Gypsys has been viewed by some rock critics less favorably than Hendrix's three studio albums with the Experience. According to writer Jeremy Wells, "critics have usually seen the Band of Gypsys' one album as the least significant of the [four] recordings Hendrix released during his lifetime". Reviewing for Rolling Stone in 1970, music journalist Gary von Tersch said that the album is hampered by poorly recorded vocals and Miles' unpleasant drumming, and instead viewed it as a showcase for Hendrix's virtuosic guitar playing: "With just bass and drum support he is able to transfuse and transfix on the strength of his guitar-work alone." The magazine's David Wild was more enthusiastic in a retrospective review and felt that songs such as "Message of Love" and "Machine Gun" still sound powerful in spite of the unclear recording quality. According to Sean Westergaard of AllMusic, Band of Gypsys is one of the best live albums of all time and an important recording for Hendrix, who played with a remarkable degree of focus and precision on what were "perhaps his finest [live] performances." Sputnikmusic's Hernan M. Campbell believed that it departed from his more psychedelic recordings with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, but still retained their intensity, particular on "Machine Gun", which Campbell called one of Hendrix's most captivating performances. On the other hand, Robert Christgau felt that the "overrated" album is decent by live rock standards, but unexceptional in Hendrix's discography. Christgau also believed that Hendrix is limited by the straighter, simpler rhythm section, but added that "Who Knows" and "Machine Gun" "are as powerful if not complex as anything he's ever put on record". He stated that Hendrix is more reliant on wah-wah guitar lines for the second half of the album, except for the "rapid fire" "Message to Love". Influence and legacy Writer Rickey Vincent describes Band of Gypsys as "a never-heard-before amalgam of punishing guitar riffs over crisp rhythm and blues grooves ... The funk-rock sound would change the face of black music, setting a template for the spectacular glam-funk of the 1970s". Murray sees their influence in the early 1970s radio hits "Freddie's Dead" by Curtis Mayfield and "That Lady" by the Isley Brothers. (Hendrix was influenced by Mayfield early in his career and was a member of the Isley Brothers' touring band before the Experience). George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic, who defined funk for the 1970s, were also influenced. P-Funk's