War Heroes
1972 compilation album by Jimi Hendrix
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War Heroes is a compilation album[1] by American guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Released in the UK in October 1972, and in December 1972 in the US, it was the third album of mostly unreleased studio recordings to be issued after Hendrix's death. The album was engineered, mixed and compiled by Eddie Kramer and John Jansen, although biographer and later Hendrix producer John McDermott also identifies Hendrix as a producer.[2]
| War Heroes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | October 1972 | |||
| Recorded | April 1967 – July 1970 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 35:20 | |||
| Label | Polydor (UK) Reprise (US) Barclay (France) | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Jimi Hendrix US chronology | ||||
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| Jimi Hendrix UK chronology | ||||
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War Heroes contains three songs that Hendrix proposed for his fourth studio album: "Stepping Stone", "Izabella", and "Beginnings" (listed as "Beginning"). These and songs from the two 1971 albums, The Cry of Love and Rainbow Bridge, were included on First Rays of the New Rising Sun (1997). War Heroes reached number 23 in the UK Albums Chart, number 48 on the US Billboard 200,[3] and number 51 in Canada.[4]
Reception
Robert Christgau felt that the material was "toward the bottom of the barrel", with tracks like "Peter Gunn" and "3 Little Bears," sounding like "filler", though on the whole "still strong stuff", particularly "the "Highway Chile" riff and the sheer speed of "Steppin' Stone"". He rated the album a B in his scoring system.[5]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B[5] |
Track listing
All tracks written by Jimi Hendrix, except where noted.[7]
| No. | Title | Later release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bleeding Heart" (Elmore James) | South Saturn Delta | 3:15 |
| 2. | "Highway Chile" | Are You Experienced (1997 CD Reissues) | 3:30 |
| 3. | "Tax Free" (Carlsen Hansen (Bo Hansson), Janne Carlsson) | South Saturn Delta | 4:58 |
| 4. | "Peter Gunn" (Henry Mancini) | West Coast Seattle Boy | 2:18 |
| 5. | "Stepping Stone" | First Rays of the New Rising Sun | 4:07 |
| No. | Title | Later release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Midnight" | South Saturn Delta | 5:32 |
| 2. | "3 Little Bears" | Merry Christmas and Happy New Year | 4:09 |
| 3. | "Beginning" (Mitch Mitchell[8]) | First Rays of the New Rising Sun | 4:13 |
| 4. | "Izabella" | First Rays of the New Rising Sun | 2:55 |
Personnel
- Jimi Hendrix – guitars, vocals
- Mitch Mitchell – drums
- Billy Cox – bass guitar on "Bleeding Heart", "Peter Gunn Catastrophe", "Stepping Stone", "Beginning", and "Izabella"
- Noel Redding – bass guitar on "Highway Chile", "Tax Free", "Midnight", and "3 Little Bears"
Recording details
| Track | Location(s) | Recording date(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Track 1 | Record Plant in New York City | March 24, 1970 |
| Track 2 | Olympic Studios in London | April 3, 1967 |
| Track 3 | Record Plant | May 1, 1968 |
| Track 4 | Record Plant | May 14, 1970 |
| Track 5 | Record Plant | November 14, 1969 and on June 26, 1970 (overdubs) |
| Track 6 | Olmstead Studios | April 3, 1969 |
| Track 7 | Record Plant | May 2, 1968 |
| Track 8 | Electric Lady Studios in New York City | June 16 and/or July 1, 1970 |
| Track 9 | The Hit Factory in New York City | August 28 and 29, 1969 |