Tired of London, Tired of Life - A website about things to do in London

***

***

For more regular updates, visit Tom's Britain, a new website about things to do in Britain.


***

9 February 2009

Spot Jimi Hendrix's flat

An American by birth, Hendrix made London his home and it was here that he built his career. During the late 60s London was as fashionable as it has ever been and Jimi, having just returned from finally conquering America, moved into a flat at 23 Brook Street, right at the heart of the London music scene, next door to the former home of the composer George Frideric Handel, and close to music venues such as the Marquee, the Speakeasy and the Saville.


Here he spent a few months of 1968-9, in between a punishing tour schedule, soaking up local bands and generally living the rock and roll dream.

It wasn't here that Hendrix died, however. This occurred a year of so later when, in early morning of September 18, 1970 he was found dead in a flat in the basement of the Samarkand Hotel at 22 Lansdowne Crescent in West London, and was rushed to nearby Kensington Hospital, where he was pronounced dead just after midday.

For more information you could look at Westminster City Council's Black History Month leaflet, or the Jimi Hendrix Page on Wikipedia.

^Picture from Wikipedia under Wikimedia Commons^

2 comments:

  1. It's said that Hendrix was intrigued to discover that Handel used to live next door, and went out and bought an LP of Messiah. I'm not sure I can trace any musical influence though!

    ReplyDelete
  2. For lots more information on this site and a phenomenal number of others check out the book on Jimi's London by Jim Press. It's a shame that so many landmarks are gone for ever but equally surprising that so many are still there.

    ReplyDelete