The beasts of 1960s British pop, Both the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix lived their golden days in the landscapes of the UK. The Beatles dominated the scene since the early 60s and when Hendrix arrived in 1966, he became another scene in the blues and rock world.
Both were two pioneering artists that rose in the 60s. The Fab Four and Jimi were friends and enjoyed each other’s company a lot. They enjoyed a keen friendship. Although there is an exception who is the Beatles member, Ringo Starr. There were several reasons and he regretted it later on. It sounds like a big deal but it really isn’t. It’s habitual to have disagreements with one another and it was the same with the two of them.
The tension they had was for a reason. Hendrix was living at his rented apartment which was Ringo’s. A certain incident caused Jimi to get kicked out of Ringo Starr’s rental apartment. He shared that he regretted making that decision which had a big effect.
That was the time when Starr had begun renting out his basement apartment in Marylebone, London. Jimi rented a flat from the drummer Ringo and its address were 34 Montagu Square. It was soon after Hendrix had moved to the UK to pursue his career. He was there with his then-girlfriend, Kathy Etchingham, his manager, Chas Chandler, and his girlfriend, Lotta Null. Their rent was £30 at that time, and it is about £500 in today’s market.
Hendrix and his partners were fine in the initial days. They had also been there for quite a time. Jimi also did a great deal of work while residing at the apartment. It was 1967, and he recorded and released one of his most successful songs, ‘Purple Haze’. He also played at the Monterey Pop Festival after Paul McCartney endorsed him and incited him. He also wrote ‘The Wind Cried Mary’ at the same apartment after fighting with Kathy. Kathy’s middle name was Mary and they fought over her cooking skills.
There was no problem until then. However, Jimi would get kicked out of the apartment very soon. It was because he couldn’t stick to the agreement he had made during the renting process. Jimi was very successful by that point and was in his prime. The problem was not the rent. In 1967, Hendrix destroyed the house’s walls by throwing whitewash over them. It was a bad acid trip. This infuriated Ringo and he decided to expel Jimi from his apartment.
Ringo Starr recalled that he regretted renting the place to Jim. It is because that incident surely affected their relationship and it totally strained the friendship they had developed.
