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Happy 70th, Grace Slick!
In that context, it's interesting that quite a few of that era's iconic figures celebrated the applicable birthday before the calendar turned to 1970.
One of them was Grace Slick, who rose to fame singing two hit singles by the San Francisco band Jefferson Airplane, "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit." She turned 30 on Oct. 30, 1969, which of course makes her 70 today.
Slick became the first female rock star not just for her hits – those two songs from 1967 turned out to be her only lead-vocal forays into the Top 10 – but because of her attitude. She was a lady who was willing to say anything that was on her mind, to behave just how she wanted and to question the existing system, all of which endeared her to like-minded individuals of the day.
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Plus, as added incentive for male fans, she was drop-dead gorgeous. In her autobiography, "Somebody to Love?," she casts herself as an ugly duckling, wondering why people considered her to be attractive.
But look at the cover of "Surrealistic Pillow," Jefferson Airplane's best-selling album, or photos from her pre-Airplane stint with a group called the Great Society, and see for yourself.
I was one of those impressionable young men who took an instant liking to Grace Slick in what turned out to be kind of a life-defining experience.
An "American Bandstand" retrospective in the mid-1970s featured an excerpt from a Jefferson Airplane performance of "White Rabbit," and I was enthralled. On screen was a beautiful woman singing a tune that sounded totally unlike the disco stylings that were in vogue at the time, accompanied by long-haired musicians and swirling lights and images.
Almost immediately I was buying Airplane albums and attempting to play them for my classmates, much to their dismay. I learned that the band was closely aligned with another San Francisco group called the Grateful Dead, and I started collecting their records, too.
And all that led to a musical fanaticism that continues to this day.
As for the woman who was born by the name of Grace Wing, she continued her singing career long after her 30th birthday, as Jefferson Airplane morphed into Jefferson Starship and then simply into Starship, in a sequence of events that's far too complicated to detail here.
Her career as an active musician wound down right around the time she was about to turn 50, as a reunited Jefferson Airplane played a series of concerts in 1989. After that, she turned up sporadically with a reunited Jefferson Starship – again, the specifics aren't worth going into – but pretty much has given up the stage.
These days, she's an artist, frequently showing her paintings, and a vociferous animal-rights activists. Just this week, she released a voicemail statement imploring Congress to phase out the use of chimpanzees in invasive experiments and retire federally owned chimpanzees to sanctuaries.
Perhaps she'll take a break to celebrate No. 70 before keeping up with the cause.
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Grace Slick : 10/30/2009
happy Birthday Grace we Love you. Thank you to Harry Funk for the article. Grace is truely a survivor and a beautiful talented Lady.
Happy Birthday Grace : 10/31/2009
As a young woman she left and indelible imprint in the music world and the 60s culture. As an older person she continues to shape out society through her animal right activism. What an exceptional human being! I listened to her, watched her, imitated her, in the 60s and still do now.
Grace Slick : 10/31/2009
Just watching her on the Monterey Pop festival. Wow, it all feels like yesterday. Happy Birthday talented lady.
Grace Slick : 10/31/2009
Thanks Grace, for giving us the ultimate soundtrack for a somewhat misspent youth , happy birthday
Original Riot Grrrrl! : 10/31/2009
I love Grace Slick. Her voice could cut a fog. She never pandered to anybody. She inspired so many female Rock singers in her wake, like Patti Smith. She knew when to leave the stage. My heroine!
GRACE SLICK : 11/2/2009
Happy Birthday Grace... Many more years of good health... happy times and more of life to explore to the original Queen of Rock.
Happy Birthday Gracie! : 11/2/2009
Happy Birthday Grace : 11/2/2009
70 is good.
Happy Birthday Grace : 11/6/2009
I love you, your music and your paintings Grace. You are an exceptional woman.
