, which is fine, but he is much more. From his seminal beginnings on the R&B chitlin circuit to his whirlwind international fame, Jimi Hendrix took from all sources musically. The consummate musician, Jimi was looking for any and every opportunity to jam with like-minded musicians, who did not want to be caged by musical categories. Almost by chance, Jimi was involved in two pioneering performances that launched two genres, that would dominate the African-American music scene for multiple decades (1970spresent). These genres are P-Funk and Hip-Hop!

This is not a Jimi Hendrix biography, because that has already been done multiple times. Nobody Cages Me! is told from the perspective of a young African-American male, who had to discover Hendrix on his own. It took the popular wrestler Hulk Hogan to connect the author with Jimi Hendrix. The authors journey to Hendrix is a unique story in of itself.


About the Author
Corey Washington is an Educator/Author/Blogger/Journalist from Augusta, Georgia. He is also the author of Plain Talk volumes 1 and 2 (a two part series designed to promote cultural diversity and awareness). He holds both a bachelors and masters degree in Middle Grades Education from Augusta State University. Born in New York City during the twilight of Disco and the dawn of Hip-Hop(1976), the author did not discover Jimi Hendrix until 1997. Since then, he has studied and listened to every Hendrix recording and book that he could get his hands on. He hopes Nobody Cages Me! will get some people to see beyond the parameters of traditional "White" and "Black" music.

Nobody Cages Me official website

Plain Talk Volume 1 official website

link to Plain Talk Volume 2

link to article on examiner.com

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 27, 2010
• ISBN: 9781453568842

Corey Washington

The author, Corey Washington is a middle school social studies teacher currently teaching at Tutt middle school in Richmond County, Augusta, Georgia. He holds both a bachelor and master's degree in Middle Grades Education from Augusta State University. Born in New York City in 1976, Corey has grown up in a cultural/racial melting pot. In the mid-1980s, he moved to Aiken, South Carolina in the fifth grade. Ever since 1992, he has lived in Augusta, Georgia and considers it a perfect fit. His love for history has spurred his love for writing. Other hobbies include: playing and watching basketball, tennis and baseball, fishing, and above all reading the Bible every day.

Book preview

Contents

This Book is dedicated to:

Also In Memorandum:

Introduction

Roadblock or Motivation?

book proposal by

Corey Washington, MEd

Rejection Letter

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Acknowledgments

Afterword

Works Cited

Soul isn’t adventurous enough. It’s just the one same thing. What I hate is society trying to put everything and everybody into little tight cellophane compartments . . . . They don’t get me in any cellophane cage. Nobody cages me.

                                                         —Jimi Hendrix

This Book is dedicated to:

The other J.H.—The most intelligent, beautiful (inside and out),

focused person I know. (other than my mom of course!)

Also In Memorandum:

Jimi Hendrix—Sept. 18th, 1970

James Brown—December 25th, 2006

Buddy Miles—February 26th, 2008

Eddie Hazel—December 23rd, 1992

Gary Shider—June 16th, 2010

Catfish Collins—August 6th, 2010

The Please stick around for awhile club:

Billy Cox

George Clinton

Bootsy Collins

Introduction

Oftentimes, Jimi Hendrix’s name comes up in a discussion of who’s the greatest guitarist of all time. Or who is better, Hendrix or Prince? Hendrix or Clapton? Hendrix or Townshend? Hendrix or Cobain? Hendrix or Beck? Hendrix or Kravitz? Hendrix or Page? Hendrix or Stevie Ray Vaughan? Hendrix or Santana? Hendrix or Slash? Hendrix or Van Halen? And here’s one that I really hate: Hendrix or Sly? (I refuse to choose!)

There is a big problem with all these comparisons. Jimi Hendrix was much more than a great guitar player. He was also a singer, composer, and stellar songwriter. He served as executive producer of one of the greatest albums of all time, Electric Ladyland. I think it was Pete Townshend who boldly but correctly said that Jimi Hendrix did more for rock and roll than the Beatles. Townshend brought out how Jimi made the guitar an instrument. Jimi was not only a master of feedback, but he was able to push the electrical toys of his day to their limit.

But what distanced Jimi Hendrix from any other guitarist in any genre, including the blues, was the way he was able to fuse all musical genres together to create a unique sound that could not be categorized. I like how the Encyclopædia Britannica put it:

He was a visionary who collapsed the genre boundaries of rock, soul, blues, and jazz.

So to put Hendrix into perspective, you have to take into account his work as an artist, producer, and pioneer. Nobody Cages Me takes it a step further by asserting that Jimi Hendrix was a pivotal player in two of the most dominant genres of African American music after his death on September 18, 1970. On two separate occasions, in what seems to be mere chance, Jimi Hendrix, along with Buddy Miles, laid the seeds for P-Funk and hip-hop. Continue to read Nobody Cages Me to find out more about these two game-changing events.

