Sunday Musical Feast at the 2024 Birthday of Nat King Cole, Paul Kantner, John Sebastian, and Billy Corgan
by Robert Wilkinson
Today we celebrate the lives of 4 major league musical talents! We have legends from the east coast, the west coast, and everywhere in between! For your enjoyment, we have some of the best of the best of the Nat, the Lovin’ Spoonful, the Jefferson Airplane, and the Smashing Pumpkins.
Nat “King” Cole (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965) was an accomplished jazz pianist but was primarily famous for his smooth as silk baritone voice. Inspired by Earl Hines, he started playing as a teenager in the 30s and never looked back. He was a pioneer in being one of the first men of color to have his own television show, and was universally loved when he died too young of lung cancer.
Here are a few of his best! And they’re almost all live performances!!
From the days when they were “The King Cole Trio,” check out this action! "Route 66"
From 1946, the Nat King Cole Trio giving us a couple of hot ones! "It's Better To Be By Yourself"/"Solid Potato Salad"
And now for a few choice solo performances!
"Too Young" (audio only)
"It’s Only A Paper Moon" and “Sweet Lorraine”
"Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer"
One of his biggest! "Unforgettable"
Our finale comes from the 1965 movie Cat Ballou featuring Nat (just weeks before he died) with Stubby Kaye in their famous banjo duet serving as an old West Greek Chorus! "The Ballad of Cat Ballou”
For our encore I found the entire 48 minute BBC video of Nat from 1963! You’ve seen some of these before now, but here’s the whole show. An Evening With Nat King Cole
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Now for John Sebastian! As founder of the Lovin’ Spoonful, John Sebastian (March 17, 1944) is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and autoharpist, one of the first in rock and roll! Influenced from everyone between Burl Ives and Woody Guthrie, when he joined Zally, Steve, and Joe to form the Lovin’ Spoonful, American folk joined with New York "jug band" attitude to create a major hitmaking response to the British invasion!
Here are some of their biggest!
Live on the Sunset Strip in 1965 as filmed for The Big T.N.T. Show, the best clip of this performance I’ve ever found! It’s colorized, and much better than the grainy b/w clips from past years. This was the band peaking fast! The first tune went to #9 on the charts, and the second tune was their second release which went to #10 in January 1966. These began a run of 7 top 10 hits in a row! "Do You Believe In Magic" and “You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice.”
From Shindig! in 1965, here’s another great “semi-live” performance of “Do You Believe In Magic”
From the mid-60s in color, a live performance on tv of the title track for their second album. This tune went to #2 in 1966, "Daydream"
From Sept 1966 on the Hollywood Palace tv show (hosted by Phil Silvers), we have the Spoonful “performing” two of their huge hits off their third album! ”Rain on the Roof” (#10) and what is obviously lip synched, "Summer in the City" (#1)
From just a few weeks ago at a benefit tribute, here are John, Steve Boone, Joe Butler and Mark Sebastian at the Alex Theater in Glendale, CA, cranking out "Summer in the City"
Their lip-synched tv version is gone, so here’s the studio record of their final 1966 hit also off their third album, a humorous take on Nashville that went to #8! "Nashville Cats"
John Sebastian wrote “Darlin’ Be Home Soon” for the soundtrack of the movie You’re A Big Boy Now. Their performance on The Ed Sullivan Show appears and disappears, and this year we have it again! Here’s their 1967 performance to a backing track AND a live backing horn and string section of “Darlin’ Be Home Soon”
John performed it solo at the original 1969 Woodstock festival, so for your remembrance, “Darlin’ Be Home Soon”
From what I believe is the same show as above, here’s a 1967 live performance of this tune on The Ed Sullivan Show after Zal was replaced in the band. “She’s A Mystery to Me” and here’s the studio version of their last hit from that year with Jerry Yester on lead. “She’s A Mystery to Me” Here’s the “B” side of that hit, another one in its own right with drummer Joe Butler on lead vocals! Live on The Ed Sullivan Show in October 1967, “Only Pretty What A Pity”
Live at Tanglewood in 1970, John solo acoustic giving us “Younger Girl”
Here’s the full 52 minute concert! It’s folk city!! John Sebastian Live at Tanglewood - 1970
Now, some original studio work!
