Jefferson Airplane

Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane
Origin	San Francisco, California, US
Genres	Psychedelic rock, acid rock, folk rock
Years active	1965–1972
Labels	RCA Victor
Associated acts	Jefferson Starship, Hot Tuna, Quicksilver Messenger Service
Members	Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady, Spencer Dryden

Jefferson Airplane were an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1965. Widely regarded as the first commercially successful band to emerge from the San Francisco psychedelic scene, they became one of the definitive acts of the counterculture of the 1960s. Their music blended folk rock with psychedelic experimentation, and their concerts at venues such as the Fillmore Auditorium helped define the Summer of Love era.

Jefferson Airplane performed at several landmark events of the era, including the Monterey Pop Festival (1967), Woodstock (1969), and Altamont Free Concert (1969). The band dissolved in 1972, with members going on to form Jefferson Starship and Hot Tuna.

History

Formation (1965–1966)

The band was founded in San Francisco in 1965 by vocalist and rhythm guitarist Marty Balin and guitarist Paul Kantner. Balin had previously run a folk club called the Matrix in North Beach. The original lineup also included lead guitarist Jorma Kaukonen, bassist Jack Casady, drummer Skip Spence, and vocalist Signe Toly Anderson.

The band took their name from a piece of slang — a "Jefferson Airplane" referred to a split matchstick used to hold a too-short marijuana cigarette. They became regulars at the Fillmore Auditorium and quickly built a following within the burgeoning Haight-Ashbury scene.

Their debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off (1966), was recorded for RCA Victor and featured Anderson on lead vocals. It was a respectable commercial entry, though it gave little indication of the impact to come.

Breakthrough with Surrealistic Pillow (1967)

The most transformative change to the lineup came when Signe Anderson left the band following the birth of her child, and Skip Spence departed to form Moby Grape. Anderson was replaced by Grace Slick, formerly of The Great Society, who brought with her two songs from that band: "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit". Drummer Spencer Dryden joined simultaneously.

The resulting album, Surrealistic Pillow (1967), became one of the defining records of the psychedelic era. (See dedicated section below.)

Peak years (1968–1969)

The band released a string of increasingly experimental albums following their commercial peak. After Bathing at Baxter's (1967) was a sprawling, avant-garde departure, divided into "suites" and featuring extended improvisation. Crown of Creation (1968) was more structured and drew on science fiction themes.

Volunteers (1969) was their most overtly political record, released in the immediate aftermath of Woodstock, where the band had delivered a chaotic but memorable dawn performance. The title track became an anthem of the era's radical politics.

Decline and dissolution (1970–1972)

Internal tensions mounted in the early 1970s. Marty Balin, a founding member, largely withdrew from the band by 1971 following creative disagreements. Kaukonen and Casady devoted increasing energy to their blues-oriented side project, Hot Tuna.

The album Bark (1971) was the first released on the band's own Grunt Records label, but it met with diminished commercial and critical returns. Long John Silver (1972) followed before the band officially dissolved.

Kantner and Slick continued under the name Jefferson Starship, which achieved considerable commercial success through the late 1970s and beyond.

Surrealistic Pillow (1967)

Surrealistic Pillow
Surrealistic Pillow album cover
Artist	Jefferson Airplane
Released	February 1, 1967
Recorded	November 1966
Studio	RCA Studio A, Hollywood
Genre	Psychedelic rock, acid rock, folk rock
Length	34:19
Label	RCA Victor
Producer	Rick Jarrard
Preceded by	Jefferson Airplane Takes Off (1966)
Followed by	After Bathing at Baxter's (1967)

Surrealistic Pillow is the second studio album by Jefferson Airplane, released on February 1, 1967 on RCA Victor. Produced by Rick Jarrard, it was the band's commercial and artistic breakthrough, reaching number 3 on the Billboard 200 chart and remaining on the chart for over a year. It is considered one of the quintessential albums of the San Francisco psychedelic era.

The album's title was reportedly suggested by Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead, who served as an informal musical consultant during recording. Garcia is credited as "spiritual advisor" in the liner notes.

