Peter Kaukonen
Encyclopedia
Peter Kaukonen is a San Francisco bay area guitarist/multi-instrumentalist
/songwriter. He is the younger brother of Jorma Kaukonen
from Jefferson Airplane/Hot Tuna. Peter Kaukonen has played, toured, and recorded with Jefferson Airplane
, Jefferson Starship
, Hot Tuna
, Johnny Winter
, Link Wray
, Terry Allen, Ruthann Friedman
(author of "Windy"), as well as his own band, Black Kangaroo.
He plays both acoustic and electric guitars; acoustic and electric bass, mandolin, bouzouki, lap steel guitar and piano. His influences are Chicago and delta blues, fingerpicking guitar, new-age styled acoustic music, rock and roll, jazz and classical music.
Kaukonen's songwriting spans 40 years—from early power trio songs written for Black Kangaroo and covered by Jefferson Airplane to instrumental compositions.
Solo
Guest Appearances
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
/songwriter. He is the younger brother of Jorma Kaukonen
Jorma Kaukonen
Jorma Ludwik Kaukonen Jr. is an American blues, folk, and rock guitarist, best known for his work with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna.-Biography:...
from Jefferson Airplane/Hot Tuna. Peter Kaukonen has played, toured, and recorded with Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
, Jefferson Starship
Jefferson Starship
Jefferson Starship is an American rock band formed in the early 1970s. The group is a spin-off from the iconic 1960s psychedelic/folk group Jefferson Airplane. The band has undergone several major changes in personnel and genres through the years while retaining the same Jefferson Starship name...
, Hot Tuna
Hot Tuna
Hot Tuna is an American blues-rock band formed by bassist Jack Casady and guitarist Jorma Kaukonen as a spin-off of Jefferson Airplane. It plays acoustic and electric versions of original and traditional blues songs.- Jefferson Airplane side project :...
, Johnny Winter
Johnny Winter
John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III is an American blues guitarist, singer, and producer. Best known for his late 1960s and 1970s high-energy blues-rock albums and live performances, Winter also produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for blues legend Muddy Waters...
, Link Wray
Link Wray
Fred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and occasional singer....
, Terry Allen, Ruthann Friedman
Ruthann Friedman
Ruthann Friedman is an American folk singer.Born in the Bronx, New York, Friedman spent her formative years in the San Fernando Valley, north of Los Angeles. She started playing guitar at the age of eight while listening to Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Josh White. Her first song gained her a...
(author of "Windy"), as well as his own band, Black Kangaroo.
He plays both acoustic and electric guitars; acoustic and electric bass, mandolin, bouzouki, lap steel guitar and piano. His influences are Chicago and delta blues, fingerpicking guitar, new-age styled acoustic music, rock and roll, jazz and classical music.
Kaukonen's songwriting spans 40 years—from early power trio songs written for Black Kangaroo and covered by Jefferson Airplane to instrumental compositions.
Discography
with Black Kangaroo- Black Kangaroo – Grunt RecordsGrunt RecordsGrunt Records is a vanity label founded in 1971 by Jefferson Airplane and distributed by RCA Records. Initially created to sign local Bay Area acts, the label later was used only for Jefferson Starship and Hot Tuna releases. The label ended use in 1987 after Grace Slick left...
FTR-1006 (1972) - Black Kangaroo – Wounded Bird 106 (2007)
- "Prisoner" / "Dynamo Snackbar" – Grunt Records single 65-0507 (1972)
- "Up or Down" / "That's a Good Question" – Grunt Records single 65-0510 (1972)
Solo
- Going Home – Veldt 1001 (2004)
- Beyond Help – Veldt 1002 (2004)
- The Archives 1976 - 2006 – Veldt 1003 (2006)
- Traveller – Veldt 1004 (2007)
Guest Appearances
- Blows Against the EmpireBlows Against the EmpireBlows Against the Empire is a concept album by Paul Kantner and Grace Slick, released under the name Paul Kantner and Jefferson Starship, the first album to use the "Starship" name, although the personnel line-up was not the same as would appear on the first actual Jefferson Starship...
– RCA Records LSP-4448 (by Paul KantnerPaul KantnerPaul Lorin Kantner is an American rock musician, known for co-founding the psychedelic rock band Jefferson Airplane and its spin-off band Jefferson Starship.- Overview :...
and Jefferson StarshipJefferson StarshipJefferson Starship is an American rock band formed in the early 1970s. The group is a spin-off from the iconic 1960s psychedelic/folk group Jefferson Airplane. The band has undergone several major changes in personnel and genres through the years while retaining the same Jefferson Starship name...
) (1970) - SunfighterSunfighter-Personnel:*Paul Kantner – vocals, rhythm guitar*Grace Slick – vocals, piano*Jack Traylor – guitar on "Earth Mother", vocals on "Earth Mother"*Jerry Garcia – guitar on "When I Was a Boy I Watched the Wolves", "Million", and "Holding Together"...
– Grunt Records FTR-1001 (by Paul Kantner and Grace SlickGrace SlickGrace Slick is an American singer and songwriter, who was one of the lead singers of the rock groups The Great Society, Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, and Starship, and was a solo artist, for nearly three decades, from the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s...
) (1971) - Be What You Want ToBe What You Want ToBe What You Want To is the 1973 album by pioneer Rock & Roll guitarist, and Shawnee Indian Link Wray. The album was recorded in 1972 with many guest musicians, including Jerry Garcia, Commander Cody, and David Bromberg.-Track listing:...
– Polydor PD-5047 (by Link WrayLink WrayFred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and occasional singer....
) (1973) - ManholeManhole (album)Manhole is Grace Slick's first solo album credited solely to her...
– Grunt Records BFL1-0347 (by Grace Slick) (1974) - JuarezJuarez (album)Juarez is an album released by Terry Allen in 1975. The album has been reissued on compact disc by Sugar Hill Records.- Track listing :# The Juarez Device # The Characters/ A Simple Story# Cortez Sail# Border Palace# Dogwood...
– Fate Records (by Terry Allen) (1975) - Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane (album)Jefferson Airplane is the reunion album of San Francisco rock band Jefferson Airplane, released on Epic Records in 1989.-Overview:Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, Jorma Kaukonen, and Jack Casady, who had played together on Surrealistic Pillow, After Bathing at Baxters, Crown of Creation and...
– Epic Records 90036 (by Jefferson AirplaneJefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
) (1989)