Driving Jimi’s corvette

If Jimi Hendrix, his most famous client, was a preeminent symbol of the foreground of 60s art, culture and creativity, Mike Jeffery as his manager and monetizer, full-time womanizer and man-child, symbolized the ever-present background.  Actually, Jeffery represented the more stable element of the mix.  Indeed today in contemporary (late 2016) western culture he symbolizes both foreground AND background  as evidenced by the popularity of a Trump president in America.  Base conquers superstructure, commerce swallows creativity, coal fire consumes sun, wind, water, earth.

In Newcastle, Mike had a girlfriend named Jennie.

‘She was so loyal,’ he said.  ‘When I had nothing, she used to sleep on the floor with me.’

Mike met a woman named Gillian in London.  Her family was well connected in the theater and Mike drove her father’s Rolls Royce.  When I walked into a restaurant with her, people’s heads turned.

When Mike told Jennie he was getting married to a woman named Gillian, Jennie asked him if he wanted to sleep with her again, ‘for old time’s sake.’

After several trips to the United States, Mike met Nancy, me, an artist.

Whenever he called London, he asked me to leave the room.  He said he had to say ‘certain things.’

Mike invited me to London to stay at his flat.  One day when he was at work, Gillian came over.

‘Isn’t this thick,’ she said.

One summer when I was in Woodstock and Mike was in Manhattan, he met a girl named Lynn, who was modelling a wedding gown in Central Park.

Lynn moved into Mike’s office apartment and started calling herself ‘Mrs. Jeffery,’ although Mike was married still to Gillian.

Gillian flew to New York to try and get Mike back.  She cried and told Mike, ‘I thought we were going to get back together.’

It must have been due to ‘certain things’ Mike had said.

Gillian flew back to London.

After Jimi’s death, Mike started receiving letters from a girl named Melissa, whose real name was Karen.

Soon Melissa arrived and Lynn departed.  I feel like I’m past my prime Lynn said.

Melissa adored Mike and wanted to have his baby.  Mike met Melissa’s father.  I think they were about the same age.

Meanwhile, ‘Tommy’ died, Mikes connections were drying up, his reputation was catching up with him, and his golden geese wanted some of their eggs back.

Mike had trouble “taming” Jimi, Nancy writes, and Nancy too for that matter, which probably caused him to respect both artists.

Jimi was playing the Fillmore.  Mike and I were driving his car downtown for him.

As we neared the throng of people on the lower east side, pushing to get into the theater, Mike said to me:

‘They’re all out there, and I’m in Jimi Hendrix’ corvette.’

I looked at him.

He said “What??”  “It’s normal, I can have feelings like that!”

I knew in a sense it was only human, what he was saying, but he was Jimi’s manager!

And he was ten years older than both Jimi and me.

And I thought he had his priorities all mixed up.  And I didn’t think he knew it. 

Maybe I took things too seriously.

On so many levels, Mike was so hard to get away from.

But he never had any trouble getting away.

I know he had trouble ‘taming’ Jimi.

And I know he had trouble ‘taming’ me.

Gerry Stickles, the late Jimi’s road manager, was called upon to identify Mike’s body after a certain mid-air collision.

But there was no body, so Gerry identified a ring.

Gillian, the widow, attended Mike’s funeral, as did Melissa.

Melissa later said that she had wanted to throw herself into Mike’s grave.

If she had, she might have been the only one in there.

Here’s one individual’s view on what likely happened to the corvette after Jimi’s death, from “Lost Star Cars” :

Hendrix died in London on Sept 17th, 1970 after an arduous European tour. The car was sold by his manager, Micheal Jefferys to pay off massive bills owing against the Hendrix Estate related to construction. Hendrix’s NYC apartment was whisked clean of personal effects within two days of his death. There is a strong chance this Corvette still exists today. His car would also have the Stingray script and 1969 door handles. To recap, it was Cortez Silver with automatic transmission, a/c, tinted glass 327 or 350 V8 engine molded steering wheel with gunmetal grey or black vinyl interior. The original windshield will have a parking permit dated 1969 and 1970. A good title search could turn up this car if you knew which company name it was registered under. It could be Bella Godiva Music, Yameta Music Corporation, Yameta Publishing or Micheal Jefferys. Seeing as to how quickly the apartment and personal effects were seized as well as the general murkiness of Micheal’s overseas tax dodge set ups, Jefferys likely owned the car on paper. Hendrix never got actual royalty checks when he was alive. He just contacted Yameta Corporation for cash on major purchases and sent all bills to same.