Billy Cox
Pictured here with his well-worn ‘70s Fender Jazz bass, Cox opened the show with the famed Ernie
Isley on guitar. Double Trouble drummer Chris Layton joined them for a great rendition of “Stone Free.”
Out of everyone in the 2010 Experience Hendrix lineup, none had a closer relationship
to Hendrix than Billy Cox. They met at Fort Campbell in Kentucky in the early
’60s when they enlisted in the US Army. Cox was Hendrix’s original choice for the
bassist slot in the Experience, but Cox had several other musical projects going at
the time so he declined. History would eventually be made when Hendrix and Cox
reunited to form Band of Gypsys. The combination of the two, with the late Buddy
Miles on drums, gave the world some of Hendrix’s best compositions, including
“Machine Gun” and “Changes.”
Cox ripped through the Milwaukee set with cuts like “Stone Free,” “Message to Love,”
“Them Changes,” and the closing “Red House” using a classic combination of a ’70s
Fender Jazz bass rumbling through an Ampeg SVT Classic head and a matching Ampeg
8x10 cabinet. The setup was simple yet legendary, just like Cox’s thumping bass work.
Cox’s amp setup consisted of an Ampeg SVT Classic tube head with a matching Ampeg 8x10 cabinet.