Machine Gun

Jimi Hendrix, 1970. Solo by Jimi Hendrix.

Live at the Fillmore East, Hendrix makes feedback sound like bombs falling. Rolling Stone's 2026 #2.

Recorded live at the Fillmore East with Billy Cox and Buddy Miles, this is Hendrix using feedback, wah, a Uni-Vibe and heavy vibrato-arm work to evoke the sounds of war. The opening Uni-Vibe figure imitates staccato gunfire, and Miles answers with snare rolls that sound like rifle bursts. Across the long central improvisation, sustained notes wail like sirens and screams, while dives and swoops conjure aircraft and explosions. The whammy-bar abuse knocked his guitar out of tune, and he corrected it mid-song, keeping the arc intact across more than twelve minutes. Listen for a single note that Hendrix sustains and bends until it sounds like a human cry; the protest in the song lives in those moments.

Machine Gun by Jimi Hendrix is ranked #32 in our consensus of 79 guitar-solo lists. The solo is played by Jimi Hendrix and the song was released in 1970. It appears on 14 lists, placing as high as #1 (Music in Minnesota).

The story of Machine Gun

"Machine Gun" is Jimi Hendrix's anti-war epic, a loosely structured jam piece aimed at the Vietnam War and at the violence tearing through American cities. Hendrix framed it that way on stage: at the Fillmore he dedicated it to soldiers fighting in Chicago, Milwaukee and New York as well as in Vietnam. The lyrics, sung from a soldier's point of view, changed from night to night, and the arrangement hung on a descending riff and a bass-and-drum pattern rather than a fixed song form.

Hendrix was playing the song well before the famous recording. He debuted it on television on The Dick Cavett Show in September 1969 in a short version, and studio attempts were made at the Hit Factory in August 1969 and the Record Plant that November. None of those studio takes was released as Hendrix left them; producer Alan Douglas later cut one down and overdubbed session players for the 1975 album Midnight Lightning, a move many fans disliked.

The definitive version came from the Band of Gypsys, Hendrix's short-lived trio with bassist Billy Cox and drummer Buddy Miles. The group played four shows at the Fillmore East across New Year's Eve 1969 and New Year's Day 1970, recorded on mobile equipment run by Wally Heider. Hendrix needed the album to settle a contract dispute with former manager Ed Chalpin, which obligated him to deliver a record to Capitol.

Eddie Kramer worked with Hendrix at Juggy Sound in January 1970 to choose and mix the takes, and at one point four different performances of "Machine Gun" were in contention. The chosen version came from the first of the two New Year's Day shows. Capitol issued Band of Gypsys on March 25, 1970; it reached No. 5 in the US and became Hendrix's best-selling American album since his debut.

The solo

Hendrix is the only guitarist, playing a Stratocaster with backing from Billy Cox on bass and Buddy Miles on drums. At the Fillmore he ran a new chain of effects: a Uni-Vibe, Roger Mayer's Octavia, a Fuzz Face and a wah-wah pedal. The opening Uni-Vibe figure imitates staccato gunfire, and Miles answers with snare rolls that sound like rifle bursts. Across the long central improvisation Hendrix uses controlled feedback, sweeping wah and heavy vibrato-arm work to conjure dive-bombing aircraft, explosions, sirens and screams, sustaining single notes until they seem to wail. The whammy-bar abuse pulled his guitar out of tune, forcing corrections mid-song. Because the take was captured live with no studio overdubs, the performance stands as a single, unedited arc of improvisation lasting more than twelve minutes.

Legacy

Rolling Stone ranked the performance No. 2 on its list of the 100 greatest guitar solos, noting that Trey Anastasio considers one sustained note around the four-minute mark the finest ever played on electric guitar. Vernon Reid of Living Colour has called it the one electric performance that is about more than the notes themselves. AllMusic described Band of Gypsys as one of the best live albums ever, and even the skeptical Robert Christgau singled out "Machine Gun" as among Hendrix's most powerful recordings. The album entered the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018.

Top 10 facts about Machine Gun

Hendrix first played "Machine Gun" on television on The Dick Cavett Show in September 1969, in a version only about two and a half minutes long.
Wikipedia
The Band of Gypsys album was made partly to settle a legal fight with Hendrix's former manager Ed Chalpin, which required him to give Capitol a new record.
Wikipedia
Wally Heider, who had also recorded Hendrix at Monterey and Woodstock, supervised the mobile recording at the Fillmore East.
Wikipedia
When Hendrix and Eddie Kramer were choosing tracks in January 1970, four different performances of "Machine Gun" were on the shortlist.
Wikipedia
At the Fillmore shows Hendrix combined a Uni-Vibe, an Octavia designed by Roger Mayer, a Fuzz Face and a wah-wah pedal.
Wikipedia
Rolling Stone ranked "Machine Gun" second on its list of the 100 greatest guitar solos, behind only Prince's "Purple Rain".
Rolling Stone
Producer Alan Douglas edited an August 1969 studio take down to about seven and a half minutes and added session overdubs for the 1975 album Midnight Lightning.
Wikipedia
Vernon Reid singled out the second Band of Gypsys version of "Machine Gun" as a performance whose meaning goes beyond the notes being played.
Guitar World
Colorized footage of the 12-minute New Year's Day 1970 performance has been circulated, ending with Hendrix joking that it is one they don't want to hear anymore.
Guitar World
Hendrix also worked the song's intro into "Hear My Train A Comin'" at Woodstock, and live versions could stretch to around 20 minutes.
Songfacts

Live versions

The Dick Cavett Show (1969) Television debut in September 1969; the shortest known version at roughly two and a half minutes.
Machine Gun: The Fillmore East First Show (1969) The New Year's Eve 1969 opening set, released in full in 2016.
Live at the Fillmore East (1970) 1999 expanded set adding two more Band of Gypsys performances of the song.
Live at Berkeley (1970) Berkeley Community Theatre show with Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox, released in 2003.
Blue Wild Angel: Live at the Isle of Wight (1970) One of Hendrix's final major performances, released in 2002.

Notable covers

The Isley Brothers (1971) Medley pairing it with CSNY's "Ohio" on the album Givin' It Back.

In our lists

Deep Cuts — #7
The 25 Greatest Blues Rock Guitar Solos — #5
The 25 Greatest Psychedelic Guitar Solos — #4
The 1970s — #13
Greatest Live Solos — #2
Whammy, Fuzz & Feedback — #3
Epic-Length Solos — #9
Best of Jimi Hendrix — #4
Played on a Stratocaster — #14
Critics' Picks — #25

Sources

What guitar was used on the Machine Gun solo?

A fender stratocaster through a Marshall amp, with Uni-Vibe, Fuzz Face, according to widely reported accounts.

Where does Machine Gun rank among the greatest guitar solos?

#32 in the GreatestSolos consensus of 79 published lists; it appears on 14 of them.

What is "Machine Gun" by Jimi Hendrix about?

It is a protest against the Vietnam War and the violence of late-1960s America, sung from a soldier's perspective.

Where was "Machine Gun" recorded?

The famous version was recorded live at the Fillmore East in New York on January 1, 1970, with the Band of Gypsys.

What effects did Hendrix use on "Machine Gun"?

He used a Uni-Vibe, an Octavia, a Fuzz Face and a wah-wah pedal, plus heavy feedback and vibrato-arm work.

Who played with Hendrix on "Machine Gun"?

Billy Cox played bass and Buddy Miles played drums and sang backing vocals.

Is there a studio version of "Machine Gun"?

Studio takes exist from 1969, but none has been released unaltered; a heavily edited one appeared on Midnight Lightning in 1975.