From their 1965 album Do You Believe in Magic?, the studio versions of the ethereal "Younger Girl" followed by the good time feeling of “Fishin’ Blues.” We'll close that album with the final track, a very bloooozy “Night Owl Blues”
From early 1966, a rockin’ romp they wrote for the soundtrack of Woody Allen’s directoral debut, What’s Up Tiger Lily? “Pow.” They contributed some great instrumentals for that movie as well! “A Cool Million” and “Speakin’ of Spoken”
From the second album Daydream, a tune written by Zal and John that always was one of my favorites. Gave me pause when communications broke down! “It’s Not Time Now”
This rare gem from their second album was the flip side to “Summer in the City.” It’s one of the prettiest breakup tunes ever written, and it’s pure jug band! One of the rare tunes written by bassist Steve Boone, “Butchie’s Tune”
Zal and John wrote this mellow textural piece for their third album, the very dreamy “Coconut Grove”
Our closing number comes from his post-Spoonful days, the theme song to the television hit series “Welcome Back Kotter,” "Welcome Back" (audio only)
Our encore comes from the Canadian Music Hall of Fame ceremony in 1996, where John and Zal reunited in a great performance of “Jug Band Music” which they follow with their huge #2 hit from the Summer of 1966, "Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind?"
Our second encore has all you’ve seen and more. Here’s a link to 30 Lovin’ Spoonful television performances! The Lovin Spoonful on Television 1966-1969
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We now turn our birthday celebration to the great Paul Kantner! Founder of the Jefferson Airplane and Jefferson Starship, Paul Kantner (March 17, 1941 – January 28, 2016) was a major influence on the development of psychedelic music in the San Francisco Bay area in the 60s.
From Wikipedia,, we read that the JA was originally founded by Paul with Marty Balin, Kantner eventually became the main man of Jefferson Airplane and captained the group through various successor incarnations of Jefferson Starship. Kantner has the longest continuous membership with the band; at times he was its only original member. Also from wiki,
A political anarchist, Kantner once advocated the use of psychedelic drugs such as LSD for mind expansion and spiritual growth, and is a prominent advocate of the legalization of marijuana. In a 1986 interview, Kantner shared his thoughts about cocaine and alcohol, saying, "Cocaine, particularly, is a bummer. It's a noxious drug that turns people into jerks. And alcohol is probably the worst drug of all. As you get older and accomplish more things in life in general, you realize that drugs don't help, particularly if you abuse them."
As I’ve run out of time to fix these links, if any are busted and you want to hear those tunes and more that I just found, please go to the Marty Balin Birthday celebration linked above.
