was referred to at this time) took an interest in music, drawing influence from virtually every major artist at that time, including B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Buddy Holly, and Robert Johnson. Entirely self-taught, Jimmy's inability to read music made him concentrate even harder on the music he could hear.
             Jimmy's father, James "Al" Hendrix, noticed his son's interest in guitar, recalling, "I used to have Jimmy clean up the bedroom all the time while I was gone, and when I would come home I would find a lot of broom straws around the foot of the bed. I'd say to him, 'Well didn't you sweep up the floor?' and he'd say, 'Oh yeah,' he did. But I'd find out later that he used to be sitting at the end of the bed there and strumming the broom like he was playing a guitar." (Are You Experienced?: The Inside Story of the Jimi Hendrix Experience.) Al found an old one-string ukulele, which he gave to Jimmy to play with, which was a huge improvement over the broom. By the summer of 1958, Al had purchased Jimmy a five-dollar, second-hand acoustic guitar from one of his friends. Shortly thereafter, Jimmy joined his first band, The Velvetones. After a three-month stint with the group, Jimmy left to pursue his own interests. The following summer, Al purchased Jimmy his first electric guitar, a Supro Ozark 1560S. Jimmy used it when he joined "The Rocking Kings".
             In 1961, Jimmy left home to enlist in the United States Army and in November 1962, earned the right to wear the "Screaming Eagles" patch for the paratrooper division. While stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Jimmy began working as a session guitarist under the name Jimmy James. By the end of 1965, at only 23 years old, Jimmy had already played with several marquee acts, including Ike and Tina Turner, Sam Cooke, the Isley Brothers, and Little Richard. Jimmy parted ways w...