“These are far superior to all the other versions of these tracks”: A rare tape of unknown studio versions of several Jimi Hendrix classics is coming up for auction

The rare Jimi Hendrix tape, recorded in 1968, is expected to fetch up to £200,000 next month

A previously unknown tape featuring alternative versions of several Jimi Hendrix classics is to be auctioned next month. For the last 50 years the tape has been in the possession of Patricia “Trixie” Sullivan, former personal assistant to Hendrix’s manager, Mike Jeffery, who rescued it from Jeffrey’s Central London office in central London after it had been ransacked by bailiffs.

“The Ampex tape, which includes seven minutes of audio, features four unreleased demo recordings by The Jimi Hendrix Experience,” reads the sales blurb accompanying the tape’s listing. “The songs on the tape are Stone Free, Up From the Skies, Ain’t No Telling and Little Miss Lover.

“None of these songs have ever surfaced, been circulated or have even been known to exist. These recordings are very different in sound and are generally shorter than the more common examples. It has been said that they sound better than the originals.”