The theory linking Ozzy Osbourne's father-in-law to Jimi Hendrix's death

Ozzy Osbourne's father-in-law and Jimi Hendrix's death: a hit job or a far-fetched theory?

Some claim it was not an accidental overdose or a ritual. One line of analysis argues that behind Jimi Hendrix's death, in September 1970, there was a financial hit orchestrated by his own manager. The name in the spotlight is Michael Jeffery, the guitarist's representative and a figure with connections in the music world that some link to Don Arden, the famous and antiestéticared manager who years later would become Ozzy Osbourne's father-in-law.

According to this thesis, Hendrix was about to break his contract with Jeffery. The musician wanted to move away from The Jimi Hendrix Experience's sound to explore jazz fusion, with plans to record with Miles Davis and Gil Evans. That artistic shift threatened his manager's income, which came from the royalties of the earlier sound. Moreover, the contract was about to expire. Faced with the prospect of losing his golden goose, Jeffery allegedly ordered a kidnapping to intimidate Hendrix and, failing that, his murder.

The death triggered a spike in sales, but critics of the theory point out that killing an artist is not good business in the long run: 80% of posthumous income goes to the publishing catalogue, not the manager. In addition, the forensic evidence points to an accidental intoxication, and the key witness, Monika Dannemann, took her own life 26 years later — she was not murdered. The hit-job hypothesis runs up against a more prosaic reality: Hendrix drowned in his own vomit after a night of pills and wine. But the debate over whether there was foul play remains open, fuelled by the violent track record of some figures in rock.

What is certain is that the music that could have been — the collaboration with Miles Davis, the fusion with Santana — was cut short. Drummer Mitch Mitchell ended up playing with Santana, and the influence of John McLaughlin (Davis's guitarist) showed up on later records. But from there to a murder is a leap only the boldest theories dare to make.