Jimi Hendrix - Catfish Blues

Jimi Hendrix: Catfish Blues | Flying V | Martin Sharp poster |

Jimi Hendrix Experience, Catfish Blues. Duration: 7.24 minutes.

"A demo tape of Jimi alone, quietly sketching Catfish Blues riffs, captures what appears to be a spontaneous evolution of Voodoo Chile out of re-arranged fragments of Catfish Blues..." (Michael J. Fairchild, Notes to Jimi Hendrix: Blues CD, 1994)

1. From catfish to voodoo

One of the earliest songs to feature in the Jimi Hendrix Experience set was the now relatively little known Catfish Blues, presented during 1967-8 as an extended psychedelic blues workout which generally accommodated a Mitch Mitchell drum solo and, more often, lengthy soloing by Hendrix on a Gibson Flying V. The song was regularly performed live in large part through to February 1968, at which point Hendrix dropped it, and the Flying V, in favour of a mix of Voodoo Chile (slight return) / Red House usually - though not always with Red House - played on a Fender Stratocaster. He only occasionally came back to the song, and the Flying V, in 1969 and 1970. 

 

Catfish Blues was never subject to an official studio recording, though numerous live versions have survived, and of varying quality. Some of Hendrix's most psychedelic guitar work can be heard on the versions of Catfish Blues from 1967, reflecting Albert King's comments that he believed Jimi had trouble, when playing the blues, in sticking to the traditional elements of clean and sparse licks. He, of course, had no problems in expressing himself through his guitar whilst under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD, giving rise to intense and extended psychedelic jams around a traditional blues framework.

By the time Jimi arrived in London with Chas Chandler at the end of September 1966 he had a wealth of experience in all forms of electric guitar, from rock 'n roll, through country, blues and even the newly evolving psychedelia, with hallucinogens available in the US from 1965. Though the latter was to come to prominence during those first 18 months of fame - supported and supplemented by the power of the new Marshall amplifiers and speaker stacks and a couple of innovative effects pedals, including wah and fuzz - the blues was always a foundational element of his playing. He tended, though, to steer away from it. In the opinion of this author, whilst Jimi could play the blues, he was not a bluesman, as he did not seem to have the blues - if that makes sense. He was a young man who lived life to the fullest, and fulfilled his dream of playing the guitar and making music. That music happened to be very different from the traditional blues of players such as the Kings - B.B., Albert and Freddie. But with blues forming the foundation of modern rock, it was for this reason that they continued to feature in Hendrix's 'pop' repertoire through the inclusion of songs such as Catfish Blues and Red House, and their evolution into very modern works such as Voodoo Chile.

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2. Origins

Catfish Blues was a traditional Delta blues song, with the line "I wish I was a catfish, swimming down in the sea; I'd have some good woman, fishing after me" first put on record by Jim Jackson within his Kansas City Blues (Part 3) recorded in 1928 (Haymes 2004). A blues song actually called Catfish Blues was released in 1941 by Robert Petway (Mitchell 2011), though it was more upbeat than the later slower, electric blues versions of the similarly named song, and the lyrics varied somewhat.

 Robert Petway, Catfish Blues, 1941. Duration: 3 minutes.

Most versions of Catfish Blues are based around a simple E chord and related guitar fills. It is a relatively simple, slow, driving blues which enables the guitarist to add flourishes throughout. During the early 1950s Muddy Waters played both acoustic and electric versions of Catfish Blues, though he added a new verse and renamed the song Rollin' Stone. The famous English band later took its name from this song.

 Muddy Waters, Rollin' Stone (Catfish Blues), 1950s. Duration: 3.08 minutes.

A variety of versions subsequently appeared, under different artists. One which is very close to the 'modern' version is that by Larry Johnson released in 1959. It includes Muddy Waters' rollin' stone verse and many of the now standard acoustic guitar licks.

Larry Johnson, Catfish Blues, 1959. Duration: 2.36 minutes.

B.B. King's jazzy Fishin' After Me was released in 1960. The Muddy Waters electric version was eventually used and adapted by Hendrix from his earliest days in London, though he maintained the original name. That version - (tablature available here) - eventually morphed into the 14+ minute Voodoo Chile as heard on the Electric Ladyland double LP released in October 1968 and featuring Stevie Winwood on Hammond organ.

