Editing Jimi Hendrix (section)

== Ancestry and childhood ==
[[File:Bertran Philander Ross Hendrix and Zenora "Nora" Rose Hendrix.jpg|thumb|upright|Hendrix's paternal grandparents, Ross and Nora Hendrix, pre-1912|alt=A black and white image (c.1912) of two well-dressed people in their early 20s to late 30s.]]
Hendrix was of [[African Americans|African-American]] and alleged [[Cherokee descent]].{{refn|group=nb|Several non-Native Hendrix biographers have noted Hendrix's belief that he had Cherokee heritage.<ref>{{harvnb|Cross|2005|p=17}}; {{harvnb|Brown|1992|p=6}}; {{harvnb|Whitaker|2011|=378}}</ref> Shapiro and Glebbeek write that Nora's grandmother was a "full-blood Cherokee princess"{{sic}} in their 1990 biography,<ref>{{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|p=13}}</ref> although there is no known record of Hendrix or his family members referring to a "[[Cherokee princess]]" (the Cherokee did not have "princesses", but this nomenclature is very common among non-Natives who claim Cherokee identities for ancestors who were actually white or Black).<ref>{{harvnb|Martin|1996|p=}}</ref><ref name="ICT">{{cite news |url=https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/oh-pharrell-is-part-native-american-heres-why-it-doesnt-matter|author=ICT Staff |title=Oh, Pharrell Is Part Native American? Here's Why It Doesn't Matter{{snd}}Does some Native American heritage make it OK for Pharrell Williams to wear a feather headdress? No{{snd}}and here are four reasons why it doesn't|work=[[Indian Country Today]]|date=June 4, 2014|access-date=November 20, 2021|quote=By the way, the Cherokee did not have "princesses" and did not wear feather headdresses}}</ref> Hendrix was not "enrolled in any Cherokee tribe"<ref>{{harvnb|Wolfram|Reaser|2014|p=193}}</ref> and "no documentation of Hendrix's Cherokee blood has been found, and its absence is potentially problematic, especially given the history of appropriation of Indian cultures and identities by non-Indians".<ref>{{harvnb|Cannon|2021|p=78}}</ref>}} His paternal grandfather, Bertran Philander Ross Hendrix, was born in 1866 from an extramarital affair between a woman named Fanny and a [[grain trade|grain merchant]] from either [[Urbana, Ohio]] or [[Urbana, Illinois|Illinois]], one of the wealthiest men in the area at that time.<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=10}}: (primary source); {{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=5–7}}, {{harvnb|Brown|1992|pp=6–7}}: (secondary source).</ref>{{refn|group=nb|Author Charles R. Cross in ''[[Room Full of Mirrors]]'' writes "He [Hendrix's paternal grandfather, Bertran Philander Ross Hendrix] was born out of wedlock, and from the biracial coupling of his mother, a former enslaved person, and a white merchant who had once enslaved her."{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=16}}}} Hendrix's paternal grandmother, Zenora "Nora" Rose Moore, was a former dancer and vaudeville performer who co-founded [[Fountain Chapel]] in [[Hogan's Alley, Vancouver|Hogan's Alley]].{{sfn|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|p=13}} Hendrix and Moore relocated to [[Vancouver]], Canada, where they had a son they named James Allen Hendrix on June 10, 1919; the family called him "Al".<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=10}}: Jimi's father's full name; {{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=8–9}}: Al Hendrix's birthdate; {{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=746–747}}: Hendrix family tree.</ref>

In 1941, after moving to [[Seattle]], Washington, Al met Lucille Jeter (1925–1958) at a dance; they married on March 31, 1942.<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=32}}: Al and Lucille meeting at a dance in 1941; {{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=37}}: Al and Lucille married in 1942.</ref> Lucille's father (Jimi's maternal grandfather) was Preston Jeter (born 1875), whose mother was born in similar circumstances as Bertran Philander Ross Hendrix.{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=11}} Lucille's mother, Clarice (''née'' Lawson), had African-American ancestors who had been enslaved people.{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=12}} Al, who had been drafted by the US Army to serve in [[World War II]], left to begin his basic training three days after the wedding.<ref>{{harvnb|Cross|2005|p=20}}: Al went to basic training three days after the wedding. (secondary source); {{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=37}}: Al went to war three days after the wedding. (primary source).</ref> Johnny Allen Hendrix was born on November 27, 1942, in Seattle; he was the first of Lucille's five children. In 1946, Johnny's parents changed his name to James Marshall Hendrix, in honor of Al and his late brother Leon Marshall.{{sfn|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=13–19}}{{refn|group=nb|Authors Harry Shapiro and Caesar Glebbeek speculate that the change from Johnny to James may have been a response to Al's knowledge of an affair Lucille had with a man who called himself John Williams.<ref>{{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=13–19}}</ref> As a young child, friends and family called Hendrix "Buster". His brother Leon claims that Jimi chose the nickname after his hero [[Buster Crabbe]], of [[Flash Gordon (serial)|''Flash Gordon'']] and [[Buck Rogers]] fame.<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|Mitchell|2012|p=10}}: (primary source); {{harvnb|Roby|Schreiber|2010|pp=xiii, 3}}: (secondary source).</ref>}}

