| Jefferson Airplane |
Article Index for Jefferson |
Articles about Jefferson Airplane |
Website Links For Jefferson Airplane |
Information AboutJefferson Airplane |
Jefferson Airplane is an American Rock Band from San Francisco , a pioneer of the Psychedelic Rock movement. The Airplane was the 'flagship' act for the burgeoning Psychedelic Music scene that developed in San Francisco in the mid-1960s. They were the first San Francisco group to perform at a dance concert — the seminal 'happening' at the Longshoremen's Hall in October 1965 — they were the first to sign a contract with a major record label, the first to appear on national television, the first to score hit records and the first to tour to the US East Coast and Europe. Throughout the late 1960s Jefferson Airplane was one of the most sought-after (and highly-paid) concert acts in the world, their records sold in great quantities, they scored two US Top 10 hit singles and a string of Top 20 albums, and their 1967 LP '' Surrealistic Pillow '' is still widely regarded as one of the key recordings of the so-called " Summer Of Love ''." Successive incarnations of the band have performed under different names, reflecting changing times and performer lineups: Jefferson Starship , and later simply Starship before becoming '''Jefferson Starship The Next Generation''' in 1991. Jefferson Airplane was Inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1996. HISTORY Formation and early career Jefferson Airplane formed in San Francisco during the summer of 1965, emerging from what was called the San Francisco Bay Folk Music boom (see American Folk Music Revival ). Although the Airplane were considered the pre-eminent San Francisco group of the period, Kantner was in fact the only native San Franciscan member. The group's founder was singer Marty Balin , who had established a minor career as a pop singer in the early Sixties and made several recordings under his own name. In mid-1965 Balin raised funds to open a new nightclub, The Matrix and soon after he met folk musician Paul Kantner at another local club, the Drinking Gourd. Kantner had started out performing on the Bay Area folk circuit in the early Sixties, alongside fellow 'folkies' Jerry Garcia , David Crosby and Janis Joplin and he has cited folk group The Kingston Trio as a strong early influence. He briefly moved to Los Angeles ca. 1964 where he worked in a folk duo with future Airplane/Starship member David Freiberg (who subsequently joined Quicksilver Messenger Service ). Balin and Kantner then set about selecting other musicians to form a group that would be the "house band" at the Matrix. Balin heard female vocalist Signe Toly Anderson at the Drinking Gourd and invited her to be the group's co-lead singer; however Anderson became pregnant with her first child in late 1965, which led to her eventual departure in late 1966. Kantner next recruited an old friend, a highly proficient Blues guitarist called Jorma Kaukonen , originally from Washington DC. Kaukonen had moved to California in the early Sixties and met Kantner while studying at Santa Clara University ca. 1962. Kaukonen was invited to jam with the new band and although initially reluctant to join, he was won over after playing his guitar through a Tape Delay device that was part of the sound system used by Ken Kesey for his famous Acid Test parties. The original lineup was completed by drummer Jerry Peloquin and acoustic bassist Bob Harvey . The origin of the group's name is often disputed. "Jefferson airplane" is a Slang term for a used paper match split open to hold a Marijuana joint that has been smoked too short to hold without burning the hands -- an improvised Roach Clip (Margolis & Clorfene 1970). An Urban Legend claims this was the origin of the band's name, but according to band member Jorma Kaukonen , the name was invented by his friend Steve Talbot as a parody of blues names such as Blind Lemon Jefferson . {Link without Title} A 2007 press release quoted Kaukonen as saying: :"I had this friend {Link without Title} in Berkeley who came up with funny names for people," explains Kaukonen. "His name for me was Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane (for blues pioneer Blind Lemon Jefferson). When the guys were looking for band names and nobody could come up with something, I remember saying, 'You want a silly band name? I got a silly band name for you!'" The group made its first public appearance at the opening night of The Matrix club on August 13, 1965. Peloquin was a seasoned musician whose disdain for the others' drug use was a factor in his departure just a few weeks after the group began. Although he was not a drummer, singer-guitarist Skip Spence (who later founded Moby Grape ) was then invited to take over the drum stool by Balin. They drew inspiration from groups such as The Beatles , The Byrds , and The Lovin' Spoonful , gradually developing a more pop-oriented 'electric' sound. The other members soon decided that Harvey's bass playing was not up to par, so he was replaced in October 1965 by accomplished guitarist-bassist Jack Casady , whose brother Chick was an old friend of Kaukonen's from Washington DC. Casady played his first gig with the Airplane at a college concert in Berkeley, California , two