Song by Song: "Purple Haze" Trivia Quiz

Answer: Are You Experienced?

"Are You Experienced?" was the first studio album of the Jimi Hendrix Experience and was recorded in De Lane Lea Studios in London, England. The album is usually classified in the psychedelic rock genre. The Jimi Hendrix Experience went onto record "Axis: Bold As Love" in 1967 and "Electric Ladyland" in 1968 before breaking up in 1969. Jimi Hendrix then went on to record an album in 1970 with Band Of Gypsys before his death in September of that year at the age of 27.

Answer: Charles Mingus

Hendrix was on guitar, Mitchell on drums, and Redding on bass guitar. (Charles Mingus was an American jazz bassist born in 1922.) "For the first time," writes Rolling Stone magazine in its 2004 list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time," "Jimi Hendrix, along with bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell got to show off their acrobatic onstage chemistry on record - and they somehow managed to condense it to an under-three-minute blaze of overdubbed guitar sorcery."

Answer: The Hendrix Chord

In the article "Purple Reign: The Hendrix Chord" on Fender's website, Jeff Owens writes, "Such is the legend and influence of Jimi Hendrix that the man actually has a chord nicknamed after him. As far as we know, no other rock guitarist is so honored." The chord is, according to Owens, "an extended dominant 7th chord with an augmented (sharpened) ninth."

Answer: Purple Haze - Jesus Saves

According to Rolling Stone magazine, the song was "boiled down from a much longer initial draft called 'Purple Haze - Jesus Saves'." And according to Hendrix's then lover Monika Dannemann (as quoted in "The Inner Life of Jimi Hendrix") the longer draft of "Purple Haze - Jesus Saves" was inspired by a dream in which Hendrix saw an unborn fetus and spirits of the dead and "went on a journey though the dimensions" in a "purple haze which surrounded him, engulfed him, and in which he got lost." Hendrix purportedly told Dannemann that in the dream, "his faith in Jesus had saved him."

Answer: brain

Jimi Hendrix and the Experience recorded "Purple Haze" during various sessions in January and February of 1967. Hendrix initially wrote what would become "Purple Haze" in December of 1966 in his dressing room at a club in London, England.

"Purple Haze" was released as a single in the UK on January 11, 1967 with "51st Anniversary" on the B-Side. It peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart. It also entered the top 20 on the Dutch, German, Norwegian, and Austrian singles charts.

Answer: kiss the sky

While "Purple Haze" came in at number 17 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time," it ranked higher - at number two - on the magazine's list of the greatest guitar songs. It was also inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

In the 1990 book "Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy," Hendrix explained the song as being about a guy who "likes this girl so much" that he has no idea what state he's in. "A sort of daze, I suppose. That's what the song is all about."

Answer: misery

The song continues:

"Whatever it is, that girl put a spell on me
Help me
Help me
Oh, no, no..."

"Purple Haze" has been covered by The Flames, Dion, The Flying Lizards, and Frank Zappa, among others. The Cure recorded a version on the tribute album, "Stone Free," which was released in 1981 by Polydor Records. The song is one of Jimi Hendrix's most popular and has consequently been included on numerous compilation albums, including "The Jimi Hendrix Collection."

Answer: day or night

The song continues:

"You got me blowing, blowing my mind
Is it tomorrow or just the end of time?
Oh, help me
Ah, yeah, purple haze
Oh, no, no
Oh, help me
Tell me baby, tell me
I can't go on like this
You make me blow my mind
No, no, no, no
No, it's painful, baby."

For this song, Hendrix employed Fuzz Face, an effects pedal intended to cause distortion (or "fuzz") when used with electrical guitar, or, in some cases, electric bass. The sound mimics that of damaged speakers. A live performance of the Jimi Hendrix Experience playing "Purple Haze" was broadcast on BBC Radio's popular program "Saturday Club."

Answer: Ozzy Osbourne

The album, which was released by the Make a Difference Foundation, comes from a Led Zeppelin and an AC/DC song. It included performances by Ozzy Osbourne, Skid Row, Cinderella, Bon Jovi, and the Scorpions, among others.

Answer: The Wind Cries Mary

The U.S. single of "Purple Haze" was released on June 19, 1967 with "The Wind Cries Mary" on the B-Side. (A single of "The Wind Cries Mary" was also released in the UK with "Highway Chile" on its B-Side.) "Purple Haze" peaked at 65 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. "Hey Joe" was the first single released by the Jimi Hendrix Experience (in November of 1965).

The other two songs are not Jimi Hendrix songs.