A page of rough song lyrics written in Jimi Hendrix's hand, entitled Unfinished Rough Sketch of Woodstock Festival, is to auction at Christie's London on June 26.
Estimated at £25,000-35,000 ($38,225-53,515), the unfinished song, which comprises 17 lines written in black felt tip and blue ball point pen, is offered from the collection of Italian DJ Red Ronnie.
 The Hendrix song-poem was written at a pivotal moment in the rock star’s career |
Of his collection, Red Ronnie comments: "I always like to say that music saved my life from loneliness.
"I first started collecting in 1990, since then I have always tried to collect items which tell the rock stars' own stories.
"The unpublished Woodstock poem was probably composed by Jimi during the [1969] festival at which Hendrix's legendary performance became a defining moment of the 1960s."
The manuscript exhibits many substitutions and deletions, representing at once Hendrix's first impressions of the American festival and his talents as a poet and songwriter.
It was during Hendrix's headline set at Woodstock that he broke into his now-infamous rendition of the American national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, which was roundly understood as a criticism of American foreign policy, and the Vietnam war in particular.
Despite making politicised sentiments elsewhere during the festival, the present, unfinished composition contains heavenly, celebratory imagery. Hendrix writes: "500,000 halos…outshined the mud and History. / We washed and drank in…thanks ["thanks" scored out] in God's tears of joy, And for once, and for everyone - the truth was not a mystery.
"Love is called to all…Music is magic…We came to gather….Danced with the pearls of rainy weather."
Items relating to Hendix's short yet heady music career are hot property among collectors. In November 2012, the star's Fender Stratocaster guitar made £180,000 ($287,500) in the UK.
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