weeks after he arrived in San Francisco. The group's performing skills improved rapidly and they quickly gained a strong following in and around San Francisco, aided by rave reviews from veteran music journalist Ralph J. Gleason , the jazz critic of the '' San Francisco Chronicle ''; after seeing the band at the Matrix in late 1965 he proclaimed them "one of the best bands ever." Gleason's support raised the band's profile greatly, and within three months their manager Matthew Katz was fielding offers from record companies, although they were yet to perform outside the Bay Area. Two very significant early concerts featuring the Airplane were held in late 1965. The first was the now-legendary dance at the Longshoremen's Hall in San Francisco on 16 October 1965, the first of many such 'happenings' in the Bay Area, and it was here that Ralph Gleason first saw the Airplane perform. At this concert they were supported by another local folk-rock group The Great Society , which featured Grace Slick as lead singer, whom Kantner met for the first time that night. A few weeks later, on 6 November, they headlined a benefit concert for the San Francisco Mime Troupe , the first of many engagements for rising entrepreneur Bill Graham , who eventually became their manager. In November 1965 Jefferson Airplane signed a recording contract with RCA Victor , which included a then unheard-of Advance of US$25,000. On 10 December 1965 they played at the first Bill Graham show at the Fillmore ballroom, supported by The Great Society and others, and they also appeared at a number of Family Dog shows promoted by Chet Helms . The group's first single was Balin's "It's No Secret" (a tune he had written with Otis Redding in mind); the B-side was "Runnin' Round The World", the song that subsequently led to the band's first major clash with RCA. Their debut LP '' Jefferson Airplane Takes Off '' was completed in March 1966, and soon after, during the spring of 1966, Skip Spence abruptly quit the band. He was eventually replaced by an experienced jazz drummer recruited from Los Angeles, Spencer Dryden , who played his first show with the Airplane at the Berkeley Folk Festival on 4 July 1966. Manager Matthew Katz was fired in August and the legal fallout from this action was to continue for several years. After Katz's sacking Balin's friend and flatmate Bill Thompson was installed as their permanent road manager and temporary band manager. Thompson, a staunch friend and ally of the band, was a former ''Chronicle'' staffer who first convinced reviewers Ralph Gleason and John Wasserman to see the band. Thanks to Gleason's influence, Thompson was able to book the group for prestigious appearances at the Berkeley Folk Festival and the Monterey Jazz Festival . ''Jefferson Airplane takes Off'' was released in September 1966. Folk music very much influenced the album, which included such staples as John D. Loudermilk 's " Tobacco Road " and Dino Valente 's " Let's Get Together ", as well as original ballads "It's No Secret" and "Come Up the Years." The LP garnered considerable attention in the USA and eventually became a gold album. RCA initially pressed only 15,000 copies, but it sold more than 10,000 in San Francisco alone, prompting the label to reprint it. It was at this point that the company deleted the track "Runnin' All Over The World" (which had appeared on early mono pressings), because executives objected to the use of the word "trip" in the lyrics. They also substituted altered versions of two other tracks ("Let Me In" and "Run Around") because of similar concerns about lyrics. The original pressings of ''Takes Off'' featuring "Runnin' 'Round The World" are now rare collectors' items worth thousands of dollars. Arrival of Grace Slick Signe Anderson gave birth to her daughter in May 1966, but by October she had decided that it was impossible to continue performing, so she reluctantly announced her departure. Her final gig with the Airplane took place at the Fillmore on 15 October 1966. The following night, her replacement Grace Slick made her first appearance with Jefferson Airplane. Grace, a former professional model, was already well-known to the band -- she had attended the Airplane's debut gig at the Matrix in 1965 and her previous group The Great Society had often supported the Airplane in concert. Slick's recruitment proved pivotal to the Airplane's commercial breakthrough — she possessed a powerful and supple Contralto voice, well-suited to the group's amplified psychedelic music, she was strikingly good looking, and her dynamic stage presence greatly enhanced the group's live impact. The Great Society had recorded an early version of "Somebody To Love" (under the title "Someone To Love") as the B-side of their only single, "Free Advice"; it was produced by Sylvester Stewart (soon to become famous as Sly Stone ) but it reportedly took more than 50 takes to achieve a satisfactory rendition. The Great Society decided to split in the autumn of 1966 and they played their last show on 11 September. Soon after, Slick was asked to join Jefferson Airplane by Jack Casady (whose musicianship was a major influence on her decision to join) and her Great Society contract was bought out for US$750. Commercial breakthrough In December 1966 Jefferson