Terry Reid pays tribute to His Friendship with Jimi Hendrix: “Jimi was the gentlest guy but he was surrounded by freeloaders and he has…”
In a recent interview with The Guardian, legendary vocalist and guitarist Terry Reid opened up about his friendship with Jimi Hendrix, shedding light on the challenges the iconic guitarist faced during his meteoric rise to fame.
Reid, who emerged as a solo artist in the late 1960s, recalled how Hendrix often sought refuge from the pressures of celebrity at Reid’s apartment in Haverstock Hill.
During their time together, the two musicians would relax and play guitar, with Reid noting, “Jimi could play anything, without looking at his hands.” He described Hendrix as a gentle soul, albeit one frequently surrounded by “freeloaders.” This environment often left Hendrix feeling unable to eject those who took advantage of his hospitality, leading him to seek out Reid for moments of peace.
Reid’s reflections come in the context of his own burgeoning career; inspired by Hendrix, he released his debut album, 
This sentiment is echoed by others affiliated with Hendrix. Following the release of the documentary *Electric Lady Studios: A Jimi Hendrix Vision*, recording engineer Andy Edlen recounted how staff members at the studio took advantage of Hendrix’s untimely death in 1970.
Edlen described seeing guitars, including a white Stratocaster, being removed from the studio, suggesting that some individuals were more interested in the material legacy than in honoring the musician.
Together, these reflections paint a poignant picture of Jimi Hendrix—a genius trapped in a world filled with opportunism, desperately seeking authentic connections in an often exploitative industry.
As Reid remembers the moments of solace shared between friends, it serves as a reminder of the human side of rock legends, whose extraordinary talents can sometimes attract less-than-genuine companionship.
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