Roadblock or Motivation?

When I first set out to write this book, I had a pipe dream of working with Experience Hendrix (family company run by Janie Hendrix). I knew that they had all the resources that would make my book the best it could be. They had access to pictures, people, and places that I could never gain entry to on my own. They had a veteran marketing team that would make sure that Hendrix fans the world over would know about my book. I also conceded that I would have to give up a great deal of control if I was to work with Experience Hendrix. That was okay since in this instance the negatives were outweighed by the positives.

I didn’t get my hopes up because I knew that Experience Hendrix is very particular about who they work with. I have heard the horror stories about Janie Hendrix being a control freak. I have read about the nasty court battles among the Hendrix clan. Nevertheless, I decided not to prejudge and to give it a shot.

To make a long story short, they were very cordial in their rejection letter. But the first part of their rejection letter was rather confusing and odd. I had to keep reading my proposal over and over to see if I saw the same thing that they did. I want you, the readers, to decide for yourselves. I am reprinting my original proposal, as well as the rejection letter, in hopes of giving you a clearer picture.

Original Book Proposal

Title no. 1: Jimi Hendrix—The King of Rock and Soul

Title no. 2: Jimi’s Way of Life (Thinking Outside the Box)

Title no. 3: Jimi Hendrix-—Rock’s, R&B’s, Blues’,

Jazz’s, Rap’s Greatest Guitarist

(each of the genres will be scratched through like a person that can’t make up their mind)

Title no. 4: Categorically Challenged

(Programming/Pitching/Selling Hendrix to the Untrained Ear)

book proposal by

Corey Washington, MEd

I must admit, I didn’t always like Jimi Hendrix. How could I? I never really heard of him! I grew up in New York City when disco and rap music were kings. As an inner-city youth, I was never exposed to the most exciting and most versatile musician in the world. I only liked what I was told to like or expected to like. Sadly, this same scenario goes on all around the United States and even the world. That is why I wanted to write a book about Jimi Hendrix that will not only be an interesting read for his hard-core fans, but also properly introduce Jimi Hendrix to those unrealized fans.

This book will challenge conventional thinking and come from an angle that no other Hendrix book has come before. When people pick up this book, I want them to be intrigued by the notion of looking at the talents of Jimi Hendrix outside of its usual prism. Hendrix was a musical genius interested in all forms of music. His goal was to reach as wide an audience as possible. Even though his Harlem concert was one of the few places where he played to a nonrock crowd, I know that Jimi would have sought out other avenues until he reached his goal of a more diverse audience.

There is a huge potential market for this book. Experience Hendrix has a built-in brand name. When you purchase from Experience Hendrix, you know you’re getting top-notch quality. I not only want to market to Jimi’s usual fans, but I also want to reach young people from all walks of life who have yet to truly experience Jimi Hendrix. (No pun intended.) I want to even go to unreached territories of urban music listeners. Little do they know that their favorite singers/rappers already listen to Jimi Hendrix. From my first two books, Plain Talk volume 1 and 2, I have structured my writing style to accommodate adults as well as middle/high school kids. College campuses can also be targeted.

I have already gotten my name out there by appearing on numerous talk / radio shows. These show a span of a wide spectrum of formats like conservative, liberal, hard rock, R&B, etc. I am definitely not afraid to promote this book heavily. I also had in mind an accompanying CD, complete with carefully selected songs that showcase Jimi’s versatile musical tastes: Rainy Day, Dream Away, Who Knows, Mannish Boy, Burning Desire (my personal favorite), Hear My Train a Comin’ (the funky version from the Dick Cavett Show), etc.

I have searched Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Borders, and other venues for similar titles on Jimi Hendrix. Most of these titles fall into the categories of either books about his music in general or biographies told by people who know him. My book is totally different. It is written by an African American male who did not know Hendrix but was influenced tremendously by his music. I am not talking about being influenced as a musician, but rather, being inspired to think outside the box and become more culturally diverse. (This way I can tie in my first two books and cross-promote all three at every opportunity.)

Since this has the potential to be a groundbreaking book, once people find out it is being released by the Hendrix brand, it will attract a great deal of attention. If given the immediate go-ahead on the book, I can focus my efforts around the clock to have a completed manuscript ready for you in time for the fortieth-year anniversary of the untimely death of Jimi Hendrix (September 18, 2010). I remember Jimi every day, but we know that the media loves anniversaries. There will be built-in publicity as the world imagines what could have been. What a great complement this book would be to the remembrance of the legacy of Jimi Hendrix.