Jefferson Airplane/Starship: A Retrospective (1966-1991)

Jefferson Airplane/Starship A Retrospective: 1966-1991

Overview: Jefferson Airplane formed in 1965 in San Francisco, California. They became one of the flagship psychedelic rock bands, most notably with their 1967 album Surrealistic Pillow. They lasted until 1973, at which point they evolved into Jefferson Starship. Five of the members reunited in 1989 for a one-off album. In 1974, four of the members of Jefferson Airplane formed Jefferson Starship. That group remained active until 1984, at which time several of the members then formed Starship. That group disbanded in 1991. Only Grace Slick was a member of all three groups. Kaukoenen and Casady also formed the spin-off group Hot Tuna. Casady, Balin, and Kanter formed the KBC Band in 1985. The Players These are the members who have been part of Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, Starship, Hot Tuna, and the KBC Band from 1966 to 1991. Slick Aguilar (guitar – KBC Band: 1985-87; Jefferson Starship: 91) Signe Anderson (vocals – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-66) Kenny Aronoff (drums – Jefferson Airplane: 1989) Don Baldwin (drums – Jefferson Starship: 1982-84; Starship: 1985-89) Marty Balin (vocals/guitar – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-71, 1989; Jefferson Starship: 1975-79; KBC Band: 1985-87) * John Barbata (drums – Jefferson Airplane: 1972-73; Jefferson Starship: 1974-84) Jack Casady (bass – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-73, 1989; Hot Tuna: 1969-77, 1983, 1986-; KBC Band: 1985-87) * Craig Chaquico (guitar – Jefferson Starship: 1974-84; Starship: 1985-89) Papa John Creach (violin – Jefferson Airplane: 70?-73; Jefferson Starship: 1974-84) Keith Crossan (saxophone/guitar/vocals – KBC Band: 1985-87) Joey Covington (drums – Jefferson Airplane: 1970-72) Spencer Dryden (drums – Jefferson Airplane: 1966-70) * Aynsley Dunbar (drums – Jefferson Starship: 1979-82) David Freiberg (bass/vocals – Quicksilver Messenger Service: 65?-71, Jefferson Airplane: 1972-73; Jefferson Starship: 1974-84) Tom Gorman (keyboards/vocals – KBC Band: 1985-87) Paul Kanter (guitar/vocals – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-72, 1989; Jefferson Starship: 1974-84; KBC Band: 1985-87) * Jorma Kaukonen (guitar – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-73, 1989; Hot Tuna: 1969-77, 1983, 1986-) * Prairie Prince (drums – The Tubes; Jefferson Starship: 1991) Pete Sears (bass – Jefferson Starship: 1974-84; Starship: 1985-89) Grace Slick (vocals: Jefferson Airplane: 1966-72, 1989; Jefferson Starship: 1974-78, 1981-84; Starship: 1985-88) * Alexander “Skip” Spence (drums – Jefferson Airplane: 1965-66) Mickey Thomas (vocals: Jefferson Starship: 1979-84; Starship: 1985-89) Darrell Verdusco (drums – KBC Band: 1985-87) * inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 as members of Jefferson Airplane Links DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jefferson Airplane DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jefferson Starship DMDB encyclopedia entry for Starship JeffersonAirplane.com (official site) JeffersonStarship.com (official site) StarshipControl.com Wikipedia page on Jefferson Airplane Wikipedia page on Jefferson Starship Wikipedia page on Starship

Awards (Jefferson Airplane): Awards (Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship):

Compilations This page highlights all of the songs featured on these compilations. W The Worst of Jefferson Airplane (1966-70, released 1970) G Gold (1974-1978, released 1979) P Playlist (1974-1984, released 2008) TY Ten Years and Change (1979-1991, released 1991) H Hits (1966-1991, released 1998) Songs featured on any of the above anthologies are noted below chronologically under the studio albums under which they originally appeared. If the song charted, the date of the song’s release or first chart appearance and its chart peaks are noted in parentheses. Click for codes to charts. Spotify Playlist Check out my Spotify playlist Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship 1966-1991 to hear these songs in one massive playlist.

