In 1966, Eric Clapton's name was all over England.

He was well known as the best guitar player on the British scene.

People were spray painting Clapton as God on underground stations in London.

This is Ian S. Port.

He's written a book called The Birth of Loud, Leo Fender, Les Paul, and the guitar pioneering

rivalry that shaped rock and roll.

In Ian tells the story of the day, Eric Clapton, God, was struck down by a mere mortal.

In September 1966, Jimmy Hendrix comes to England.

He's supposedly coming to make his career become famous.

About three weeks after he's in town, Eric Clapton's new band Cream is playing a show

at the Regent Street Polytechnic University in London.

And Jimmy's manager, Chas Chandler, is friends with Clapton in the band and brings Jimmy

along and asks beforehand if Jimmy can go on and jam with him.

Clapton's a little weirded out because no one usually wants to go jam with the best

guy on the whole London scene.

But he says sure.

So, let's go down.

Jimmy brings his strata caster up on stage.

He plugs into a bass amp up there.

And then he calls out the song Kill and Floor.

And we don't have recording of that actual night, but we do have a live recording from a

few weeks later when Hendrix played it with his band.

...