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GA Review

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Reviewer: FunkMonk ( talk · contribs) 07:43, 15 July 2013 (UTC) reply


  • Hi, I will post my review here tomorrow or the day after. FunkMonk ( talk) 07:43, 15 July 2013 (UTC) reply
    • Hello, FunkMonk. Thanks for reviewing this article; your effort is much appreciated. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 00:44, 19 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • As a beginning, the end of the next to last paragraph under band od Gypsys needs a cite.
  • Same with the first paragraph under Cry of Love tour.
  • Likewise with the two first paragraphs under Electric Lady Studios.
  • Same with most of the paragraphs under Recordings and posthumous releases, and there is also a "better source needed" tag.
  • Same with two middle paragraphs under Guitars.
  • Same with two last ones under Amplifiers and effects.
  • Same with third paragraph under Musical.
  • Also problems with last two under Fashion.
  • Also first and second under Financial and legal.
  • First under Recognition and awards, second to last under same has "better source needed".
  • More to follow after these essential issues. Check throughout for more missing cites. FunkMonk ( talk) 11:56, 16 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • Quick drive-by GA review stalking comment : I had a look through old newspaper archives to see if I could find a better source for Pete Townshend's speech when unveiling the blue plaque. There is a transcript here, taken from an audio recording and personally transcribed for a fanzine. Unfortunately, fans making audio recordings and transcribing them without anyone professionally checking them makes it an unreliable source in my view. The quote also appears in "Amazing Journey : The Life of Pete Townshend", a well known book, but a self-published source that mainly cherry picks stuff off the internet (and in my view it's rubbish). Ritchie333 (talk) (cont) 08:26, 15 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • The colon seems out of place here: "After law enforcement authorities had twice caught Hendrix joyriding in stolen cars, having been given a choice between spending time in prison or serving in the US military: he chose the latter and enlisted in the Army in May 1961."
  • The intro seems quite unbalanced in regard to his history. Way too much pre-Experience info, which is not really what the casual reader comes to read, or what is relevant about this man. Could cut some of it down, and add more about his heyday (only two sentences about it as of now!). The latter part almost seems like an afterthought, when it should be the main focus. On the same note, the extreme detail of the pre-fame period in the intro means there is not much room for summarising the entire article, which the lead should do.
    • I've now trimmed out some of the excess detail, but I don't think I would trim out anymore about the period between 1964 and 1967. I'm not sure what kind of detail you think is missing regarding 1967–1970. He didn't have any number one hits to mention (only one US top-40) and I think that the rest of the lead explicates quite well the impact that he made during his brief career. Can you give me any specific examples of what you would add to the lede? GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 22:52, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
      • A bit more about his life (outside music) during this period, perhaps? FunkMonk ( talk) 01:24, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
        • I don't think Hendrix had a life outside music during 1967–1970; that's all he did, 24/7. Can you please be more specific? GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 01:42, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
          • Well, my concern is basically that the lead is supposed to be a summary of the entire article. As is, his pre-Experience days get half the coverage about his musical career in the lead, whereas it is proportionally much less in the article itself. FunkMonk ( talk) 01:50, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
            • I hear you, but IMO the first, third and fourth paragraphs are already doing that in their own way. Obviously, I could be wrong about this and I am certainly open to specific suggestions. FWIW, right now there are 52 words in 2.5 sentences about his career during 1963–1966 and 73 words in 2.5 sentences about his career during 1967–1970. Do you want me to mention a couple of his hits or something? GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 02:20, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • "A key member of the Hendrix family, Jimi's paternal grandmother" In what sense? A grandmother is surely a "key member" of a family per definition?
  • "in honor of Al and Al's late brother Leon Marshall." in honor of Al and his late brother?
  • "As a young child, friends and family called James "Buster." See below.
  • You sometimes refer to him as "Jimi", other times as "Hendrix". I think consistency would be less confusing for the reader. Hendrix would probably be best, since it is kind of misleading to refer to him as "Jimi" during the time he was "Jimmy/James".
    • Done. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
      • Still seems Jimi occurs several places, in proximity to Hendrix, whereas one of either should be used. FunkMonk ( talk) 03:04, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
        • Yeah, I missed a few. Typically when you are mentioning several people with the same last name you can use a few first names, but I think I've changed them all now, except one or two where he and his brother are mentioned in the same sentence or where it would be odd to call him Hendrix and his brother Leon. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 03:25, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • "Hendrix completed his studies at Washington Junior High School" When?
  • "The school later awarded him an honorary diploma" When?
  • "immediately checked-out a bass guitar" What does check-out refer to here?
  • It seems these two sentences could benefit from being combined (the former is basically a summary of the latter): "Chandler introduced Hendrix to Eric Clapton, who had recently co-founded Cream.[92] On September 30, Chandler brought Hendrix to the London Polytechnic at Regent Street, where Cream was scheduled to perform, and it was then that Hendrix and Clapton first met."
  • It seems it would make sense to swap the placement of the Jeff beck quote and the Experience promo image. The former incident is mentioned in the above text, while the image signifies the "UK success".
    • I've decided to remove the Beck quote as redundant and I would prefer to retain the Experience photo in the first section mentioning their formation. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • Could be nice for context if the quotes had dates.
