The great Marty Balin, R.I.P.

[NightMistBlue]

Oh lord. I’m very sorry to learn this sad news. What a songwriter. I’ll always appreciate his passionate love songs, especially Miracles. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/jefferson-airplane-guitarist-marty-balin-dead-76-730912/

[LuvTim]

Sad news indeed.

[sodascouts]

What a shame! R.I.P.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Another great artist gone. Jefferson Airplane/Starship was a much better band when he was with them, IMO. My heart goes out to his loved ones and fans.

R.I.P. Marty

[Dawn]

Another great artist gone. Jefferson Airplane/Starship was a much better band when he was with them, IMO. My heart goes out to his loved ones and fans.

R.I.P. Marty

Very true.

One of of the first bands I ever saw play live was the Jefferson Airplane.

In San Francisco. With flowers in my hair.

RIP Marty.

[New Kid In Town]

Sad to hear of his passing. RIP Marty.

[sodascouts]

Did you guys know that a few weeks before he died, he sued Mt Sinai hospital for malpractice, the same hospital Cindy Frey is suing for wrongful death? (I just found this out.)

http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2018/8/20/marty-balin-reveals-shocking-health-issues-in-malpractice-su.html

Makes you wonder!

[CAinOH]

Did you guys know that a few months before he died, he sued Mt Sinai hospital for malpractice, the same hospital Cindy Frey is suing for wrongful death? (I just found this out.)

http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2018/8/20/marty-balin-reveals-shocking-health-issues-in-malpractice-su.html

Makes you wonder!

Wow!

[FreyFollower]

Did you guys know that a few months before he died, he sued Mt Sinai hospital for malpractice, the same hospital Cindy Frey is suing for wrongful death? (I just found this out.)

http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2018/8/20/marty-balin-reveals-shocking-health-issues-in-malpractice-su.html

Makes you wonder!


Oh, how truly awful! It does make you wonder. It seems the poor soul suffered from the same lack of diligence from the staff with the same terrible, painful results and eventuality.
RIP, Marty.

[Dawn]

Wow, so sorry to hear this - sounds like Marty was dealing with some major issues/complications following his successful heart surgery.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Thanks for letting us know about that, Soda - does indeed make you wonder. :hmm: Very sad!

[New Kid In Town]

Did you guys know that a few weeks before he died, he sued Mt Sinai hospital for malpractice, the same hospital Cindy Frey is suing for wrongful death? (I just found this out.)

http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2018/8/20/marty-balin-reveals-shocking-health-issues-in-malpractice-su.html

Makes you wonder!

WOW ! Does make you wonder. Boy, the poor guy, he had some major health problems. Sounds like he really suffered. Very sad.

[Dawn]

Back in the day when free outdoor concerts were wild and crazy and some frighteningly violent and even deadly ... here is a video of the band performing at the Altamont Speedway in December 1969. You can see Marty being pushed or jumping off the stage to try and calm things down only to be punched in the head and knocked out.

http://youtu.be/D3JvyvgPtN4

I was still in high school but my older brother and his college friends went to this concert.

After high school I l saw Jefferson Airplane in SF and later Jefferson Starship. Grace Slick was truly amazing - loved all the band Marty was very talented. What a legacy!

FYI a very cool and calm Grace Slick commenting on the escalating violence and purpose of the Hells Angels. It was a very very bad scene.

Addendum: If you haven't seen video of this infamous concert please be forewarned. It is graphic.

[NightMistBlue]

Wow! Thank you, Dawn.

I love Grace Slick. I think I read she's the first female musician to have a #1 single with a song she wrote.

[Dawn]

Wow! Thank you, Dawn.

I love Grace Slick. I think I read she's the first female musician to have a #1 single with a song she wrote.

You're welcome NMB. I just watched this video again and all I can say is I am very glad I was not at this concert. Luckily my brother and his college buddies were nowhere near the stage where most of the violence took place. My parents heard about what happened and were horrified. I was banned from attending any concerts until I was 18 and even then they were not enthusiastic lol.

Re Altamont: lIIRC it was free. Mick Jagger and Grace Slick had a pre-festival meeting about hiring the Hells Angels as security but never expected it would become so violent. You can see in the video there was a lot of beer and drugs, nudity, fans tripping out some very aggressive others mellow.

FWIW I have read that Grace and Marty didn't get along all that well. Grace was a beautiful woman with great stage presence. She stopped performing and got into painting. I would love one of her White Rabbit ones! Her promotional interviews back then with late night tv hosts are classic!

[NightMistBlue]

Marty said some terrible, vile things about Grace. To be even-handed, the way she acted toward him would be termed sexual harassment today. No doubt, there was love between them - on a spiritual level, if nowhere else.

Did you notice a strange dynamic between Marty and Grace when you saw them? He has said she was often so drunk he had to hold her up.

[Dawn]

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/f8PQa5YwTP8i9VeewQLKJk-650-80.jpeg

Honestly I can't recall a specific incident where I saw Marty interacting with Grace in a way that would suggest to me they had a bad relationship. I do remember Grace performing while under the influence but whether she was drunk, stoned or on psychedelic drugs like LSD I don't know. What I do know is this was a time when fans were often as wasted as some of the legendary bands of the era like Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, the Doors, Jimi Hendrix etc. In short, it was the best of times in terms of the diversity of music emerging on the West Coast especially in SF and it was the worst of times in terms of the counter culture movement which got progressively more violent because of the Vietnam War, politics, etc. Marty was a big fan of the bands original female lead singer Ingrid (who I never saw perform) and it appears he never really hit it off with Grace. She was a veritable force of nature ... quoted as saying she had as much fun as the guys did ... Paraphrasing .. and like others of that generation most likely considers herself lucky to have survived.