Airplane featured prominently in a '' Newsweek '' article about the booming San Francisco music scene, one of the first in what became an avalanche of similar media reports that prompted a massive influx of young people to the city and contributed to the heavy commercialization and exploitation of the local "hippie" culture. Around the beginning of 1967 Bill Graham took over from Bill Thompson as the group's manager and in January 1967 they traveled to Los Angeles to record the tracks for their next LP, as well as making their first visit to the US East Coast. On 14 January 1967 Jefferson Airplane headlined alongside The Grateful Dead and Quicksilver Messenger Service the now-legendary " Human Be-In ", the famous all-day 'happening' staged in Golden Gate Park which is now generally acknowledged as the one of the key events leading up to the so-called " Summer Of Love ." During this period the band gained their first international recognition when they were Namechecked by rising British pop star Donovan , who saw them during his stint on the US West Coast in early 1966 and mentioned them in his song "The Fat Angel," which subsequently appeared on his '' Sunshine Superman '' LP. Jefferson Airplane's second LP, and the album that launched them to international fame, was ''Surrealistic Pillow''. It was recorded in Los Angeles over 13 days with producer Rick Jarrard at a cost of US$8000. Released in February 1967, the LP entered the '' Billboard '' album chart on March 25 and charted for over a year, peaking at #3. The album was a major international success, and alongside The Beatles' '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band '', it is widely regarded as one of the seminal albums of the so-called " Summer Of Love ." The name '' Surrealistic Pillow '' was suggested by the 'shadow' producer of the album, Jerry Garcia , when he mentioned that, as a whole, the album sounded "as Surrealistic as a pillow." The record company would not allow Garcia's considerable contributions to the album to garner him a "Producer" credit, so Garcia is listed in the album's credits as "spiritual advisor." As well as their two best-known tracks, " White Rabbit " and the rousing anthem " Somebody To Love ," the album featured "My Best Friend" by former drummer Skip Spence, Balin's driving "Plastic Fantastic Lover," and the atmospheric Balin-Kantner ballad "Today." A reminder of their earlier folk incarnation was Kaukonen's solo acoustic guitar ''tour de force'', " Embryonic Journey " (his first composition), which referenced contemporary acoustic guitar masters such as John Fahey and helped to establish the popular genre exemplified by acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke . The first single from the album, Spence's "My Best Friend," failed to chart, but the next two singles rocketed the group to prominence. Both "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" become major US hits when released as singles -- the former reached #5 and the latter #8 on the Billboard singles chart -- and by late 1967 the Airplane were national and international stars and had become one of the hottest (and highest-paid) groups in America. This phase of their career peaked with their famous performance at the epochal Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967 and two songs from their set were subsequently included in the D.A. Pennebaker film documentary of the event. Monterey showcased leading bands from several major music "scenes" including New York , San Francisco , Los Angeles , and England and the resulting TV and film coverage gave national (and international) exposure to groups that had previously had only regional fame. All these bands were also greatly assisted by appearances on nationally syndicated TV shows such as the Johnny Carson ''Tonight'' Show and '' The Ed Sullivan Show ''. The Airplane's famous appearance on the Sullivan show performing " White Rabbit " was (fortunately) videotaped in color and augmented by recent developments in video techniques. It has been frequently re-screened and is notable for its pioneering use of the Chroma Key process to simulate the Airplane's customary psychedelic light show. Change of direction The membership of Jefferson Airplane remained relatively stable until 1970, during which time they recorded five more albums and performed extensively in the USA and Europe, but the group's music underwent a significant transformation after '' Surrealistic Pillow '' and the influence of founder Marty Balin began to wane after their first commercial peak. The band delved deep into acid rock with their third LP, '' After Bathing At Baxter's ''. The product of many sessions over several months, it was released on 27 November 1967, and it entered the charts in December, eventually peaking at #27. Its famous cover, drawn by renowned artist and cartoonist Ron Cobb , features a whimsical re-imagining of the group's Haight-Ashbury house on Fulton Street, depicted as a Heath Robinson -inspired flying machine soaring about the chaos of American commercial culture. Key influences on the group's new direction were the emergence of Jimi Hendrix and in particular the first headlining US tour by British supergroup Cream , which prompted many groups including the Airplane