Jefferson Airplane - The Worst of Jefferson Airplane (1970)

Its smirky title notwithstanding, The Worst of Jefferson Airplane provides a fine recap of the band's first six albums. Released in 1970 shortly before Marty Balin's initial departure from the band, the album marked not only the end of the decade but, unwittingly, the end of the group's most stable phase in terms of membership. The track selections are evenly divided among the first-generation albums; only the live Bless Its Pointed Little Head is represented by a single entry. Pains were also taken to include songs featuring lead vocalists Balin, Grace Slick, Paul Kantner, and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen. A few omissions are striking, most notably the chart single "Greasy Heart" and the signature Kantner track, "Wooden Ships." Nevertheless, the songs chosen for this album accurately summarize the distinct feel of each Jefferson Airplane album of the '60s, and thus the disc represents an ideal way to introduce oneself to the band's early, most psychedelic material.

Track listing
1. "It's No Secret" (from Jefferson Airplane Takes Off) Marty Balin 2:37
2. "Blues From an Airplane" (from Jefferson Airplane Takes Off) Balin, Skip Spence 2:10
3. "Somebody to Love" (from Surrealistic Pillow) Darby Slick 2:54
4. "Today" (from Surrealistic Pillow) Balin, Paul Kantner 2:57
5. "White Rabbit" (from Surrealistic Pillow) Grace Slick 2:27
6. "Embryonic Journey" (from Surrealistic Pillow) Jorma Kaukonen 1:51
7. "Martha" (from After Bathing at Baxter's) Kantner 3:21
8. "The Ballad of You & Me & Pooneil" (from After Bathing at Baxter's) Kantner 4:30
9. "Watch Her Ride" (from After Bathing at Baxter's) Kantner 3:16
10. "Greasy Heart" (from Crown of Creation) G. Slick 3:27
11. "Crown of Creation" (from Crown of Creation) Kantner 2:53
12. "Chushingura" (from Crown of Creation) Spencer Dryden 1:17
13. "Lather" (from Crown of Creation) G. Slick 2:55
14. "Plastic Fantastic Lover" (live; from Bless Its Pointed Little Head) Balin 3:39
15. "Good Shepherd" (from Volunteers) traditional, arranged by Kaukonen 4:22
16. "We Can Be Together" (from Volunteers) Kantner 5:50
17. "Volunteers" (from Volunteers) Balin, Kantner 2:03

Personnel
- Marty Balin – vocals, rhythm guitar
- Grace Slick – vocals, piano, organ, recorder on all tracks except "It's No Secret" and "Blues from an Airplane"
- Paul Kantner – vocals, rhythm guitar
- Jorma Kaukonen – lead guitar, vocals
- Jack Casady – bass
- Spencer Dryden – drums, percussion on all tracks except "It's No Secret" and "Blues from an Airplane"
- Signe Anderson – vocals on "It's No Secret" and "Blues from an Airplane"
- Skip Spence – drums on "It's No Secret" and "Blues from an Airplane"



original uploader unknown, found in my archive