Jefferson Airplane: Sweeping Up the Spotlight: Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1969 CD Track Listing

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Jefferson Airplane Sweeping Up the Spotlight: Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1969 (1969)
Sweeping Up the Spotlight: Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1969\n2007 RCA/Legacy\n\nOriginally Released May 15, 2007\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Jefferson Airplane were less focused in 1969 than they had been in the Summer of Love two years before. Recorded at the Fillmore East, these performances find the Airplane coming off their most recent album, Volunteers, released a month earlier, with the band a lot looser (drug use aside) and fractured. The factions in the group were presenting themselves during performances, and this set is no exception. Guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Cassidy connected and jammed like they would have been just as content without the vocals getting in the way, Grace Slick and Paul Kantner combined their voices and played off each other, while Marty Balin screamed and crammed lyrics together, leaving little space for anyone else. During this era, harmonizing seemed out of the question, especially when the older tracks, like "Plastic Fantastic Lover," were being played at warp speed. Slick and Balin mainly yell over each other, a combination of clashing personalities and competition with the sheer volume of the instruments. In the era of Cream and Hendrix, the Airplane had become entwined with jazz-influenced improvisation and the distorted, electric end of the blues; the softer, folkie side of the band was nowhere to be found. For what the Airplane were doing at the time, there's no doubt that this was exciting and adventurous music, albeit without the intimate yin to the blazing yang. Collectors will want to pick up this set, at the very least, for the inclusion of the rarely heard "Uncle Sam Blues," "You Wear Your Dresses Too Short," and "Come Back Baby." -- Al Campbell\n\n\nAmazon.com Editorial Review\nSweeping Up the Spotlight: Live at the Fillmore East 1969 features the definitive edition of Jefferson Airplane, icons of 1960s psychedelic rock and political agitation. Jack Casady and Spencer Dryden hold down the free-floating rhythms on bass and drums, Jorma Kaukonen launches feedback-laced guitar solos, and Paul Kantner adds rhythm guitar and backing vocals. Topping it all are the voices of Marty Balin and the '60s acid queen, Grace Slick. In concert, the Airplane were always more rough and ready than on their acid-hued vinyl. Outside the studio, they were ramshackle and punky, which is why they were sometimes referenced when talking about punk bands like X, who also had male and female lead singers. Despite having six albums under their belt, mostly consisting of original material, the Airplane's live set has a lot of mediocre blues and folk filler. Some of their more characteristic repertoire is sacrificed to workman-like renditions of "Uncle Sam Blues" and "Come Back Baby," albeit with some ripping Kaukonen guitar solos. Balin's raucous rant on "You Wear Your Dresses too Short" is embarrassing in its soul-singer aspirations. Assuming this was their set sequence, it takes a while for the Airplane to congeal on stage. They ride roughshod over much of their materiel, but pull it together two-thirds of the way through on one of their most complex tunes, "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil." With its shifting time signatures and overlapping vocal lines and harmonies, it's a challenge to pull off live, but they do, with soaring vocals from Balin and Slick and a long instrumental jam with a fractured guitar solo from Kaukonen and a feature slot for bassist Casady, the most innovative and powerful bassist from that era. That paves the way for a darker version of "White Rabbit," the mock celebration of "Crown of Creation," and their show closer, a hyped rendition of Fred Neil's ballad "The Other Side of This Life." As they always did, the Jefferson Airplane land high. --John Diliberto \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nTrue Flight, July 24, 2007 \nBy Jeffrey A. Martin (Rochester, NY, USA)\nOnce this show gets moving and the band finds it's groove, this show rocks! The classic Jefferson Airplane line-up at a high point of their performing abilities. The last half of this disc shows what Jefferson AIrplane was truly capable of doing. While it's no "Bless It's Pointed Little Head", it is a stellar performance. Well, a combination of two shows, but still some amazing work by the group. This one is definatley worth the price of admission. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nNot flying..., July 24, 2007 \nBy Rodrigo N. Espi

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