The 1967 tour where Pink Floyd opened for Jimi Hendrix

In late 1967, Pink Floyd landed the opening slot on a UK tour headlined by Jimi Hendrix. The bill also included The Move, The Nice, and others. It wasn’t a natural pairing — Floyd’s spacey, delicate psychedelia had to hold a crowd that was already amped for Hendrix’s explosive guitar theatrics. Floyd’s set was quieter, less confrontational, and the audience often talked through it.

The band’s reaction was a mix of awe and insecurity. Drummer Nick Mason later wrote that Hendrix’s stage presence “blew everyone away” and that Floyd felt “like amateurs” in comparison. Rather than getting bitter, the experience pushed them to rethink their live show. They started experimenting with louder, more rhythmic passages and eventually incorporated the kind of dramatic dynamics that would define their 1970s work. It wasn’t a direct imitation — but Hendrix taught them that subtlety alone couldn’t hold a concert hall.