JEFFERSON STARSHIP – Mother Of The Sun (2020)

Legends JEFFERSON STARSHIP are back with “Mother Of The Sun“, their first record in 12 years. While the band keep touring all that time, after the death of co-founder Paul Kantner in 2016 they decided to not record anymore.
However, Kantner’s family gave the band their blessing to continue on, and former lead vocalist / co-founder Grace Slick also agreed, and licensed the rights for them to retain the Jefferson Starship name. More than that, she co-wrote one song for this new album, and ex J. Starship Marty Balin co-wrote other. To complete the picture, original Jefferson Starship member Pete Sears plays bass on three tracks.
So this is a true JEFFERSON STARSHIP, and in top form, delivering a bunch of wonderful, melodic, classic rock songs wrapped by a crisp production.

When Paul Kantner formed Jefferson Starship in the early ’70s, his aim was to surround himself with fearless, talented musicians who could help him bring to life the adventurous concept albums and eventual deep catalog of rock radio classics that would be his legacy.
When the current lineup of the band coalesced around him in 2012 — with many members having joined years or even decades before that — the musical chemistry was immediate, and he often talked about how he wanted to record new music.

Now, that chemistry forges on in a new Jefferson Starship EP called ”Mother of the Sun” (the band’s first official release since 2008), and it’s dedicated to Kantner.
“Paul’s vision of Jefferson Starship was always that it is a collective, that all the people who come into it, with the creativity they bring, is what makes it such a great band,” says singer Cathy Richardson, who’s been with Jefferson Starship since 2008, when she joined after fronting a reunited Big Brother and the Holding Company. “He knew how to bring in the right people, and it ended up being so many different types of band over the years. I’m so grateful he brought me into this band, this other family I have now.”

Written during loose soundcheck jams on the road and at writing sessions at the home studio of vocalist and guitarist David Freiberg — he’s the most tenured member, playing with the band on its first album in 1974 (and on every one since) — ‘Mother of the Sun’ is a capital-R Rock album, the type of record that could have come out in 2020, 1990, or 1970.

Boasting new tracks filled with that classic Jefferson Starship mix of melody, classy riffs, and Big Ideas, ”Mother of the Sun” features five songs co-written by Richardson, including the powerful single “It’s About Time,” a song about how it’s time for “old white men” to step aside and let women run the world, that was co-written by lead guitarist Jude Gold and the band’s legendary front-woman, Grace Slick.

Slick isn’t the only original member to contribute to ”Mother of the Sun”: original Jefferson Airplane / Jefferson Starship member Marty Balin co-wrote the beautiful standard-sounding ballad “Don’t Be Sad Anymore” with keyboardist Chris Smith before Balin’s passing in 2018, and original Jefferson Starship bassist Pete Sears plays on three songs.
Additionally, Slick and Kantner’s daughter, China Kantner Isler, sings backup on the haunting “Runaway Again.”

To complete the connection to older versions of the band, the album’s fifth track is an ever-climbing and downright epic electric-guitar reimagining of Jorma Kaukonen’s famed Jefferson Airplane acoustic piece “Embryonic Journey,” performed by Gold.

In addition to Freiberg, the band includes drummer Donny Baldwin (whose Jefferson Starship roots go back to 1982, and includes tenure with Starship, the multi-platinum, mid-’80s version of the group), keyboard and keys-bass player Smith (who joined in 1998), guitarist Gold (who joined in 2012, and still gets called “the new guy” in jest by the band), and singer and guitarist Richardson.

Great classic band, great classic sound & songwriting.
Highly Recommended

01 – It’s About Time
02 – What Are We Waiting For?
03 – Setting Sun
04 – Runaway Again
05 – Embryonic Journey
06 – Don’t Be Sad Anymore
07 – What Are We Waiting For? (Extended)

David Freiberg – lead and background vocals, guitar
Cathy Richardson – lead and background vocals, guitar, keyboards
Donny Baldwin – drums, background vocals
Chris Smith – keyboards
Jude Gold – lead guitar
with
Pete Sears – bass
China Kantner Isler – backing vocals

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