The Kidnapping of Jimi Hendrix

This is a largely forgotten about episode in the life of Hendrix, in which he was allegedly kidnapped by the Mafia.  It all started after the Woodstock Festival and Hendrix was living in an area nearby the festival site.  He was purchasing cocaine from a pusher named Bobby Woods.  Woods a few days later was murdered in an alleged gangland hit.  Hendrix was taken by a couple of men to a house and supposedly held.  A message from "The Boys" which infers they were Mafia men, said that Hendrix was being well looked after.  A plan was then hatched in which his now sole manager, Mike Jeffrey(Chas Chandler had quit) was going to rescue Hendrix.

    Jeffrey approached the house where Hendrix was "being held" with two men.  Jeffrey told the two men to wait and he went into the house.  The two men then proceeded to pin a target to a tree and started target shooting.  This was an inference that these men were prepared to use guns if necessary.  Jeffrey emerged with Hendrix.

    Now if you step back and think logically, you will realise this was a complete sham, set up no doubt by Jeffrey, in order to make Hendrix beholden to him.  Hendrix live, was a cash cow, and Jeffrey was nothing but an out and out businessman making huge amounts of money from concerts.  Hendrix was wanting to change his direction, and Chandler was the man who guided him in that direction but he was gone.  Also, most critically, if it was the Mafia, Jeffrey would have been told what was happening.  Demands would have been made and Jeffrey told in no uncertain terms what would happen if he did not comply.  They were made men in the mob and only took orders from the captain of the crew they were in and his bosses.  As for the men target shooting, would that have intimidated two wiseguys?  If the two men were wiseguys, they would NOT have took orders from Jeffrey, THEY would have given the orders.  They would simply have walked in, put guns to the heads of the men there and told them straight what was happening now. After all, they would have the backing of the Family.  In Donnie Brasco, Pacino says to Depp, "You don`t walk away from me, I walk away from you!"  A made man had more power and authority over any street criminal because of who he is.  You do not need to be Jerry Capeci to know this.  Some months later, Hendrix did four shows at the Fillmore Theatre in New York.  This theatre was allegedly tied in to one of the Families.  Percussionist Juma Sultan, who appeared with Hendrix at Woodstock, claimed that Hendrix did the shows because "he was made an offer he could not refuse!"  If such an offer was made, it would have been made to Jeffrey, as Hendrix did not book the shows, he played where he was told, as Jeffrey had him over a barrel with his contract.  Truth can be duller than fiction.