1966-1969 Jefferson Airplane released five albums from 1966 to 1969. Here are the tracks from those albums that are featured on the noted compilations. Jefferson Airplane Takes Off (1966) Blues from an Airplane (41 CL) W It’s No Secret (47 CL, 32 DF) W,H Surrealistic Pillow (1967) Somebody to Love (4/1/67, 5 BB, 5 CB, 8 GR, 6 HR, 1 CL, 1 CN, 4 DF) W,H White Rabbit (6/23/67, 8 BB, 6 CB, 3 GR, 7 HR, 1 CL, 94 UK, 1 CN, 1 DF) W,H Plastic Fantastic Lover (5/31/69, 25 CL) W,H Embryonic Journey W,H Comin’ Back to Me H Today W After Bathing at Baxter’s (1967) Ballad of You & Me & Pooneil (9/2/67, 42 BB, 24 CB, 24 HR, 30 CL) W,H Watch Her Ride (12/9/67, 61 BB, 37 CB, 45 HR, 34 CL) W Martha W Crown of Creation (1968) Greasy Heart (4/6/68, 98 BB, 77 CB, 70 HR, 25 CL) W,H Crown of Creation (11/2/68, 64 BB, 60 CB, 84 HR, 25 CL) W,H Lather W,H Chushingura W Volunteers (1969) Volunteers (11/8/69, 65 BB, 58 HR, 11 CL) W,H Good Shepherd W,H Wooden Ships (37 CL, 27 DF) W,H We Can Be Together W

The Worst of Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane

Recorded: 1966-1969 Released: November 1970 Peak: 12 US, -- UK, -- CN, 28 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US Genre: psychedelic rock/classic rock Rating: 3.996 out of 5.00 (average of 8 ratings)

Tracks: (1) It’s No Secret (2) Blues from an Airplane (3) Somebody to Love (4) Today (5) White Rabbit (6) Embryonic Journey (7) Martha (8) The Balld of You & Me & Pooneil (9) Watch Her Ride * (10) Greasy Heart * (11) Crown of Creation (12) Chushingura (13) Lather (14) Plastic Fantastic Lover (live) (15) Good Shepherd (16) We Can Be Together (17) Volunteers About the Album: Songs marked with an asterisk (*) were added to the 2006 CD reissue. This collection captures Jefferson Airplane after their first five studio albums. They would release just two more studio albums before becoming Jefferson Starship.

1970-1978 Jefferson Airplane only released two more albums before they became Jefferson Starship in 1974. Then they released four albums as Jefferson Starship from 1974 to 1978. Here are the tracks from those albums that are featured on the noted compilations. Early Flight (archives, 1974) Have You Seen the Saucers? (5/70, B-side of “Mexico”) H Bark (1971) Pretty As You Feel (11/13/71, 60 BB, 35 CB, 42 HR, 20 CL) H Third Week in Chelsea H Long John Silver (1972) Long John Silver H Dragon Fly (1974) Ride the Tiger (11/6/74, 84 BB, 94 CB, 16 CL, 27 DF) G,P,H Caroline G,P,H Hyperdrive G Red Octopus (1975) Miracles (8/23/75, 3 BB, 4 CB, 2 HR, 4 RR, 17 AC, 2 CL, 11 DF) G,P,H Play on Love (12/6/75, 49 BB, 47 CB, 20 CL, 27 DF) G,P Fast Buck Freddie G Spitfire (1976) With Your Love (7/24/76, 12 BB, 13 CB, 11 HR, 9 RR, 6 AC, 9 CL, 26 DF) G,P,H St. Charles (12/4/76, 64 BB) G Earth (1978) Count on Me (3/11/78, 8 BB, 9 CB, 10 HR, 6 RR, 15 AC, 6 CL) G,P,H Runaway (5/27/78, 12 BB, 13 CB, 14 HR, 8 RR, 37 AC, 8 CL) G,P,H Love Too Good G,P

Gold Jefferson Starship

Recorded: 1974-1978 Released: January 22, 1979 Peak: 20 US, -- UK, 53 CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): 0.5 US Genre: classic rock Rating: 3.500 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings)

Tracks: (1) Ride the Tiger (2) Caroline (3) Play on Love (4) Miracles (5) Fast Buck Freddie (6) Light the Sky on Fire (7) With Your Love (8) St. Charles (9) Count on Me (10) Love Too Good (11) Runaway (12) Hyperdrive About the Album: This compilation covers the first four studio albums from Jefferson Starship and includes “Light the Sky on Fire,” a non-album cut that the band performed on the Star Wars holiday special in 1978. Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums: Light the Sky on Fire (12/2/78, 66 BB, 65 CB, 70 HR, 40 CL) G

1979-1984 Jefferson Starship released four more studio albums from 1979 to 1984 before becoming Starship. Here are the tracks from those albums that are featured on the noted compilations. Freedom at Point Zero (1979) Jane (11/3/79, 14 BB, 6 CB, 14 HR, 4 RR, 4 CL, 21 UK, 11 DF) P,TY,H Modern Times (1981) Find Your Way Back (4/4/81, 29 BB, 29 CB, 36 HR, 25 RR, 10 CL, 3 AR, 24 DF) P,TY,H Stranger (5/2/81, 48 BB, 55 CB, 56 HR, 28 CL, 17 AR, 37 DF) P,TY,H Winds of Change (1982) Be My Lady (10/9/82, 28 BB, 26 CB, 19 RR, 33 AR, 32 DF) P,H Winds of Change (11/6/82, 38 BB, 37 CB, 27 RR 18 AR, 34 DF) P Nuclear Furniture (1984) No Way Out (5/12/84, 23 BB, 25 CB, 19 RR, 1 AR, 15 DF) P,TY,H Layin’ It on the Line (6/16/84, 66 BB, 6 AR, 18 DF) P,TY,H

