Jefferson Airplane Turns 50

Hailing from San Francisco, the Airplane formed in 1965 when founder Marty Balin turned a pizza joint into a club called the Matrix—and recruited Paul Kantner and Jorma Kaukonen, who gave the band its name based on his own silly nickname: “Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane.” After a few lineup changes, the iconic Grace Slick and bass maestro Jack Casady signed on, and the group exploded into commercial and countercultural success with their album Surrealistic Pillow, which featured the massive hit tracks “White Rabbit” and “Somebody to Love.” The band’s free-flowing live shows became synonymous with the San Francisco acid scene alongside another band, the Grateful Dead.