September 11, 2023
TV producer Stathakis’s claim that his debut memoir will help “complete all that’s ever been written about Jimi Hendrix” is as unrealistic as the movie plan that brought the two men together. Hendrix and Stathakis met in 1969, when the guitarist sought out the “wannabe filmmaker/writer” to help him write a movie script. Though the project (a Western with instrumental music instead of dialogue) eventually fizzled, it led the author to spend nearly two years in Hendrix’s orbit before his 1970 death. Through accounts of their freewheeling brainstorming sessions and sidelong peeks into the star’s private life, Stathakis portrays Hendrix as shy and humorous, complicating the well-known image of the luminous rock god. His behind-the-scenes commentary on such key cultural events of the era as Hendrix’s performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock adds definite interest. However, the storytelling suffers from abrupt transitions and the author’s biases and odd takes, as when he absolves Hendrix of responsibility for his drug use and instead places blame on two women, Monika Dannemann and Devon Wilson, the latter of whom he dubs “the bitch from hell.” The result is an off-kilter portrait that, despite its colorful insider detail, lacks nuance. This overpromises and underdelivers.