Jefferson Airplane is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. He is one of the forerunners of the psychedelic movement. It is attached to San Francisco Sound. The group entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.
The phrase "Jefferson airplane" is also English slang for the use of a used match to hold a marijuana seal when it has become too short, so as not to burn your fingers. An urban legend claims that this is the origin of the name of the group. According to group member Jorma Kaukonen, the name is invented by one of his friends (Steve Talbot) when he was in Berkeley, in reference to one of the blues pioneers: Blind Lemon Jefferson. However, the origin of the name of the group most reliable remains the one that is written in the booklet accompanying their third album, Jefferson Airplane would evoke a flying device of only American design>.
The group formed on the west coast of the United States during the summer of 1965, during what is called the "boom folk" of the San Francisco Bay, with, singer Marty Balin, the folk musician Paul Kantner, the guitarist blues Jorma Kaukonen, jazz / folk singer Tiny Anderson, drummer Jerry Peloquin, and bassist Bob Harvey. Their musical style is inspired by the Beatles, Byrds or the Lovin 'Spoonful.
The group performed in public for the first time, on August 13, 1965, at the Matrix Club (San Francisco), with some success. Peloquin, seasonal musician, leaves the group after a few weeks, reproaching others for taking drugs. He is replaced by Skip Spence. Their sound becomes gradually more electric, so they replace Harvey, in October 1965, by a childhood friend of Kaukonen: Jack Casady >>>. Shortly after, they signed with RCA and recorded Jefferson's album Airplane Takes Off, released in 1966. The same year, Spence was replaced by jazz drummer Spencer Dryden, and Anderson by singer Grace Slick, then a member of a Another group from San Francisco, The Great Society. The band's name is then abbreviated to The Airplane by their fans. Slick is an important addition: her contralto voice works wonders with the band's psychedelic music, and in her luggage she brings two Great Society titles: White Rabbit from her composition and Somebody to Love from Darby Slick, guitarist of this band. These are the first two successes of the Airplane.