Playlist Jefferson Starship

Recorded: 1974-1984 Released: 2008 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: classic rock Rating: 3.138 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings)

Tracks: (1) Ride the Tiger (2) Caroline (3) Miracles (4) Play on Love (5) With Your Love (6) Love Too Good (7) Count on Me (8) Runaway (9) Jane (10) Find Your Way Back (11) Stranger (12) Winds of Change (13) Be My Lady (14) No Way Out (15) Layin’ It on the Line About the Album: This covers the ten years Jefferson Starship existed as a group in between Jefferson Airplane and Starship. The collection contains nine top-40 hits, including the top-10 hits “Miracles” and “Count on Me.”

1985-1991 After ten years as Jefferson Starship, the group renamed themselves again, this time simply as Starship. They only recorded three studio albums over six years, but it proved to be their most commercially rewarding time with three #1 hits (“We Built This City,” “Sara,” and “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now”) on the Billboard Hot 100. Here are the tracks from those albums that are featured on the noted compilations. Knee Deep in the Hoopla (1985) We Built This City (9/7/85, 1 BB, 1 BA, 1 CB, 1 GR, 1 RR, 37 AC, 1 AR, 12 UK, 1 CN, 1 AU, 7 DF) TY,H Sara (12/14/85, 1 BB, 1 BA, 1 CB, 1 GR, 2 RR, 1 AC, 12 AR, 1 CN, 22 DF) TY,H Tomorrow Doesn’t Matter Tonight (4/5/86, 26 BB, 24 CB, 22 RR, 25 AR, 34 DF) H No Protection (1987) Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now (1/30/87, 1 BB, 1 BA, 1 CB, 1 GR, 1 RR, 1 AC, 16 AR, 1 UK, 1 CN, 3 AU, 9 DF) TY,H It’s Not Over ‘Til It’s Over (6/27/87, 9 BB, 12 CB, 12 RR, 9 AR) TY,H Love Among the Cannibals (1989) It’s Not Enough (8/5/89, 12 BB, 11 CB, 12 RR, 30 AC, 10 AR, 37 DF) TY,H

Ten Years and Change Jefferson Starship/Starship

Recorded: 1979-1991 Released: May 14, 1991 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): 0.5 US Genre: classic rock Rating: 3.175 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings)

Tracks: (1) Jane (2) Find Your Way Back (3) Stranger (4) No Way Out (5) Layin’ It on the Line (6) Don’t Lose Any Sleep (7) We Built This City (8) Sara (9) Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now (10) It’s Not Over ‘Til It’s Over (11) It’s Not Enough (12) Good Heart About the Album: This collection covers four studio albums from Jefferson Starship from 1979 to 1984 and three studio albums from Starship released between 1985 and 1989. There are two new cuts on the collection. Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums: Good Heart (4/19/91, 81 BB) TY Don’t Lose Any Sleep TY

Hits Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship

Recorded: 1966-1991 Released: August 29, 1998 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: classic rock Rating: 3.000 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings)

Tracks, Disc 1: (1) It’s No Secret (2) Somebody to Love (3) White Rabbit (4) Embryonic Journey (5) Plastic Fantastic Lover (6) Comin’ Back to Me (7) The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil (8) Greasy Heart (9) Lather (10) Crown of Creation (11) Wooden Ships (12) Volunteers (13) Good Shepherd (14) Have You Seen the Saucers (15) Pretty As You Feel (16) Third Week in Chelsea (17) Long John Silver (18) Caroline (19) Ride the Tiger Tracks, Disc 2: (1) Miracles (2) With Your Love (3) Count on Me (4) Runaway (5) Jane (6) Find Your Way Back (7) Stranger (8) Be My Lady (9) No Way Out (10) Layin’ It on the Line (11) We Built This City (12) Sara (13) Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight (14) Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now (15) It’s Not Over (Til It’s Over) (16) It's Not Enough About the Album: This two-disc retrospective covers the incarnations of Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, and Starship over 25 years. While it may be jarring for some to hear “White Rabbit” and “We Built This City” on the same collection, this wisely chronologically-ordered set makes for a fascinating look at how much these groups changed over the years.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jefferson Airplane DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jefferson Starship DMDB encyclopedia entry for Starship Dave’s Music Database: Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists First posted 7/16/2025; last updated 7/17/2025.