Stationed in Alabama at the time of Hendrix's birth, Al was denied the standard military furlough afforded servicemen for childbirth; his commanding officer placed him in the stockade to prevent him from going [[AWOL]] to see his infant son in Seattle. He spent two months locked up without trial, and, while in the stockade, received a telegram announcing his son's birth.{{sfn|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|p=13}}{{refn|group=nb|Al Hendrix completed his basic training at [[Fort Sill]], Oklahoma.{{sfn|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|p=13}} He spent most of his time in the service in the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|South Pacific Theater]], in [[Fiji]].{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=23}}}} During Al's three-year absence, Lucille struggled to raise their son.{{sfn|Cross|2005|pp=22–25}} When Al was away, Hendrix was mostly cared for by family members and friends, especially Lucille's sister Delores Hall and her friend Dorothy Harding.<ref>{{harvnb|Lawrence|2005|p=368}}; {{harvnb|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=1}}.</ref> Al received an [[Military discharge|honorable discharge]] from the US Army on September 1, 1945. Two months later, unable to find Lucille, Al went to the [[Berkeley, California]], home of a family friend named Mrs. Champ, who had taken care of and attempted to adopt Hendrix; this is where Al saw his son for the first time.<ref>{{harvnb|Cross|2005|pp=25–27}}; {{harvnb|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=2}}.</ref>

After returning from service, Al reunited with Lucille, but his inability to find steady work left the family impoverished. They both struggled with alcohol, and often fought when intoxicated. The violence sometimes drove Hendrix to withdraw and hide in a closet in their home.{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=32}} His relationship with his brother [[Leon Hendrix|Leon]] (born 1948) was close but precarious; with Leon in and out of foster care, they lived with an almost constant threat of fraternal separation.<ref>{{harvnb|Black|1999|p=11}}: Leon's birthdate; {{harvnb|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=2}}: Leon, in and out of foster care.</ref> In addition to Leon, Hendrix had three younger siblings: Joseph, born in 1949, Kathy in 1950, and Pamela in 1951, all of whom Al and Lucille gave up to foster care and adoption.{{sfn|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|pp=20–22}} The family frequently moved, staying in cheap hotels and apartments around Seattle. On occasion, family members would take Hendrix to Vancouver to stay at his grandmother's. A shy and sensitive boy, he was deeply affected by his life experiences.{{sfn|Cross|2005|pp=32, 179, 308}} In later years, he confided to a girlfriend that he had been the victim of sexual abuse by a man in uniform.{{sfn|Cross|2005|pp=50, 127}} On December 17, 1951, when Hendrix was nine years old, his parents divorced; the court granted Al custody of him and Leon.{{sfn|Stubbs|2003|p=140}}

=== First instruments ===
At Horace Mann Elementary School in Seattle during the mid-1950s, Hendrix's habit of carrying a broom with him to emulate a guitar gained the attention of the school's social worker. After more than a year of his clinging to a broom like a [[Comfort object|security blanket]], she wrote a letter requesting school funding intended for underprivileged children, insisting that leaving him without a guitar might result in psychological damage.{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=5}} Her efforts failed, and Al refused to buy him a guitar.{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=5}}{{refn|group=nb|According to Hendrix's cousin, Diane Hendrix, in August 1956, when Jimi stayed with her family, he put on shows for her, using a broom to mimic a guitar while listening to [[Elvis Presley]] records.{{sfn|Black|1999|pp=16–18}}}}

