Axis: Bold as Love

Guitar doesn't get much better than this.

Timeless

This is Hendrix at his most hippie dippie and, honestly, I love it.

I’m at a 10.

It’s not quite as “dazzling” as “Electric Ladyland” or “Are You Experienced” from an instrumental standpoint, but still mesmerizingly strong. I suspect the reason this has a 3.77 on the site as opposed to the other Hendrix albums is the lack of utterly mental guitar solos that feel lightyears ahead, or at least, not as many of them as one would hope for. Sure, I’d hope for them too, but this album makes up for it by balancing out the instrumentation more equally & giving just a little bit more attention to the lyrics / vocals. This album is meant to evoke a dreamier atmosphere, hence all of the ‘floating’ imagery & the vivid descriptions that are made to capture love in its most potent form. It’s less about the actions that get you there (though Jimi does seem almost as horny as Prince on a few tracks), but more about the feelings you experience. An axis is the line that everything centers around, & this album is Jimi’s attempt to capture that exact center, including its highest highs & the woeful lows that can emerge from ever feeling love to begin with. Even a track like “If 6 Was 9” qualifies as one affected by love; if the world were to ever turn upside-down on its head, Jimi’s going to stay the same, and you’ll have to accept him for exactly who he is. It’s love that’s meant to reflect from the listener back to him, and one YOU’LL be forced to accept even as the times possibly change around him.

I have very few nitpicks here; maybe some slight overuse of the panning trick production-wise (though I’ll easily forgive it for 1967) & maybe just a little unbalanced in terms of the actual flow of the album from track to track (“You Got Me Floatin’” feels a little odd between “If 6 Was 9” & “Castles Made of Sand”, theming-wise), but all in all, it’s just a tight as hell 40 minutes that doesn’t waste a single second. Yes, it is the least technically impressive of the 3 albums Jimi Hendrix has here, but I think showcasing that versatility is important to understanding the scope of Jimi’s overall work. The only Hendrix track I knew going into this entire 1001 Albums thing was “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”, so between all 40-ish tracks between the 3 albums here, I’m just blown away by the impact he made in such a short time. As far as this goes, it’s just a great blend of relaxed songwriting, eclectic instrumentation peppered with pulsing percussion, & Hendrix’s more atmospheric guitar work to create an album that does loosely feel like an axis of love. It’s a 10.

Jimi Hendrix should be 83 years old right now. It’s a shame he didn’t give us more, but damn, I LOVE what he was able to give.

I had Pink Floyd the day before yesterday. Both 1967. Both classified as 'Psychadelic Rock' on the 'must pigeonhole everything' chart. Absolute fucking chalk and cheese. No - not chalk and cheese, more like shit and gold. 

This album is everything the Pink Floyd offering is not. It's a masterpiece of the genre. Of course the guitar speaks for itself. But a word about the drumming. Fabulous. A guy called Mitch Mitchell. Reminded me a little of Keith Moon. That good. Am I so green that I'd never heard of him? Wow.

As an album It's not perfect (a couple of tracks I found a little lazy and boring You Got Me Floating. If 6 were 9) But it's pretty damn good.

A lot of short songs showcasing different styles of music packaged under Jimi's singing guitar. Genres range from soul to experimental to straight-up heavy psychedelic. The end result is that it doesn't sound as tight as his debut, which I found more cohesive (3.5).

This album really didn't do anything for me. The singing is subpar. She's So Fine was probably my favorite song. The drums on that track are out of this world. Now, of course the best part of this album should be the guitar. It was good. I wasn't blown away at any point though. Some solid riffs. Might be crazy to say, idk. This is the first Jimi Hendrix album I've had, so maybe the others will show me what I missed here.

4/5. This is probably the most overlooked of the three Jimi Hendrix Experience albums. Which is no fault of its own, it’s sandwiched in-between “are you experienced” and “electric ladyland” which are two monumental albums. But this one is still extremely good as well. Some of the best psych rock you could ask for in the ‘60s.

Déjà écouté.

La collision, toutes guitares dressées, entre hard rock cosmique, rhythm & blues déstructuré et expérimentations psychédéliques. Ça devrait être un sacré bordel, et ça l'est un peu, mais c'est surtout un chef-d'œuvre strident et funky, grâce aux génie d'Hendrix et de ses deux bandmates. Et dire que l'album à près de 60 ans...

Top : If 6 Was 9
Flop : EXP

No skips, greatest album oat

As I was saying in the review for Electric Ladyland, I am a fan of Hendrix, I am also a guitar player and also born on 27th of November like him. I like this album more than Electric Ladyland. I like that this one is bluesy, groovy, fun and not too long like Electric. Very good songs and great album experience. However, I don't like it as much as Are You Experienced. That one is the best. So this is a 4 for me.

Great album, I think it might actually be better than electric ladyland due its conciseness. Also little wing is a contender for greatest song ever.

Best hendrix album probably

Favorite track(s): Spanish Castle Magic, Ain't No Telling, Little Wing, If 6 Was 9, You Got Me Floatin', Castles Made of Sand, Bold as Love

Probably the least talked about of the Experience albums but it's Jimi all the same.

Heard before
Previous rating: 9/10

Man, it's pretty amazing how full of a sound Jimi was getting back during a time when a lot of psychedelic music was thin and tinny as hell.
I normally rail against psychedelic rock, but here it works because of the great production and the general energy he has going here. Also helps the song writing is top notch and Mitch Mitchell's amazing drumming.

Entire album of great songs. Spanish Castle Magic, Little Wing, If 6 Was 9, Castles Made of Sand, Bold as Love, etc. etc. etc.

Classic.

Finally, we get Jimi and looks like, not surprisingly, all 3 studio albums are on this list - as they should be! All 3 could really go for 5 stars, but for me Axis was always a touch weaker than other 2. However, I can see I could not decide and rated all three at 4.5/5.0 on RYM. Possibly, I will rate this as 4 and then other 2 as 5, or if I give this one 4 I might reduce one of the other two. This is a touch one for some reason. P.S. I keep spinning this on repeat today and really this is such an enjoyable and great record through and through I added couple more songs into my Jimi playlist and started really liking a couple of more, so I will after all, give this one 5 stars I think.

I love this album so much. Jimbo is the mf man. So innovative and forward thinking, crazy it came out almost 60 years ago it hold up so well. Love the mix between beautiful guitar work and the points where it almost devolves into pure noise but still works. This album makes me feel all the emotions, it’s fun, makes me happy, sad, pumped up, relaxed it demands my full attention when I put it on.

Cool. Could have done with a couple more bangers.

What else can you really say about Jimi Hendrix? He was simply the best to ever touch a guitar, and 𝘈𝘹𝘪𝘴: 𝘉𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 is another reminder of how effortlessly he could bend sound into something expressive, fluid, and otherworldly. The songs here are warmer and more melodic than you might expect, but the playing remains unreal — full of color, imagination, and emotional precision. Even when the album drifts into its quieter or stranger corners, Hendrix’s presence holds everything together. It may not redefine him, but it absolutely reinforces why he stands alone.

YES