The impact of gifted musicians lingers, those of sixties psychedelic era continues to transcend. The neoteric bands of the current generation are icons of the day but few will have the aura and the tunes that define the times and continue to trickle down to the following decades.
The ubiquitous influence of Jack Casady & Jorma Kaukonen (Jefferson Airplane, HotTuna) continues in 2021. Perhaps paradoxical to some but aging “Rock n’ Roll Royalty” will invariably lead to less dexterity on a fret board, forgotten chord changes and brilliance of yesteryear now leaning towards mediocrity at best.
This tandem has defied the inevitable, the suffering souls of sixties euphoria who continue to play but with less impact than that of Jack & Jorma. These were coveted moments, those who made a difference and continuously made the hearts smile.
To endure the sixties was a credit to those who survived, those who we adored and escaped the doldrums of“The Mainstream”. On occasions the phone rings and a magazine or The Asylum in Cleveland want to ask who are the best bass players or the best finger pickers.
Certainly as adults their opinions vary but with Jack, peers with similar musical talent are not astronomical but from my perspective these are prolific musicians that made or make a difference.
Jack Bruce, John Entwistle, Peter Albin, Jaco Pastorius, Paul McCartney, John Paul Jones, Bill Wyman, Allan Woody and the often forgotten, Tim Bogart from Vanilla Fudge & others. In reference to Jorma, finger pickers are also not running rampant in the world of notoriety.
John Fahey, Leo Kottke, Lindsay Buckingham, Peter Lewis, Chet Atkins, Reverend Gary Davis, Michael Hedges, Merle Travis, Scotty Moore and Tommy Emmanuel. Unless they are asking someone similar to Helen Keller, these are those whoe footprints will be imbedded in the ground for perpetuity. the chasm between those mentioned and precious few others is the dichotomy of virtuosos and mediocrity.
Medicinal evidence has now been verified that music will increase the capability of mental expectation and lead to longer lives as well. A metaphor comes from this menial mind. During the apex of “psychedelia”, The Haight Ashbury district adjacent to Golden Gate Park was in some ways similar to a zoo.
Colorful “hippiedom” would join the other animals which includedBeat Poets, Painters, Sculptors, Glass Blowers and of course, The Big Five bands of The Golden Age and soon joined by Moby Grape, Steve Miller and Santana.
The mixtures of sound would identify the grandeur of youthful America while searching for a different way other than the decadence of the world. These are now “Shadows In The Night", golden moments that could only be found if you were amidst the euphoria of The Fillmores, Avalon Ballroom, Winterland, The Ark and other storied venues. Some of the aging animals continue to play, keeping legacies alive and well but with Jack & Jorma, “The Lions Continue To Roar”
