Stephen Longfellow Fiske
Stephen Longfellow Fiske
Welcome to Stephen Fiske Music!
Introducing
Jimi, the Ballad of Jimi Hendrix
A New Music Video
Stephen Longfellow Fiske
In the late 60’s Stephen was then the lead singer and writer with the San Francisco acid-rock band, The Bycycle . In 1969, The Bycycle opened for Jimi Hendrix at the San Jose Pop Festival, and Stephen met Jimi during soundcheck backstage. Years later Stephen was working with music/film producer Alan Douglas in LA, who had been on Jimi Hendrix’s management team when Jimi tragically died in London in 1970. Alan was then working on a live-performance film about Jimi Hendrix, when he commissioned Stephen to write “The Ballad of Jimi Hendrix” for the soundtrack of the movie. Having met Jimi and experiencing his performance that day before 15,000, Stephen went to the task of writing the song. He demoed, and delivered the song, and Alan said that BB King was set to record it. But then Alan got into a legal issue over publishing rights, which resulted in Alan losing in court, and the film was never made. So, Jimi, The Ballad Jimi Hendrix, was never released. For many years, the “Jimi” song was with EMI publishing. Shortly before Stephen moved from Venice, CA, to Virginia, EMI notified him that the copyright to the song had expired, and that as the writer, the song was now his property. While unpacking in Virginia, Stephen found the lead sheet to “Jimi”, and his interest in the song got rekindled. He did a re-write and then with engineer/co-producer, Gopal Metro, recorded an updated version of the song, now readying for release.
Recording credits:
We Carry The Dream
A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Stephen Longfellow Fiske
Earth Anthem
Stephen Longfellow Fiske