Jefferson Airplane - Volunteers

Few bands of the hippie era embodied the idealism and hedonism of the late 1960s as much as Jefferson Airplane. Two years after their groundbreaking psychedelic rock album Surrealistic Pillow, the San Francisco musicians released something of a countercultural manifesto in 1969 with Volunteers. Deeply rooted in the belief that music could change the world, the songs on Volunteers addressed the Vietnam War, politics, greed and environmental destruction, and called for revolution.

The lyrics were controversial, and Jefferson Airplane's record company, RCA, wanted to censor the album. However, RCA was not concerned about the political content, but rather feared a boycott because of some obscene passages. The band eventually prevailed in court and the album was released. Musically, Volunteers, one of the first albums to be recorded on a 16-track machine, moves between psychedelic acid and rustic country rock. The group around singer Grace Slick and the well-known guest musicians Stephen Stills, David Crosby, Nicky Hopkins and Jerry García are in top form.