The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced?

Rated 5/5 Music, 5/5 Sonics in the April 21, 2021 issue of The Absolute Sound!

Are You Experienced on Hybrid SACD from Analogue Productions!

Newly remastered by Bernie Grundman, from the original analog master tapes!

Includes both mono and stereo mixes — Pure DSD sound!  *cd layer contains stereo mix only

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time — rated 30/500!

"Are You Experienced appeared in the U.K. in May of 1967, one week before Sgt. Pepper hit the charts. This U.S. version dropped four months later. The game-changing debut spawned the hits 'Purple Haze' and 'Hey Joe' and shook up the pop world. Raw and rowdy, this visionary blast of rock ecstasy, rife with fantastical lyrics and futuristic fretwork unrivaled even today, commanded respect. The spacey 'Third Stone from the Sun' threw down the gauntlet with the declaration 'And you'll never hear surf music again.' 'Fire' delivered incendiary proto-funk. And the backward guitar solos of the title track, the innovative guitar-doubling on 'Purple Haze,' the rhythmic turmoil of 'Manic Depression,' the feedback-laced 'I Don't Live Today,' and the anti-hippie anthem 'Love or Confusion' were harbingers of hard rock. Newly remastered by Bernie Grundman from the original analog master tapes, the much-anticipated hybrid SACD has a 36-page booklet, and both stereo and mono mixes. This gem brilliantly captures the detailed layers of Hendrix's mind-bending soundscapes. Are You Experienced in pure DSD (or high def PCM, depending on your system)? It doesn't get any better." — Music = 5/5; Sonics = 5/5 — Greg Cahill, The Absolute Sound, April 2021.

"One forgets how weird, nay bizarre, was the stereo mix of this album in places, but the music transcends the extreme separation. This SACD — the sleeve and track listing follow the U.S. issue — includes the stereo version on both layers, with the mono mix a bonus solely for the SACD layer. Hendrix's debut still sounds radical and otherworldly over a half-century on, and every track is magnificent, with a surfeit of what would become his signature tunes, including 'Foxey Lady,' — yes, U.S. spelling with an 'e'! — 'Purple Haze,' 'Hey Joe' and my all-time Jimi fave, 'The Wind Cries Mary.' If you don't already own a copy, Analogue Productions' SACD will do the trick." — Sound Quality = 85% - Ken Kessler, HiFi News, March 2021

"Highlights for me at HiRez sit with 'The Wind Cries Mary,' and while it may have taken a couple of plays, '3rd Stone From The Sun' is incredibly detailed in a way I never heard or experienced before ... As per usual again with Grundman, Jimi's vocal is detailed and rich in tone and so real. Probably why I like Grundman's mastering on the Harbeth speakers so much as I know just how close to being real they reproduce vocal. If it is on the recording it will be delivered ... critical listening will always find fault especially with this recording. I'm just so pleased that those issues were not enough to prevent this Super Audio Compact Disc release. ... $35 for this set is a bargain and I cannot find any reason not to have this available to play for anyone interested in this record." Are You Experienced Hybrid SACD review, Gordon Johnson, jmhvinyl.co.uk, 2020

Analogue Productions presents the SACDs Jimi Hendrix fans have asked for: Hybrid SACDs of both Axis: Bold As Love, as well as Are You Experienced, the 1967 debut full-length studio release by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Newly remastered by Bernie Grundman from the original analog master tapes, each disc contains the mono and stereo mixes for each of these historic albums. This is pure DSD sound to applaud!

When first released in 1967 in the U.S., Are You Experienced turned the music world upside down as Hendrix showed everyone exactly what it meant to be "experienced." This SACD returns to the original 11-song version that was originally released in August 1967. It contains such eternal classics as "Hey Joe," "Purple Haze," "The Wind Cries Mary," "Fire," and the title song, whose backward drum and guitar tracks and otherworldly guitar work still sound innovative almost a half-century later.

As Rolling Stone states, Jimi Hendrix was the most innovative instrumental genius the rock era produced, a wizard guitar player whose sense of technique never overwhelmed the blues and rock 'n' roll spirit that was the underpinning of his genius. He improvised with the fervor of a born jazzman; he philosophized like the most cosmic rocker, but ultimately his basics were rooted in soul, a reflection of the chitlin circuit, where he cut his teeth. With the possible exception of Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience was debatably the world's finest-ever power trio. Axis and Are You Experienced showcased the grasp that Jimi and his cohorts — Mitch Mitchell on drums and Noel Redding on bass — had on the studio technology at their disposal, and the lyrical beauty of Hendrix's guitar playing.

1. Purple Haze

2. Manic Depression

3. Hey Joe

4. Love Or Confusion

5. May This Be Love

6. I Don’t Live Today

7. The Wind Cries Mary

8. Fire

9. Third Stone From The Sun

10. Foxey Lady

11. Are You Experienced?

Customer Reviews (3.77 Stars) 13 person(s) rated this product.