A great early live audio-only performance by Marty on vocals of “It’s No Secret”
Here’s a very early version of the Jefferson Airplane, before Grace Slick took over for Signe. I have two gigs from Vancouver. The first is 19 minutes of early psychedelic folk on January 14, and the second is 36 minutes from January 16
Jefferson Airplane in Vancouver January 14, 1966
Jefferson Airplane in Vancouver January 16, 1966
From 1966 with Signe still doing lead vocals, 37 minutes of Jefferson Airplane at Winterland – 30 September 1966
Here’s Signe’s last concert on 15 October 1966, and Grace Slick’s first show in November! Welcome to an hour and 12 of pre-Grace Slick JA and the first concert they did with her! Jefferson Airplane Live At The Fillmore - First and Last
Last year I had a full 2 hour 7 minute show at the Fillmore in Nov 1966, but it’s disappeared. I did find this hour and 40 minute segment of both sets, so enjoy Jefferson Airplane Live At The Fillmore – 6 Nov 1966
From February 1967 at the Fillmore West in SF, 57 minutes of psychedelic music at their peak! This one leads off with a Ronald Reagan rant against music and the light show. Jefferson Airplane Live At The Fillmore – Feb 1967
I found it again! Live at the Fillmore West in May 1967, “Comin’ Back To Me. ” For contrast, here’s the original studio version of “Comin’ Back To Me”
Here’s Marty fronting the Jefferson Starship in a live 1999 concert, giving us the backstory on how the song came into being! “Comin’ Back To Me”
I found it again! Here’s the entire hour and 4 show from March 1967 of the JA live at the Café A Go Go in NYC! ”Come Back Baby”
Here’s a 6+ minute clip from that show, and it’s great! ”Come Back Baby”
In 1967, they gave us the driving ”Waiting For You”
I found it again and more! Their two shows in March 1967 at Winterland have reappeared, and they’re great! From March 10, here’s 52 minutes of The Jefferson Airplane Live at Winterland – March 10, 1967 and here’s their hour and 14 set two days later! The Jefferson Airplane Live at Winterland – March 12, 1967
Here are a few more live video performances, some of which Marty wrote, performed as only the Jefferson Airplane could!
From the legendary Monterey Pop Festival in the Summer of Love 1967, here’s the Jefferson Airplane live doing "Somebody To Love” From the same show, “Flyin’ High Bird” and “Today.”
A brief detour into their studio work! From After Bathing at Baxter’s, one of my favorite JA rockers that shows Jorma could make a guitar talk in several psychedelic languages! This song is the sound of revolution! “Last Wall of the Castle”
Speaking of Baxters, this is one of my all time favorites, and it rocks! “The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil”
Also from Baxter’s, a 9+ minute instrumental that is not as free form as it sounds. “Spare Chaynge”
Back to live video performances!
From 1967, a very live 1967 television performance of Grace’s biting “Two Heads”
I found it again! Here’s an hour and 37 of the JA in Toronto in August 1967! Jefferson Airplane - Live in Toronto August 4-5, 1967
From the August 4 show, an hour of Jefferson Airplane and Grateful Dead - Live in Toronto 1967
Here’s their first appearance on the The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967. The first two tunes are obviously Grace singing to a backing track with the rest miming. The light show was great for the era. “White Rabbit,” which we follow with “Somebody to Love.”
They came back on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1968 and did another two-fer, including Grace’s jab at the establishment “Lather” and “Crown of Creation”
From 1968 on The Perry Como Show, the Airplane live performing "Watch Her Ride" (the video quality is poor, but psychedelic).
Live at the Matrix in Feb 1968, a great 10 minute audio-only live performance of “The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil”
Here’s the whole gig! Jefferson Airplane Return to the Matrix - 1968
From September 1968 on The Ed Sullivan Show, “Crown of Creation”
Live on a hotel rooftop in Nov 1968, a great video of the JA performing “The House on Pooneil Corners”
From Woodstock, live in 1969, the Jefferson Airplane opening with “3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds.”
From there we go to two of Grace Slick’s iconic tunes! First, the song that propelled the JA to the radio, “Somebody To Love” followed by her equally trippy bolero based in the immortal Lewis Carroll character that many radio stations refused to play, “White Rabbit”
Also at Woodstock, the legendary song that called a generation to a non-violent revolution! “Volunteers”
We’ll finish their Woodstock set with a live performance of “Uncle Sam Blues”
From the disastrous 1969 Altamont gig, here’s the Airplane doing “The Other Side of this Life”
From 1969 live on The Dick Cavett Show, the Jefferson Airplane (with a guest appearance by David Crosby) performing “We Can Be Together” and “Volunteers”
Here’s part 2 of that Dick Cavett appearance! “Somebody To Love” and “Psychedelic Jam”
A tale of escape written by young idealists, here’s the quadraphonic studio version from Volunteers of a song Marty wrote with David Crosby and Steven Stills, the iconic “Wooden Ships”
From 1970, Live at the Family Dog, a great video of the Jefferson Airplane performing one of my all time favorites, “The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil” And from what looks like the same gig, “Eskimo Blue Day”
Here’s an awesome hour of the JA playing live at the Fillmore in May 1970! Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1970
Live at Winterland 1970, here’s the JA in one of their final incarnations in an audio of “Wooden Ships” (Marty left the band in March 1971).
