Jeff Beck said Jimi Hendrix’s 1970 rendition of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ alarmed him because he believed the guitarist was being overwhelmed by intense expectations and personal pressures. The account matters as a reflection on the strain behind Hendrix’s celebrated live performances shortly before his death.

Beck admired Hendrix’s versions of ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ and ‘Stone Free’, but described the anthem performance from the Isle of Wight as troubling. He felt Hendrix should have returned to the studio to create new work rather than repeatedly facing audiences expecting extraordinary performances. Hendrix died in 1970, aged 27.