Paul Kantner, a founding member of Jefferson Airplane, died Thursday of multiple organ failure, his publicist told the San Francisco Chronicle. He was 74.
Kantner had suffered a heart attack earlier in the week. He had also suffered a heart attack in March 2015.
Kantner, a native of San Francisco, broke into the business in the early 1960s as a folk musician who idolized Pete Seeger. He was the first band member recruited by Marty Balin to form Jefferson Airplane in San Francisco in 1965 after Balin saw Kantner perform at the folk club the Drinking Gourd.
The band pioneered the psychedelic sound by fusing folk with rock music and mixing in reverb and fuzzy guitar lines. The Airplane became the first San Francisco rock group of that era to achieve mainstream success.
Jefferson Airplane’s debut show was on Aug. 13, 1965, at San Francisco’s the Matrix nightclub, which Balin had converted into a music outlet from a pizza parlor. Their first
album “The Jefferson Airplane Takes Off” was released a year later to little acclaim despite Balin’s memorable “It’s No Secret.”
In 1966, singer Grace Slick replaced Signe Toly Anderson, who had left the group to start a family. Slick’s addition to the band gave the group a defining sound and enhanced their stage presence. Their second record album “Surrealistic Pillow” — released in February 1967 — became a blockbuster success during the “Summer of Love” with the hit songs “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit.”
The album cover for “Surrealistic Pillow” was a simple Herb Greene black and white photo of the band with only Slick smiling. The record featured memorable tracks such as “She Has Funny Cars,” “Plastic Fantastic Lover,” “Embryonic Journey,” “D.C.B.A. – 25” and “3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds.”
Kantner admitted that “D.C.B.A. 25,” which he wrote, was a reference to LSD-25. “It’s basically an LSD-inspired romp through consciousness,” he added.
Kantner was a singer and guitarist in the group’s most notable lineup, which lasted three years, with singers Slick and Balin along with guitarist Jorma Kaukonen, drummer Spencer Dryden and bass player Jack Casady.
The Airplane was the first headline act booked by Bill Graham when he opened the iconic Fillmore Auditorium in 1966. Graham managed the group for about a year, starting in early 1967. The band played at the Human Be-In at Golden Gate Park in 1967 and the Monterey, Woodstock and Altamont festivals.
http://variety.com/2016/music/obituaries...201691466/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1b8AhIsSYQ
Kantner had suffered a heart attack earlier in the week. He had also suffered a heart attack in March 2015.
Kantner, a native of San Francisco, broke into the business in the early 1960s as a folk musician who idolized Pete Seeger. He was the first band member recruited by Marty Balin to form Jefferson Airplane in San Francisco in 1965 after Balin saw Kantner perform at the folk club the Drinking Gourd.
The band pioneered the psychedelic sound by fusing folk with rock music and mixing in reverb and fuzzy guitar lines. The Airplane became the first San Francisco rock group of that era to achieve mainstream success.
Jefferson Airplane’s debut show was on Aug. 13, 1965, at San Francisco’s the Matrix nightclub, which Balin had converted into a music outlet from a pizza parlor. Their first
album “The Jefferson Airplane Takes Off” was released a year later to little acclaim despite Balin’s memorable “It’s No Secret.”
In 1966, singer Grace Slick replaced Signe Toly Anderson, who had left the group to start a family. Slick’s addition to the band gave the group a defining sound and enhanced their stage presence. Their second record album “Surrealistic Pillow” — released in February 1967 — became a blockbuster success during the “Summer of Love” with the hit songs “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit.”
The album cover for “Surrealistic Pillow” was a simple Herb Greene black and white photo of the band with only Slick smiling. The record featured memorable tracks such as “She Has Funny Cars,” “Plastic Fantastic Lover,” “Embryonic Journey,” “D.C.B.A. – 25” and “3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds.”
Kantner admitted that “D.C.B.A. 25,” which he wrote, was a reference to LSD-25. “It’s basically an LSD-inspired romp through consciousness,” he added.
Kantner was a singer and guitarist in the group’s most notable lineup, which lasted three years, with singers Slick and Balin along with guitarist Jorma Kaukonen, drummer Spencer Dryden and bass player Jack Casady.
The Airplane was the first headline act booked by Bill Graham when he opened the iconic Fillmore Auditorium in 1966. Graham managed the group for about a year, starting in early 1967. The band played at the Human Be-In at Golden Gate Park in 1967 and the Monterey, Woodstock and Altamont festivals.
http://variety.com/2016/music/obituaries...201691466/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1b8AhIsSYQ