NYS Music 20​16

Tag: jefferson airplane

  • Jefferson Airplane’s Signe Anderson Ettlin Dies at 74

    Jefferson Airplane‘s first female vocalist, Signe Anderson Ettlin, passed away a week ago at her home in Beaverton, Oregon.

    Signe Anderson EttlinEttlin had been suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and was recently entered into hospice care. In a strange coincidence, co-founder of Jefferson Airplane Paul Kantner also passed away the same day. Both Ettlin and Kantner were 74.

    Former Airplane band member Marty Balin remarked on the coincidence on his Facebook page:

    “I imagine that she and Paul woke up in heaven and said, ‘Hey what are you doing here? Lets start a band.’”

    Born Sept. 15, 1941 in Seattle, Ettlin was raised in Portland but eventually moved to San Francisco. She joined Jefferson Airplane in 1965. The band’s debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, would be the only album Ettlin was a part of. She is remembered most for her vocals on “Chauffeur Blues” from the debut album.

    Ettlin had her first child in 1966 and decided against a life on the road for her new family. Her final show was Oct. 15, 1966. She was replaced by Grace Slick, who helped bring Jefferson Airplane to mainstream success with the band’s next album, Surrealistic Pillow. Although her time was short with Jefferson Airplane, Ettlin is remembered fondly by former bandmates, being described as the den mother and the voice of reason by Jorma Kaukonen.

    Ettlin moved back to Portland after leaving Jefferson Airplane. She continued to sing with a local band, Carl Smith and the Natural Gas Company. In a radio interview in 2011, she remembered her decision to leave Jefferson Airplane:

    “You have to look at the priorities in your life, the reality in your life. I don’t regret having left.”

    Signe Anderson Ettlin went on to raise two daughters, Lilith and Onateska. In 1977 she married her second husband Micheal Ettlin, who passed away in 2011.

  • Jefferson Airplane’s Paul Kantner Dies at 74

    Iconic San Francisco musician Paul Kantner died Thursday, Jan. 28, of multiple organ failure and septic shock.

    A founding member of the Jefferson Airplane, Kantner, 74, suffered a heart attack earlier this week, reported the San Francisco Chronicle, adding that he had experienced many health problems in recent years.

    Paul Kantner

    With Jefferson Airplane, Kantner defined the mid-1960s psychedelic sound and created hits like “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit” featuring Grace Slick’s narcotic vocals. Most notably, the band was the first headliner at Bill Graham’s legendary Fillmore Auditorium and performed at Woodstock. Kantner and Slick transformed the group into Jefferson Starship in 1974; Kantner departed 11 years later, although the couple had a daughter together.

    S Malinski - Jefferson Starship - Ridgefield Playhouse-17

    In 1996, Kantner was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and he continued touring up until his death. Most recently, Steve Malinski witnessed Kantner perform with several bandmates for a 50th anniversary celebration at the Ridgefield Playhouse in Connecticut this past August:

    The Starship’s presence on stage was bold and cohesive – original members of the Airplane Paul Kantner and David Freiberg kept the sound true and original to the Airplane along with longtime Starship drummer Donny Baldwin, keyboardist Chris Smith and guitarist Jude Gold. The animated and exhuberant Cathy Richardson fulfilled the big-shoes role created by Grace Slick’s powerful vocals, to whom she gave a tip of the hat to near the end of the set. Together they made the performance feel engaging to the audience with down to earth, unscripted banter and humor between songs, which has been a consistency for the group through the past several years.”

    Paul Kantner at the Woodstock 40th Anniversary Concert, Bethel Woods Aug. 15, 2009
    Paul Kantner at the Woodstock 40th Anniversary Concert, Bethel Woods Aug. 15, 2009

    Paul Lorin Kantner is survived by three children: sons Gareth and Alexander, and daughter, China. At press time, funeral arrangements had not been released.