Uploaded by alphaville1 on Jun 3, 2008
From his only solo album, "Oar"
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Wikipedia:
Alexander Lee "Skip" Spence (April 18, 1946 -- April 16, 1999) was a musician and singer-songwriter. He was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
Spence was a guitarist in an early line-up of Quicksilver Messenger Service before Marty Balin recruited him to be the drummer for Jefferson Airplane. After one album with Jefferson Airplane, their debut Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, he left to co-found Moby Grape, once again as a guitarist.
During the recording session of the group's second album, Wow in 1968, Spence allegedly attempted to break down a bandmate's hotel room door with a fire axe while under the influence of LSD. Spence was committed for six months to New York City's Bellevue Hospital, where he was subsequently diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Upon his release, he recorded his only solo album, the now-classic psychedelic/folk album Oar (1969, Columbia Records). However, mental illness and alcoholism prevented him from sustaining a career in the music industry, and he spent most of his later life homeless in and around San Jose and Santa Cruz, California. He died in 1999, from lung cancer. He was 52.
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All Comments (88)
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@elephantrange Putting 2 severely mental ill men in the same room can be a bloody mess haha.
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greeting from belle view hospital skip
the sky is finally blue
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@audiomarginal how can we not rec it? youd have to be deaf
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C'est sans doute sa meilleure. Tout à fait originale. Meilleure que Syd Barrett et pas loin de Pink Floyd
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veverzay
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@Thomaspwgy yeah man !!!!!!!!!!!!!
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i've listen too and have a couple moby grape albums but this is the first time i heard this album (sorry im 22 and wasnt there)
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veverzay?
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veveerzay
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Holy wow.
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16 videos
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- 2:16skip spence cripple creekby nojukebox2,913 views
'Oar' is the American 'Madcap laughs' by Syd Barret.I don't intend to romanticise mental disorder,but these two souls went places very few people have ventured to.Genius.
Flowmotion1000 2 years ago 23
WoW i can't believe it!!!!!!! It's an honor to meet you!!!! I love TAKES OFF by Jefferson Airplane with Skip, i like Moby Grape and Oar also!!! And i also love Skip, though his story is rather sad!!
A Genius as far as I'm concerned!!!!!!!
Thomaspwgy 2 years ago 14