The present article details known recorded versions of Catfish Blues by Hendrix - both live in concert and in the studio. The lyrics of the song, as sung by Hendrix around the time of his September 1967 gigs in Europe, are as below.

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3. Catfish Blues - Lyrics

Well I wish, I was a catfish, / Swimming in lord, the deep blue sea. / I'd have all you pretty women, /  Fishin' after me, fishin' after me, / Fishin' after me. Yeah. / Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah.

 

When I went down, [to] my girlfriend's house. / And I sat down, lord, on her front step. / And she said a, come [on] in now Jimi. / My husband just now left, lord he just now left. / And I said Oh yeah, / She said oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah.

 

Well there's two, two trains runnin', / But there's not one, lord, that's goin' my way. / You know there's a one train runnin' at midnight. / The other one leave just for a day, / Leave just for a day. Ohh yeah, ohh yeah, / ohh yeah, ohh yeah.

Hendrix eventually varied elements of the lyrics, adding his own more mystical and poetic set. As noted above, by 2 May 1968 Catfish Blues has largely transformed into the now famous Voodoo Chile, as recorded at the Record Plant in New York City. For all intents and purposes the song, in performance and musically, was the same as Catfish Blues, though the lyrics varied significantly.

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4. Voodoo Chile - Lyrics

Jimi Hendrix wrote a set of autobiographical lyrics which he applied to the music of Catfish Blues. The lyrics of the new song, known as Voodoo Chile, were as follows:

Well, I'm a voodoo chile / Lord, I'm a voodoo chile / Yeah

 

Well, the night I was born / Lord I swear the moon turned a fire red / The night I was born / I swear the moon turned a fire red / Well my poor mother cried out / "Lord, the gypsy was right!" / And I seen her, fell down right dead.

 

Well, mountain lions found me there waitin' / And set me on a eagles back / Well, mountain lions found me there, / And set me on a eagles wing / He took me past to the outskirts of infinity, / And when he brought me back, / He gave me a Venus witch's ring.

 
Hey! / And he said "Fly on, fly on" / Because I'm a voodoo child, yeah, voodoo chile / Hey!

 

Well, I make love to you, / And lord knows you'll feel no pain / Say, I make love to you in your sleep, /
And lord knows you felt no pain / 'Cause I'm a million miles away / And at the same time I'm right / here in your picture frame.

 
'Cause I'm a voodoo chile / Lord knows, I'm a voodoo chile

 

Well my arrows are made of desire / From far away as Jupiter's sulfur mines / Say my arrows are made of desire, desire / From far away as Jupiter's sulfur mines / I have a humming bird and it hums so loud, /
You think you were losing your mind, hmmm...

 
Well I float in liquid gardens / And Arizona new red sand / I float in liquid gardens / Way down in Arizona red sand / Well, I taste the honey from / A flower named Blue, / Way down in California / And then in New York drown as we hold hands

 
'Cause I'm a voodoo chile / Lord knows I'm a voodoo chile / Hey

Both set of lyrics deal with sex, though Hendrix's are uniquely spacey, in regards to science fiction elements such as references to Jupiter's sulfur mines and being a million miles away, and in their general poetic nature. The writing of Voodoo Chile suggests the influence of hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD.

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5. The Hendrix live versions

The following versions of Catfish Blues by the Jimi Hendrix Experience and his other bands were recorded between 1967-1970. Links are provided where available, usually through YouTube, those the availability of these is variable and subject to copyright exclusion. Numerous references to existing recordings are also available on the Bootlegpedia and Early Hendrix websites.

1967

* Flamenco Club, London, Saturday, 4 February 1967. Duration: 9.01 minutes. Apparently this recording was made live by musician and blues singer John Mayall. No online copy available.

* Hollywood Bowl, 18 August 1967. Duration: 8.13 minutes. Soundboard recording.

The transponders and communications were shut off as they pulled the busses.

* Saville Theatre, London, Sunday, 27 August 1967. Duration: 5.40 minutes. Audience recording.

Saville Theatre, London, 27 August 1967. Duration: 5.40 minutes.

* Stora Scenen & Dans In, Grona Lund, Tivoli Gardens, Stockholm, Sweden, Monday, 4 September 1967. Duration: 9.05 minutes. Two audience recordings are known, from afternoon and evening concerts, though there is also confusion in regard to recording dates for the Stora Scenen gigs.