Here’s an awesome 2 hours and 6 minutes of the JA playing live at the Fillmore in November 1970! Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1970
Here's the studio version of the biting rocker by Grace Slick, the in-your-face "Greasy Heart." ("Don't ever change people, even if you can, don't change before the empire falls, you'll laugh so hard you'll crack the walls!" Wow.)
From 1975, the original studio version of the #3 hit “Miracles.” And in a real score, here’s the Starship live in 1975 on Don Kirshner performing “Miracles.”
We’ll close this birthday tribute with a performance from a more recent era. Here’s Paul live in 2005 with Marty Balin and Jack Cassady doing a JA tune from the Surrealistic Pillow album, “Plastic Fantastic Lover.”
For our encore, here’s Paul Kantner’s legendary 1971 studio album, Blows Against the Empire (with contributions from members of the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and David Crosby and Graham Nash).
For a second encore, 2 years ago I found a full 80 minute documentary that takes a great look at San Francisco in the 1960s called Fly With the Jefferson Airplane, but the clip is nowhere to be found. However, I did find most of it in short parts with Spanish subtitles. For your enjoyment,
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 1
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 2
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 3
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 4
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 5
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 6
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 7
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 8
“Fly With the Jefferson Airplane” Pt. 9
I think all 9 parts will autoplay once the first is done. For your enjoyment, Fly Jefferson Airplane – The Story of the Jefferson Airplane
For our encore, a 22 minute video from their 1989 reunion tour titled Jefferson Airplane – Still Flying
Thanks to Steve Taylor, we have Paul's interview with Off the Record in 1986. If you're inclined, here's Off the Record with Paul Kantner
Paul, your music inspired a musical revolution, and gave us all a vision or three of possibilities unknown before the JA took flight. Signing off with part of a song you covered, written by Donovan:
Fly Jefferson Airplane, get you there on time.
Fly Jefferson Airplane, get you there on time.
He will bring happiness in a pipe,
He'll ride away on his silver bike
And apart from that he'll be so kind
In consenting to blow your mind.
Fly Translove Airways, get you there on time.
Fly Translove Airways, get you there on time.
We'll be flying at an altitude of thirty-nine thousand feet
Captain High at your service.
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And now for the youngest of our quartet! A big happy goes out to Billy Corgan (March 17, 1967), musician, producer, lyricist, writer, professional wrestling promoter and occasional slam poet, best known as the frontman and founder of The Smashing Pumpkins. For your enjoyment, here are a few of the biggest from the Smashing Pumpkins along with some full concerts!
From 1996, the full 1 hour 15 minute show of The Smashing Pumpkins at the Rockpalast
Also from 1996, the full 2 hours and 2 minute show of The Smashing Pumpkins at Toronto
Their 2013 show at Glastonbury is gone, so here’s an hour an 22 of a show they did in 2019! The Smashing Pumpkins Live in 2019
We’ll close with a documentary on the Smashing Pumpkins titled “Graceful Swans of Never.” I found the entire 47 minute video on one clip again, so enjoy the show! “Graceful Swans of Never”
For the encore, a 25 minute set from MTV in 1993! Smashing Pumpkins on MTV - 1993
So it’s a happy RIP to Nat Cole and Paul Kantner, and an equally big happy to John and Billy! Rock on, gentlemen, and may you have many more years of rocking on!!
© Copyright 2024 Robert Wilkinson
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