  • "Rolling Stone described the double-platinum Are You Experienced as Hendrix's "epochal debut", and they ranked it the 15th greatest album of all-time" Should be added if this was in retrospect. Hardly that ecstatic upon first arrival, no?
    • Not sure what you mean here. His debut was only kept off the top spot in the UK by Sgt. Pepper. Also, the "epochal debut" text-string is referring, I think, to its impact in hindsight, still he was certainly a big hit in the UK by the time of the release. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
      • I mean that it needs to be mentioned that it is said in hindsight (with a date or similar). FunkMonk ( talk) 01:24, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • Same with other much later critical evaluations. Need dates if they are not contemporary.
    • I will keep an eye out for dates and add them where possible. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • Note nb 20 does not seem obviously relevant to the sentence it follows.
    • I think following: "The founding editor of Guitar World called it, "the album that shook the world ... leaving it forever changed" with a specific example of this change is appropriate. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • There is no explanation of how and why he ended up with Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding. Seems like pretty essential information.
    • I think this covers it: "Chandler then helped Hendrix form a new band, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, with guitarist-turned-bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell.[91]" Any more detail than that would be appropriate at the Jimi Hendrix Experience article, IMO. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:50, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
      • Well, since this band is almost synonymous with Hendrix as a performer, it is quite notable even here. Especially since so much detail is devoted to him meeting other band members (Cox, etc.), which he played with even less. It doesn't have to be much, just a line about how they met. FunkMonk ( talk) 01:26, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • It seems a bit arbitrary and odd that the only music samples are post-Experience, and only live at that. Especially since so much space is devoted to his studio trickery.
  • The first and third paragraph under Band of Gypsys seem like they would benefit from being merged. Otherwise it is repetitive.
  • "Much of this was recorded on a Sony cassette recorder by Bill Baker, of Shepherds Bush, London, then aged 20, who was present throughout the entire performance." Why do we need so much info about a guy we never hear about again?
  • "and was produced in the 1970s from a poor quality audio tape." Was it the above mentioned tape?
  • " Hendrix had spent much of September 17 in London with Monika Dannemann" Needs to specify he was his girlfriend at the time.
    • I'm really not certain that calling Dannemann Hendrix's girlfriend is 100% accurate. Jimi usually dated several girls at any particular time and he was with 3 or 4 woman other than Dannemann the week he died. Burdon did not consider Dannemann Jimi's girlfriend and didn't even really know who she was the morning Jimi died. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 21:56, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • "Hendrix's rough demos for a concept album, Black Gold, are now in the possession of Experience Hendrix LLC." This seems to make more sense in the end of the section than where it is now.
  • The People, Hell & Angels article states it will be the last Hendrix release of studio recordings, but Black Gold is yet unreleased. Any sense to this?
    • My guess is that the quality of the demos is not up to release standards. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 21:56, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • The last paragraph under Musical influences doesn't really seem to have anything to do with the title. The quote in the same section doesn't seem much relevant to it either.
  • It seems note nb 19 is redundant in relation to the similar text under Guitars.
  • The section about the guitar Zappa got has exceptionally many quotes, and it seems to have been given undue weight in relation to the rest of the article.
  • (another stalking GA review comment) - Kathy Etchingham is wikilinked twice, and to be honest I think she could do with a little more than a mere passing mention. In my view she's become a bit more than just an ex girlfriend - she was a key figure in getting his blue plaque put up and her own article has several news sources about how she's tried to put Hendrix in a positive light to the media. Ritchie333 (talk) (cont) 10:52, 22 July 2013 (UTC) reply
    • Well, for the most part I think this is a can of worms that could only lead to much effort and little pay-off (Jimi had DOZENS of girlfriends and a section on a subject's numerous sexual conquests would seem excessive). While its true that Jimi knew Kathy for several years, he was usually on the road and the total time that they lived together was quite brief. I think that to some extent her position as one of Jimi's main girlfriends has been a bit overblown since his death (by Etchingham in particular); e.g. he was never in a monogamous relationship with her and he asked her to visit him at his hotel the day before he died and she declined, which to me implies that she had more than had enough of Hendrix, whom she had broken-up with before marrying someone else. Her overall importance is not great, but I will certainly look into adding more detail before I take the article to FAC. GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 21:56, 23 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • ^There are several other overlinks as well, please check throughout. There is a bit of elaboration on Etchingham in one of the notes, which could perhaps be incorporated into the article text.
  • "Hendrix was well known for his outrageous sense of fashion" Outrageous seems a bit loaded when not in quotes.
  • The text under Alleged progeny seems misplaced under legacy. Seems it would make more sense after the section about his death or something like that.
  • The statue image would probably make more sense somewhere under legacy.
  • It is very close to being there. One last thing, if you right align the two photos of Jimi, you can get rid of the white space. FunkMonk ( talk) 11:17, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
    • The image in Are You Experienced is facing his left, so it should be left-aligned in order to face the text, not? GabeMc ( talk| contribs) 19:35, 24 July 2013 (UTC) reply
      • Mitch is knd of facing left, so I guess it goes. Butthe image under you're right, I thought his eyes were looking left, but they don't.Anyhow, no big deal. FunkMonk ( talk) 02:51, 25 July 2013 (UTC) reply
  • I'm happy with the article now, so I'll pass it. I hope you continue your good work on classic rock artists, it is surely needed. FunkMonk ( talk) 03:33, 26 July 2013 (UTC) reply