Stockholm, Sweden, 1st show, 4 September 1967. Duration: 9.28 minutes. Catfish Blues begins at 5.28.

* Stora Salen, Akademiska Foreningen, Lund, Sweden, Sunday, 10 September 1967. 1st show. Audience recording.

Lund, Sweden, 10 September 1967. Duration: 9.55 minutes. Catfish Blues starts at 7.20.

* Stora Scenen, Grona Lund, Tivoli Gardens, Stockholm, Sweden, Monday, 11 September 1967. Duration: 8.20 minutes. Includes drum solo and brief Cat Squirrel interlude.

Sweden, 11 September 1967. Duration: 8.20 minutes.

* On 6 October 1967 the Experience performed at the Playhouse Theatre, London, in a recording session for the BBC radio program Top Gear. A 5.29 minute version of Catfish Blues was one of the songs recorded and subsequently broadcast. It was made available in the official 1998 CD release The Jimi Hendrix Experience: BBC Sessions.

* On 9 October a version of Catfish Blues was recorded at the Olympia Theatre in Paris. It includes a Mitchell drum solo plus comments from both the band members and the audience. The song fades out after 5.27 minutes.

Paris Olympia, 9 October 1967. Duration: 5.27 minutes.

* On 10 November 1967 the Experience appeared on the Hoepla television program, recorded in the Vitus TV Studios, Bussum (Rotterdam), Holland. Catfish Blues was amongst the three songs performed. Duration: 7.43 minutes. A soundboard recording was made. Initially available on the Fire and Hoepla bootlegs, it was cleaned up and released on the official 1994 CD release Jimi Hendrix: Blues. A montage of available video footage, along with some audio and still shots survives from the performance.

Various songs, Hoepla, Rotterdam, Holland, 10 November 1967. Duration: 4.24 minutes.

1968

* Tivolis Koncertsal, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, 7 January 1968. Duration: 10.48 minutes. Audience recording.

Copenhagen, Denmark, 7 January 1968. Duration: 10.48 minutes.

* Stora Scenen, Konserthuset, Sweden, Monday, 8 January 1968. Audience recording. Recording starts at 30.20 minutes in to 40.00.

* Musicorama, L'Olympia, Paris, 29 January 1968. Soundboard recording. Duration: 8.46 minutes. Soundboard recording. Available on Black Devil bootleg.

* Winterland, San Francisco, California, Sunday, 4 February 1968, 2nd show. Soundboard recording.

* Will Rogers Auditorium, Fort Worth, Texas, Saturday, 17 February 1968. Duration: 12.12 minutes. Audience recording. Starts at 36.20. Includes drum solo.

Fort Worth, Texas, 17 February 1968.

* Music Hall, Houston, Texas, Sunday, 18 February 1968. Audience recording. Performance: 28.10 -

1969

* The Forum, Inglewood, California, 26 April 1969. Duration: 7.46 minutes. Available on Gold Collection bootleg.

* A largely guitar only recording, possibly from 1969. The introduction by Hendrix is similar to one from 1967, namely: "Have you heard of Mississippi? Have you heard of Muddy Waters?", suggesting it is from a live concert, and perhaps an audience recording from near the guitar speakers. There are a lot of guitar effects and feedback in this version, possibly recorded with Buddy Miles and Billy Cox. There is also some background vocals which can barely be heard, suggesting that this version has not been mixed, and therefore the guitar dominates.

Unknown date, ?circa 1969. Duration: 6.39 minutes.

1970

* Stora Scenen, Grona Lund, Tivoli Gardens, Stockholm, Sweden, 31 August 1970. Audience recording. A brief version only, quickly leading into another song. The last known performance of elements of Catfish Blues.

Stockholm, Sweden, 31 August 1970. Duration: 2.05 minutes.

Hendrix died in London on 17 September 1970, just two weeks after the Stockholm recording. Catfish Blues remains a little known, though important part of the Jimi Hendrix repertoire between late 1966 and through to his last year of performance.

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Jimi Hendrix: Catfish Blues | Flying V | Martin Sharp poster | 

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Last updated: 17 July 2023.

Michael Organ, Australia