Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Devil's Night, Salem's Lot


Yikes, Grace Slick turned 68 today. The latter day lead singer of Jefferson Airplane belted out some hot lyrics for a band that sounds very much of its time and place. Slick and the band peaked from about 1967 to 1969 -- from Surrealistic Pillow to Volunteers, with Crown of Creation nestled in between and the Altamont Free Concert (December 6, 1969) a last blast for the past.


Whereas The Doors, at least with Jim Morrison as lead singer, abruptly ended with a compact, transcendent legacy, The Jefferson Airplane devolved into Jefferson Starship in the 1970s and then -- far worse -- became the rusty carbuncular Starship in the 1980s. By that time, Grace Slick might have inspired a song called "Every Little Things She Does Is Awful" (Britney Spears' anthem these days?) When she was in the game in the 1960s, though, Ms. Slick (b. Grace B. Wing) was iconic and inspiring, so we mustn't harshly hold the other stuff against her -- I just won't listen to it.


It's also French filmmaker Louis Malle's birthday. My favorite is his first movie, Ascenseur pour l'échafaud / Frantic/ Elevator to the Gallows / Lift to the Scaffold (1957).

Here's Miles Davis and his special French friend ostensibly working on the soundtrack to Ascenseur pour l'échafaud, a hip choice on Malle's -- and Miles' -- part.


Colombian investigative journalist and rising star Silvia Corzo (Silvia Milena Corzo Pinto) turned 34 today.

Today's Rune: Signals.

Au revoir!

4 comments:

JR's Thumbprints said...

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Jefferson Airplane had some kick ass songs, even if the music critics said they had a wimpy rocker for a vocalist. JA was much better than JS (too commercial if you ask me).

Johnny Yen said...

Grace Slick was as hot as they come, look-wise, and her pipes made songs like "Somebody To Love" iconic (I love the scene in "Fear and Loathing" with that song in it), but my thoughts of her tumbled after reading her autobiography a few years ago. She's not very smart, very shallow and incredibly uninteresting.

A friend of mine's band played at the same suburban Chicago summer festival as the reconstituted Jefferson Starship did a few years ago. He said Slick, Kantner, etc. all arrived in separate limosines. So much for their sixties values.

Charles Gramlich said...

At least White Rabbit was a masterpiece. That legacy will never die.

Julián Ortega Martínez said...

I liked the rising star thing. Cheers from Colombia.