Background

The arrival of Grace Slick from The Great Society was the catalyst for the album's distinctive character. Slick brought commanding vocal authority and two fully realised compositions that would become the album's signature tracks. The combination of Slick's and Marty Balin's contrasting vocal styles — her steely, almost operatic delivery against his warmer, more plaintive folk tenor — gave the album an unusual tonal range.

Recording took place at RCA Studio A in Hollywood in November 1966. The sessions were relatively tight by psychedelic-era standards, and the album has a more polished production feel than the free-form experimentation the band would pursue on subsequent records.

Track listing

Side one

#	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocal	Length
1	"She Has Funny Cars"	Jorma Kaukonen, Marty Balin	Balin, Slick	2:39
2	"Somebody to Love"	Darby Slick	Grace Slick	2:58
3	"My Best Friend"	Skip Spence	Balin	2:02
4	"Today"	Balin, Kantner	Balin	3:03
5	"Comin' Back to Me"	Balin	Balin	5:00

Side two

#	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocal	Length
6	"How Do You Feel"	Tom Mastin	Balin	3:05
7	"Embryonic Journey"	Kaukonen	(instrumental)	2:05
8	"White Rabbit"	Grace Slick	Slick	2:31
9	"Plastic Fantastic Lover"	Balin	Balin	2:36

Notable tracks

"Somebody to Love"

Originally written and recorded by The Great Society under the title "Someone to Love", the song was composed by Grace Slick's then-brother-in-law Darby Slick. Jefferson Airplane's version, re-arranged and re-titled, was released as a single in April 1967 and reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Grace Slick's forceful vocal performance transformed the song's folk-rock template into something far more urgent and electric. The song became one of the anthems of the Summer of Love.

"White Rabbit"

Written entirely by Grace Slick, "White Rabbit" draws on the imagery of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass as a vehicle for psychedelic allusion. The song builds from a quiet, bolero-like opening — influenced, Slick has said, by Miles Davis's Sketches of Spain — to a climactic final line delivered at full force. Released as the B-side to "Somebody to Love" before becoming a hit in its own right, it reached number 8 on the Hot 100.

The song's use of Carroll's imagery — mushrooms, pills, talking animals — was widely understood as an endorsement of drug use, and it was among the first rock songs to deal with the subject using literary metaphor rather than direct reference.

"Embryonic Journey"

A solo acoustic guitar piece by Jorma Kaukonen, "Embryonic Journey" stands apart from the rest of the album in both texture and intent. A piece of intricate fingerpicking in an open tuning, it demonstrates Kaukonen's roots in acoustic blues and anticipates the direction he and Jack Casady would pursue with Hot Tuna.

Reception and legacy

Surrealistic Pillow was both a critical and commercial success on release, reaching number 3 on the Billboard 200. It has since been consistently cited as one of the most important albums of the 1960s. Rolling Stone magazine placed it among the 500 greatest albums of all time in multiple iterations of their list.

The album is widely credited with bringing the San Francisco psychedelic sound to mainstream American audiences, predating the Summer of Love by several months and helping to shape the cultural climate of that year.

Members

Name	Role	Years active
Marty Balin	Vocals, rhythm guitar, founding member	1965–1971
Paul Kantner	Rhythm guitar, vocals	1965–1972
Jorma Kaukonen	Lead guitar	1965–1972
Jack Casady	Bass guitar	1965–1972
Grace Slick	Vocals, keyboards	1966–1972
Spencer Dryden	Drums	1966–1970
Skip Spence	Drums (original)	1965–1966
Signe Toly Anderson	Vocals (original)	1965–1966

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album	Label	US chart peak
1966	Jefferson Airplane Takes Off	RCA Victor	#128
1967	Surrealistic Pillow	RCA Victor	#3
1967	After Bathing at Baxter's	RCA Victor	#17
1968	Crown of Creation	RCA Victor	#6
1969	Bless Its Pointed Little Head (live)	RCA Victor	#17
1969	Volunteers	RCA Victor	#13
1971	Bark	Grunt Records	#11
1972	Long John Silver	Grunt Records	#20