I've never really known much about Jefferson Airplane. Of course I had heard "Somebody to Love", but in my mind their biggest hit was "We Built this City" after they morphed into Starship. Little did I know that they had some really good songs in their early years, not to mention a vastly different sound.
I popped this disk in and sat back in the hopes of hearing some good music and seeing what the big deal was. Needless to say, I was very impressed with the band and this DVD which is focused on their early years, 1965-1973. It features 13 performances and videos intercut with new interview material with all of the band members and their manager. It also includes some extra interview footage concerning the origins of the band and the importance of the lighting director, among other topics.
The performances collected here are all first rate. It starts off with some of the earliest known video footage from the Bell Telephone Hour, a performance of "It's No Secret." Next up are a couple of great performances from the legendary Monterey Pop festival, "Somebody to Love" and "High Flying Bird." The band commented on playing this festival as a follow up to the Monterey Jazz festival the year prior and the differences in the environment. Next is a bizarre classic, "White Rabbit" from the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. It features Grace Slick wearing a full face of brown makeup singing one of the trippiest songs I'd ever heard. There are a few more songs from the Smothers Brothers show, which shows how supportive the Brothers were of the music scene, as the Airplane were rather strange, and the Brothers were big supporters of the music scene at the time.
The most memorable performance for me is "House at Pooneil Corners," from a rooftop in New York City and filmed by filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard. A piece of guerrilla filming, they took to the roof tops without permits and proceeded to play their music until the police came in to shut them down. It was an amazing segment, they played great, much to the shock of the passing crowds below, people peeking out their windows. It was something to behold, to be copied the following year by The Beatles. Another great performance was "Ballad of You & Me & Pooneil" from Night at the Family Dog, what stood out to me here was the great bass solo from Jack Casady paired off with an equally good guitar solo from Jorma Kaukonen.
Article comments
1 - crooked spine
I love Jefferson Airplane. Surrealistic Pillow is widely considered a classic (and rightfully so), but I actually think Volunteers is a stronger album. And I've always considered Bless Its Pointed Little Head the first really great live rock & roll album. It kicked off the era of Live at Leeds, Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!, Mad Dogs & Englishmen, and The Allman Brothers At Fillmore East.
2 - Chris Beaumont
You've given me some ideas to explore. Thanks for reading!
3 - The Proprietor
I've wondered a bit about this DVD, as to whether it would bring anything new to the table. The Monterey Pop box sets (DVD and CD) gave a very good feel for the Airplane as a live act in '67 and while it's nice to see some of the TV clips, I wonder if any were indeed live (even the Who's legendary performance on the Smothers Brothers was mimed to a tape - watch "My Generation" closely and you'll see Keith Moon not even making contact with the drums until well after the music starts). I would imagine that there are great outtakes of the Airplane from both "Gimme Shelter" and "Woodstock" that should see the light of day eventually.
4 - uao
Regarding their TV clips, I still haven't seen many of them (I've been thinking of getting this DVD myself; went so far as to carry it around with me in the store before deciding to use my money on something else).
However one clip Chris didn't mention as being on the DVD that is indeed recorded live, is "Crown of Creation" from the Ed Sullivan Show 1968. It is perhaps the greatest one-song video encapsulation of the band I've ever seen, complete with a heavy duty state of the art psychedelic light show. I think it exists on an Ed Sullivan show compilation, if it isn't here.
Somebody to Love and White Rabbit from the Smothers brothers are studio recordings, as I recall. The Monterey Pop festival ones are obviously live.
One piece of video they should have included would have been "Other Side Of This Life" from Altamont, in which Mart Balin gets beat up on camera by Hells Angles. The song breaks down in one minute, and obviously isn't musical; but the history of the moment would have fleshed out that DVD.
I think I will pick it up tough; someone just gave me a $50 gift certificate to Barnes and Noble.