In 1957, while helping his father with a side-job, Hendrix found a [[ukulele]] among the garbage they were removing from an older woman's home. She told him that he could keep the instrument, which had only one string.{{sfn|Hendrix|Mitchell|2012|pp=56–58}} Learning by ear, he played single notes, following along to [[Elvis Presley]] songs, particularly "[[Hound Dog (song)|Hound Dog]]".<ref>{{harvnb|Black|1999|pp=16–18}}: Hendrix playing along with "Hound Dog" (secondary source); {{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=100}}: Hendrix playing along with Presley's version of "Hound Dog" (primary source); {{harvnb|Hendrix|Mitchell|2012|p=59}}: Hendrix playing along with Presley songs (primary source).</ref>{{refn|group=nb|Hendrix saw Presley perform in Seattle on September 1, 1957.<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|McDermott|2007|p=9}}: Hendrix seeing Presley perform; {{harvnb|Black|1999|p=18}}: the date Hendrix saw Presley perform.</ref>}} By the age of 33, Hendrix's mother Lucille had developed [[cirrhosis]] of the liver, and on February 2, 1958, she died when her [[spleen]] ruptured.{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=4}} Al refused to take James and Leon to attend their mother's funeral; he instead gave them shots of [[Whisky|whiskey]] and told them that was how men should deal with loss.{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=4}}{{refn|group=nb|In 1967, Hendrix revealed his feelings in regard to his mother's death during a survey he took for the UK publication, ''[[NME|New Musical Express]]''. Hendrix stated: "Personal ambition: Have my own style of music. See my mother again."{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=5}}}} In 1958, Hendrix completed his studies at [[Washington Middle School (Seattle, Washington)|Washington Junior High School]] and began attending, but did not graduate from, [[Garfield High School (Seattle)|Garfield High School]].<ref>{{harvnb|Lawrence|2005|pp=17–19}}: Hendrix did not graduate from James A. Garfield High School; {{harvnb|Shapiro|Glebbeek|1995|p=694}}: Hendrix completed his studies at Washington Middle School.</ref>{{refn|group=nb|In the late 1960s, after he had become famous, Hendrix told reporters that racist faculty expelled him from Garfield for holding hands with a white girlfriend during study hall. Principal Frank Hanawalt says that it was due to poor grades and attendance problems.{{sfn|Cross|2005|pp=73–74}} The school had a relatively even ethnic mix of African, European, and Asian-Americans.{{sfn|Lawrence|2005|pp=17–19}}}}

In mid-1958, at age 15, Hendrix acquired his first acoustic guitar, for $5{{sfn|Heatley|2009|p=18}} ({{Inflation|US|5|1958|fmt=eq}}). He played for hours daily, watching others and learning from more experienced guitarists, and listening to [[blues]] artists such as [[Muddy Waters]], [[B.B. King]], [[Howlin' Wolf]], and [[Robert Johnson]].<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=126}}: (primary source); {{harvnb|Roby|Schreiber|2010|p=6}}: (secondary source).</ref> The first tune Hendrix learned to play was the television theme "[[Peter Gunn (song)|Peter Gunn]]".<ref>{{harvnb|Hendrix|1999|p=113}}: (primary source); {{harvnb|Heatley|2009|p=20}}: (secondary source).</ref> Around that time, Hendrix jammed with boyhood friend [[Sammy Drain]] and his keyboard-playing brother.{{sfn|Macdonald|2015|loc=eBook}} In 1959, attending a concert by [[Hank Ballard]] & [[The Midnighters]] in Seattle, Hendrix met the group's guitarist [[Billy Davis (guitarist)|Billy Davis]].<ref name="Grimshaw">{{cite web|url=http://billydavisdetroit.com/#biography|title=Biography of JC Billy Davis|last=Grimshaw|first=LE|website=BillyDavisDetroit.com|date=June 2017|access-date=January 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104132619/http://billydavisdetroit.com/#biography|archive-date=January 4, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Davis showed him some guitar licks and got him a short gig with the Midnighters.{{sfn|Roby|Schreiber|2010|pp=48–49}} The two remained friends until Hendrix's death in 1970.<ref name="Parker">{{cite web|url=https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/its-getting-late-but-still-not-midnight-for-billy-davis/Content?oid=4619010|title=It's Getting Late, but Still Not Midnight for Billy Davis: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee Keeps on Creating|last=Parker|first=Chris|website=[[Detroit Metro Times]]|date=July 19, 2017|access-date=January 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104132638/https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/its-getting-late-but-still-not-midnight-for-billy-davis/Content?oid=4619010|archive-date=January 4, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Soon after he acquired the acoustic guitar, Hendrix formed his first band, the Velvetones. Without an electric guitar, he could barely be heard over the sound of the group. After about three months, he realized that he needed an electric guitar.{{sfn|Heatley|2009|p=19}} In mid-1959, his father relented and bought him a white [[Supro Ozark 1560 S|Supro Ozark]].{{sfn|Heatley|2009|p=19}} Hendrix's first gig was with an unnamed band in the Jaffe Room of Seattle's [[Temple De Hirsch]], but they fired him between sets for showing off.{{sfn|Cross|2005|p=67}} He joined the Rocking Kings, which played professionally at venues such as the Birdland club. When his guitar was stolen after he left it backstage overnight, Al bought him a red [[Silvertone (instruments)|Silvertone]] [[Danelectro]].{{sfn|Heatley|2009|p=28}}