Jefferson Airplane Volunteers

Jefferson Airplane was the first of the San Francisco psychedelic rock groups of the 1960s to achieve national recognition. Although the Grateful Dead ultimately proved more long-lived and popular, Jefferson Airplane defined the San Francisco sound in the '60s, with the acid rock guitar playing of Jorma Kaukonen and the soaring twin vocals of Grace Slick and Marty Balin, scoring hit singles and landing on the cover of national magazines.

REMARKABLE 1970 SHOW FROM A REVITALISED JEFFERSON AIRPLANE After a number of years of plain sailing, by the end of 1969, having recently played both Woodstock and, at the end of the year, the disastrous Altamont Festival, Jefferson Airplane were somewhat mentally and physically exhausted. The only casualty however was Spencer Dryden, who was dismissed from the band in February 1970, as he was deeply disturbed by the events at Altamont and burned out from four years on the acid-merry-go-round. Throughout 1970 the group continued to tour regularly however, but their only new recording that year was the single Mexico backed with Have You Seen the Saucers? . Grace Slick's a-side was an attack on President Richard Nixon's Operation Intercept, which had been implemented to curtail the flow of marijuana into the United States.

This compilation chronicles the history of Jefferson Airplane/Starship as seen on the VH1 Behind the Music series. This is the first CD to encapsulate the band as it morphed between its three phases with the only consistency being the vocals of Grace Slick. These 18 tracks start with 1967's summer of love anthems "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit," then move into the decadent '70s haze of "Miracles" and "With Your Love," and conclude with the '80s glossy pop/ballads "We Built This City," "Sara," and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now." Fans of one particular incarnation of the band may find parts of this nauseating or outdated, depending on where they stand. For better or worse, the band constantly evolved throughout three decades, unlike other mega superstar groups that gained prominence at the same time.

Its smirky title notwithstanding, The Worst of Jefferson Airplane provides a fine recap of the band's first six albums. Released in 1970 shortly before Marty Balin's initial departure from the band, the album marked not only the end of the decade but, unwittingly, the end of the group's most stable phase in terms of membership. The track selections are evenly divided among the first-generation albums; only the live Bless Its Pointed Little Head is represented by a single entry. Pains were also taken to include songs featuring lead vocalists Balin, Grace Slick, Paul Kantner, and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen. A few omissions are striking, most notably the chart single "Greasy Heart" and the signature Kantner track, "Wooden Ships."

Sony/BMG's Legacy imprint decided to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Woodstock by issuing a slew of double-disc deluxe packages by catalog artists who played the festival. Each slipcase contains the featured artist's entire performance at Woodstock and as a bonus, an LP sleeve reproduction of a classic album issued near the time the festival occurred, as well as fine, individually designed 16" X 24" double-sided posters. Of the five volumes in the Woodstock Experience series, the Jefferson Airplane's volumes is simultaneously one of the most compelling and frustrating.

Remastered version of a compilation originally released on vinyl in 1970. Reflecting a sense of humor that not all the Haight-Ashbury bands could share or even afford, The Worst of Jefferson Airplane remains one of the most amusing titles of a '60s rock album. The disc smartly collapses two big singles ("White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love," of course) and other well-selected tracks into a chronological mix that moves from flat-out hard rock ("It's No Secret") to the solo acoustic showcase ("Embryonic Journey") and the gospel/blues blessing "Good Shepherd."

At the muddy miracle that was Woodstock, the most miraculous performance just might have been Jefferson Airplane's. The band had been one of the first to sign on for the festival, their imprimatur prompting many other acts to hop on board, and their stature had landed them a coveted headlining slot closing Saturday night's schedule. But, as the torrential downpours and the unexpected crush of half a million people kept on delaying their set, the chances of putting on anything approaching a quality performance seemed to diminish. According to Paul Kantner, "We were supposed to go on at 10:30 at night and we'd been up and down about four or five times on acid that night, getting ready to go on, and then everything was delayed for whatever reasons.

No group epitomises the essence of the West Coast's 1960's counterculture scene better than Jefferson Airplane, and this record chronicles their development from the gentle folk rock beginnings ("High Flyin' Bird", "Blues From An Airplane", "Somebody To Love" - the last being a legacy from Grace Slick's first band, The Great Society) to the explorers of emotional states ("White Rabbit" et al) and their political activism ("Volunteers", "We Can Be Together").