The Great Society was a short-lived but highly influential band from the mid-1960s, best known as the original group of singer Grace Slick. They were an important part of the burgeoning San Francisco psychedelic rock scene.
The band was formed in the late summer of 1965 by Grace Slick, her then-husband Jerry Slick on drums, and his brother Darby Slick on guitar. They were inspired to form a band after seeing The Beatles and Jefferson Airplane perform. The Great Society's name was a satirical nod to President Lyndon B. Johnson's domestic policy program of the same name.
The initial lineup included the three Slicks along with David Miner (vocals, guitar), Bard DuPont (bass), and Peter van Gelder (flute, bass, saxophone).
The band made their live debut on October 15, 1965, at the Coffee Gallery in San Francisco. They quickly became a fixture in the local scene, performing at key venues like The Matrix, The Fillmore, and the Avalon Ballroom. It was a relatively small scene based around a few clubs. This is before the Fillmore opened.
The Great Society's music was characterized by its psychedelic and folk-rock sound. Nice folky tunes, then wig out for half an hour. You know how it goes. They were known for extended instrumental jams (unusual in 1965), experimental arrangements, and the unique, powerful vocals of Grace Slick. Darby Slick's guitar work, influenced by Indian music, and Grace's songwriting contributions were central to their sound.
The band only released one single actually during their existence: "Someone to Love" (written by Darby Slick) with the B-side "Free Advice." The single was released in early 1966 on the small Northbeach label and had little impact outside the Bay Area. We’ve been to North Beach and saw some jazz there, we even went to the City Lights Bookstore which was full of young people trying to look interesting while reading a slim volume of beat poetry.
I loved it.
Their big break seemed imminent when Columbia Records offered them a recording contract in mid-1966. However, before the contract arrived, Grace Slick was offered the lead singer position in Jefferson Airplane to replace their departing vocalist. As both the visual and musical focal point of The Great Society, her departure sealed the band's fate. They disbanded in the fall of 1966 and Airplane went on to have the success they might have felt was in line for themselves.
After joining Jefferson Airplane, Grace took with her two of The Great Society's most important compositions:"White Rabbit" (which she wrote) and **"Someone to Love."** Re-recorded and released by Jefferson Airplane as "Somebody to Love," both songs became massive hits in 1967, bringing The Great Society's material to a global audience just to rub salt into the band’s wounds
To capitalise on Grace's fame, Columbia Records later released live recordings of The Great Society from 1966 on the albums *Conspicuous Only in Its Absence* and *How It Was” both recorded at The Matrix in 1966 at the same gig.
On its initial release in 1968, Conspicuous Only in Its Absence reached No. 166 on Billboard. A single featuring "Sally, Go 'Round the Roses" and "Didn't Think So" was released in conjunction with the album by Columbia Records but it failed to chart, however the A-side is an excellent example of their sound and the vocals are hypnotic
These posthumous releases are the primary record of the band's work and are now considered important artefacts of the early San Francisco psychedelic scene. You need to get these albums to really understand the roots of the San Francisco explosion in 67-70. They are very transportative and really put you in the room. They do sound early Airplane-ish in how they make essentially folk songs into extended psychedelic freak outs. Sad that there isn’t more material from them. They were just about 20months ahead of the curve.
