I am sad to report that we have lost the last surviving member of the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience. Wildly influential drummer Mitch Mitchell of the trio was found dead in his hotel room in Portland Wednesday morning at the age of 61. His death was ruled of "natural causes", but Robbie Krieger of the Doors/Riders On The Storm indicated that Mitch had been acting rather strangely in the previous few days leading up to his death. Robbie and Mitch (along with many other special guests) had just finished a nationwide tour called the "2008 Experience Hendrix Tour" which saw them perform at the Chicago Theatre less than six weeks ago. The symptoms that Robbie described suggest to me that perhaps Mitch had suffered a series of small strokes leading to his death. Sadly, Mitch was scheduled to catch a flight back to his native England later that day. In a strange twist of fate, Mitch Mitchell expired in Jimi's homeland, while Hendrix himself expired in Mitch's home country.

(See Mitch Mitchell perform with Johnny Lang and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith live at the Chicago Theatre here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXPo2ZyTD9g)

(See Mitch Mitchell perform with the Jimi Hendrix Experience live in 1969 here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiMu_ZSbKn4)

(See an interview with Mitch Mitchell in 1973 here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqMdlvhk7hA)

(See Jimi Hendrix speak about Mitch Mitchell here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUFYurV_qXA&feature=related)