In the minority - an improvement posted on 11/27/2022 5 Stars I am clearly in the minority in that I do feel the SACD level and particularly the mono is much better than anything I have played which is just about everything. I do like the 1967 US Reprise mono (which I have) which this seems to be taken from. I would suggest listening on headphones and I would add that my systems are nothing special. I find myself continually drawn back to the SACD mono. I’d even welcome a vinyl pressing of the mono like the stereo (which I have). Maybe you have to be a Big Hendrix fan?

No significant benefit over red book CD posted on 05/02/2021 3 Stars I believe I have in the range of 300 SACDs, as well as DSD downloads and many Blu Ray and DVD-A recordings and other high resolution recordings. AP has issued some of the best sounding and overall I really appreciate what the company is doing. I also really like this album and Jimi Hendrix. So, given the above, while this is not bad like a few SACDs I have (Alice in Chains, Oasis), this SACD is nothing special. It is not substantially better than the rebook. I expect AP recognized this which is why it took so long to release this. Sadly, the SACD isn't really worth it. I would have even liked a 5.1 version even if it still sounded mediocre, but I think I saw an interview with Eddie Kramer saying they couldn't do this album in 5.1 as the original tapes wouldn't provide sufficient information to do a surround mix with this which I find a bit odd as The Beatles surround mixes sound good even coming from a four track tape. In the end, this SA

Jimi Hendrix Music Lives posted on 03/07/2021 4 Stars Reviewer: John F. in MD I recommend that you buy it. The Stereo Tracks. This disc is definitely better than the mass market discs whose recording levels are set too high. And, I think the resolution is a little bit better on this disc also. The sound is reminiscent of his live concert sound. This is not the sweet sound of a folk trio. (Not that there is anything wrong with that.) All Other Tracks. I did not listen to them. I do not have an audiophile quality SACD player. My Back Story. It was a rainy thunderstorm evening back in the Summer of 1968 when the band performed at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Flashes of lightening danced like fire stabbing at the night sky. Tremendous thunder cracked like cannons. Marijuana smoke drifted like a rolling fog. Jimi's amps were turned way up emitting a loud hum. He joked about whether he would hit by lightening. Then he launched into another song that easily rivaled the sound and spectacle of a Saturn V rocket launch.

A must Have posted on 01/11/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Garry If you grew up in the 60s or 70s This a must have fantastic sounds and the booklet is written very well. Brings back lots of memories and isn’t that what music is supposed to do. Jimi was Such a great guitar player he was a unique human being.

No multichannel? Why bother. Hard pass posted on 12/06/2020 1 Stars Yet another case of AP dropping the ball. How many stereo remaster versions of this album are there now, 25? MULTICHANNEL 5.1 MULTICHANNEL 5.1 MULTICHANNEL 5.1

Highly Disappointing posted on 11/21/2020 1 Stars The "Axis" SACD was great, but don't waste your money on this one. The stereo mix is slightly misaligned and has a lack of high end sparkle that can be heard on the original first Reprise CD that also used the original master tape. A closer look at the equalization shows that the high end has been rolled off here. The mono mix sounds like sub-bootleg garbage and clearly comes from the bad copy tape that Experience Hendrix has been trying to pass off as the "master" for years now. I have a French LP pressing from 1972 that sounds like Steely Dan in comparison to this. Shame on Experience Hendrix for providing such lousy sources and shame on AP for releasing it as an audiophile product!

Disappointing Release posted on 11/25/2020 2 Stars Reviewer: A Customer It pains me to say this, as I have enjoyed many of AP's SACDs, but the mastering/sound on this SACD is poor. The overall sound is dull, lacking upper frequency information found on earlier masterings of this album, notably the early non-RE Reprise CD. As a result, the cymbals, guitar and vocals all sound muffled. While the Axis AP SACD revealed more information from the tapes, this unfortunate release goes in the other direction. Not recommended.

Yes I am posted on 11/15/2020 5 Stars Reviewer: Joe I am very experienced with several renditions of this recording. This is the best one yet.

Amazing transfer to DSD posted on 11/13/2020 5 Stars Reviewer: Jeff D I’ve purchased many versions of this album on CD and vinyl. I don’t have an original pressing for comparison, but this SACD is my favorite version. Much warmer than other digital versions, and even warm compared to my vinyl copies, Jimi’s tone and feedback sounds analog and pleasing where other versions can come off harsh and abrasive. The mono mixes are excellent if not definitive.

As it is intended posted on 11/13/2020 5 Stars Reviewer: Douglas This edition of "Are you experienced" is t h e psychedelic masterpiece it was meant to be. Amazing and mind- boggling and you will have eargasms and be fully experienced . Thank you Acoustic Sounds for making this available .

Great SACD Transfer posted on 11/11/2020 5 Stars Reviewer: Tom Caselli This album was never a stellar sounding album. I have at least 11 different LP versions and 5 different CD mastering. This is the first one that captures the the best attributes of the recording. Would love to see this get the UHQR treatment, at least for the stereo mix. ??

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