Jimi Hendrix Songs for Groovy Children: The Fillmore East Concerts 5-CD Set

For listeners who want the Band of Gypsys’ Fillmore East performances in full, Songs for Groovy Children brings together four concerts recorded on New Year’s Eve 1969 and New Year’s Day 1970. The five-CD set presents 43 tracks in the original performance sequence, making it a more concert-focused choice than a shorter, album-centered introduction to Hendrix’s work with Billy Cox and Buddy Miles.

Its scope is the main reason to choose it: alongside new material such as “Machine Gun” and “Power of Soul,” the set includes reworked Experience favorites and blues and R&B covers. It suits you if you want to follow the group across complete live sets, Not the best choice if you’re specifically looking for a brief studio-only collection.

Getting the most from it

The sequence lets you listen to the four Fillmore performances as concerts rather than as a playlist assembled from unrelated recordings. That matters if you’re interested in how the trio moved between funk, rock, soul, blues, and R&B over the course of a set. Tracks include “Earth Blues,” “Stepping Stone,” “Foxey Lady,” “Voodoo Child (Slight Return),” “Hey Joe,” and “Purple Haze,” alongside covers including Howard Tate’s “Stop,” Jimmy Hughes’s “Steal Away,” and Elmore James’s “Bleeding Heart.”

Compared with buying into Hendrix through a compact selection of familiar songs, this set puts the emphasis on the band’s live repertoire and the shape of the performances. The full extended versions of songs originally released on the 1970 Band of Gypsys album are included. For a focused listening session, starting with one concert at a time is a practical way to take in the collection without treating its size as a single uninterrupted listen.

Key specifications

• Format: Audio CD
• What’s included: 5 CDs, 43 tracks covering four concerts
• Artist: Jimi Hendrix, with Billy Cox and Buddy Miles in the Band of Gypsys
• Dimensions: 5.2 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches
• Weight: 14.11 ounces

What stands out

The set is presented in performance order, and the recordings are described as newly mixed and restored without edits. More than two dozen tracks were previously unreleased commercially or newly remixed, giving the collection a broader purpose than simply repeating the best-known Band of Gypsys album. The package also includes previously unseen photographs, a booklet with Billy Cox’s recollections, and liner notes by Nelson George.

Buyer feedback highlights the sound and the value of having all four shows together. Some listeners describe Hendrix, Cox, and Miles as clearly distinguishable, and appreciate the bass lines and accompanying booklet. Those are listener impressions rather than a guarantee of how the set will sound on every playback system, but they point to the two main reasons collectors may prefer this release: its breadth and its concert presentation.

Practical questions

How many performances are included? The collection covers all four Band of Gypsys concerts at the Fillmore East on New Year’s Eve 1969 and New Year’s Day 1970.

Does it include familiar Hendrix songs? Yes. The track list includes “Hey Joe,” “Purple Haze,” “Foxey Lady,” and “Voodoo Child (Slight Return),” alongside Band of Gypsys material and covers.

Is there anything beyond the music? The package includes a booklet with photographs, Billy Cox’s remembrances, and liner notes by Nelson George.

Buying verdict

Choose Songs for Groovy Children if you want an extensive live document of the Band of Gypsys and value hearing four Fillmore sets in their original sequence. Its five-disc scope and mix of familiar songs, newer material, and covers make it a substantial listening commitment, rather than a concise sampler. If your priority is the complete concert experience and accompanying booklet, that breadth is the point, if you only need a short selection of studio recordings, a smaller collection is a closer fit.