Washington honors Jimi Hendrix once more
Legendary Rock and Roll musician Jimi Hendrix was bestowed with the Washington Medal of Merit award for his success and impact on residents.
By: Rachel Meatte
Jimi Hendrix left behind a legacy of work during his illustrious four-year career as a rockstar icon. Famous tunes like “Purple Haze,” “Voodoo Child,” “Foxy Lady” and “Hey Joe” dominated the radio.
His music paved the way for his legendary path to stardom and ultimately changed the music industry forever. At the time, Hendrix was an up-and-coming artist in Seattle during the 1960s.
He rectified rock music using musical influences like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Elvis Presley to create an amplified psychedelic rift that pierced your ears. Hendrix contrasted these tunes with unusual chords and feedback on the electric guitar that had never been done before. He notoriously used wah-wah and octave pedals to make his guitar sound stand out.
His unique style left an impression on future generations and expanded musicians’ understanding of the instrument’s capabilities. This also helped his home state in setting up its vibrant music scene.
55 years after his death, Washington state has finally awarded Hendrix with the Washington State Medal of Merit, the highest award given to individuals who have brought exceptional lifetime service to the state and its residents. This includes public service, medicine, literature or advocacy, according to the Washington Government website.
Hendrix was just 27 years old when he died of asphyxia while intoxicated. Before his death, Hendrix was dealing with a music contract and paternity case involving an alleged illegitimate child.
The popular MOPop museum in Seattle has several collections and exhibitions dedicated to Hendrix. Rare artifacts from his upbringing and early years before he was famous are plastered over several walls. In Seattle at the intersection of Pine Street and Broadway Street rests a bronze life-sized statue of the Rock and Roll legend. His grave can be visited in Renton and a bronze guitar is resting over him along with a stone dome.
Hendrix was awarded the Medal of Merit on March 18 which was bestowed by the Governor. The candidates for the award are chosen and recommended by a committee which consists of a select group of people including the Governor, the Chief Justice of the Washington State Supreme Court, the Speaker of the Washington State House of Representatives and the President of the Washington State Senate.
Previous winners included Bill Gates the founder of Microsoft, Dr. William Hutchinson, a Seattle Medical Researcher and Billy Frank, Jr., a South Puget Sound Native American environmentalist and treaty rights activist. Individuals are chosen based upon their record of service to the community and nominations submitted by the public. While the committee gives advice to the Governor on who to award, the public is welcome to add their own nomination of choice on the Government’s webpage.
During his speech, Governor Bob Ferguson described Hendrix’s legacy which embodies the term unique. “Look, I’m a believer in being precise about vocabulary, OK? I try not to say something is unique unless it is truly unique, like one-of-a-kind. A legend — a legend — probably does not do justice to Jimi Hendrix.”
Once his career blew up with his hit single “Hey Joe,” Hendrix toured extensively outside the U.S. in places like the U.K. where the single was recorded. He accumulated such an enormous fan base in the U.K., then began touring different countries like Denmark, Sweden and West Germany.
By the time he made his first major appearance in the U.S. headlining the Woodstock 1969 Festival, Hendrix had set the industry on fire with his new electric sound. Fans will forever remember the legendary rockstar who changed music with his distorted Rock and Roll style on the electric guitar.