to adopt a 'heavier' sound and to place a greater emphasis on improvisation. This was evident on ''Baxter's'', which took more than four months to record, with little interference from the nominal producer Al Schmitt . Where the previous LP had consisted entirely of short 2-3 minute songs, the new album was dominated by long multi-part suites, demonstrating the group's growing engagement with Psychedelic Rock . It also marked the emergence of Kantner and Slick as the band's major composers and the concurrent decline as major contributor of Marty Balin, who was becoming increasingly disenchanted with the "star trips" and inflated egos that their runaway commercial success had produced. ''Baxter's'' also marked the end of the Airplane's brief run of success on the singles chart. Both "White Rabbit" and "Somebody To Love" were US Top 10 hits, but the single lifted from ''Baxter's'', "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil", peaked at a mediocre #43. None of their subsequent singles made it into the Top 50 and several did not chart at all. Despite this, Jefferson Airplane continued to enjoy significant success as "album" artists and between 1967 and 1972 they scored a remarkable run of eight consecutive Top 20 albums in the USA, with both ''Surrealistic Pillow'' and ''Crown of Creation'' making the Top 10. 1968-1970 In February 1968 manager Bill Graham was fired after Grace Slick delivered her "either he goes or I go" ultimatum to the group. Bill Thompson took over as permanent manager and he set about consolidating the group's financial security, establishing Icebag Corp to oversee the band's publishing interests and purchasing a 20-room mansion at 2400 Fulton Street in the Haight-Ashbury district, which became the band's office and communal residence. The Airplane undertook their first major tour of Europe in the late summer and early autumn of 1968, co-headlining with The Doors , performing in the Netherlands , England , Belgium , Germany and Sweden . A notorious incident involving Jim Morrison took place at a concert in Amsterdam ; while they were performing "Plastic Fantastic Lover," a heavily intoxicated Morrison appeared on stage and began dancing. As the group played faster and faster, Morrison spun around wildly until he finally fell senseless on the stage at Marty Balin's feet. Not surprisingly, Morrison was unable to perform his set with the Doors and Ray Manzarek was forced to sing all the vocals. Jefferson Airplane's fourth LP '' Crown Of Creation '' (released in September 1968) was a transitional record, more concise and structured than its predecessor, and much more commercially successful, peaking at #6 on the album chart. Notable tracks include Grace Slick's Lather , which is said to be about her affair with drummer Spencer Dryden. " Triad " was a mildly risqué David Crosby piece that had famously been rejected by The Byrds because they deemed its subject matter (a '' Ménage à Trois '') to be too "hot" to record. Slick's searing sex and drug anthem "Greasy Heart" had been released as a single in March 1968. Several tracks recorded for the LP were left off the album, including the freeform Grace Slick / Frank Zappa collaboration "Would You Like A Snack?" In February 1969 RCA released the live album '' Bless Its Pointed Little Head '', which was culled from late 1968 live concert performances at The Fillmore West on October 24-26 and the Fillmore East on November 28-30. It became their fourth US Top 20 album, peaking at #17. In early August 1969 the band headlined at a free concert in New York's Central Park and a few days later they performed in an early "morning maniac music" slot at the Woodstock Festival , for which the group was augmented by noted British session keyboard player Nicky Hopkins . When interviewed about Woodstock by Jeff Tamarkin in 1992, Paul Kantner still recalled it with fondness, although Grace Slick and Spencer Dryden had less than rosy memories. Immediately after their Woodstock performance, on the last day of that event, they played a live concert on The Dick Cavett Show ; then sessions began for their next album using new 16-track facilities at the Wally Heider Studio in San Francisco and this proved to be the last recordings by the "classic" lineup of the group. '' Volunteers '' was released in the USA in November 1969 and it continued their run of Top 20 LPs, peaking at #13 early in 1970. It was their most political venture, showcasing the group's vocal opposition to the Vietnam War and documenting their reaction to the increasingly repressive political atmosphere in the United States. The title track, " Volunteers ," "We Can Be Together," "Good Shepherd," and the Post-apocalyptic "Wooden Ships" were all highlights. The album track "Wooden Ships," which Paul Kantner co-wrote with David Crosby and | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| { Class | "toccolours" border=1 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="width: 650px margin: 0 0 1em 1em border-collapse: collapse border: 1px solid #E2E2E2" |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| { Class | "toccolours" border=1 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="width: 500px margin: 0 0 1em 1em border-collapse: collapse border: 1px solid #E2E2E2" |
|
|