''Freedom at Point Zero'' is the fifth album by

Jefferson Starship Jefferson Starship is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1974 by a group of musicians including former members of Jefferson Airplane. Between 1974 and 1984, they released eight gold or platinum-selling studio album ...

and was released in 1979. It was the first album for new lead singer Mickey Thomas, and the first after both

Grace Slick Grace Slick (born Grace Barnett Wing; October 30, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter, artist, and painter. Slick was a key figure in San Francisco's early psychedelic music scene in the mid-1960s. With a music career spanning four decades, s ...

and

Marty Balin Martyn Jerel Buchwald (January 30, 1942 – September 27, 2018), known as Marty Balin (), was an American singer, songwriter, and musician best known as the founder/leader and one of the lead singers and songwriters of Jefferson Airplane and ...

left the previous year (Slick rejoined the band for their next album '' Modern Times'' in 1981 and Balin joined the revived Jefferson Starship in 1993).

Aynsley Dunbar Aynsley Thomas Dunbar (born 10 January 1946) is an English drummer. He has worked with John Mayall, Frank Zappa, Jeff Beck, Journey, Jefferson Starship, Nils Lofgren, Eric Burdon, Shuggie Otis, Ian Hunter, Lou Reed, David Bowie, Mick Ro ...

plays drums on this album; he had left Journey the previous year. The album cover was shot on location in the San Francisco Bay on board the . The single " Jane" peaked on the ''

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

'' at No. 14 and spent three weeks at No. 6 on the '' Cash Box'' Top 100. "Jane" was featured in the 2009 video game '' Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned'', as well as the opening music to the film ''

Wet Hot American Summer ''Wet Hot American Summer'' is a 2001 American teen comedy film directed by David Wain from a screenplay written by Wain and Michael Showalter. The film features an ensemble cast, including Janeane Garofalo, David Hyde Pierce, Molly Shannon, Pa ...

'' and its prequel series '' Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp'', while also being featured in the 2023 comedy thriller film ''

Cocaine Bear ''Cocaine Bear'' is an upcoming American black comedy thriller film directed and co-produced by Elizabeth Banks from a screenplay by Jimmy Warden. It is inspired by the true story of the " Cocaine Bear", an American black bear who ingested a ...

''. It is one of the few songs that was performed live by both the

Paul Kantner Paul Lorin Kantner (March 17, 1941 – January 28, 2016) was an American rock musician. He is best known as the co-founder, rhythm guitarist, and vocalist of Jefferson Airplane, a leading psychedelic rock band of the counterculture era. He conti ...

-led Jefferson Starship TNG and the Mickey Thomas-led

Starship A starship, starcraft, or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for interstellar travel, traveling between planetary systems. The term is mostly found in science fiction. Reference to a "star-ship" appears as early as 188 ...

. The song "Lightning Rose" predicts the concept of the '' Nuclear Furniture'' album, and in fact its character Lightning Rose would return on ''Nuclear Furniture'' as the key character in that album's concept. ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' called the single "Girl with the Hungry Eyes" a "ferocious rocker." It said of "Rock Music" that "Mickey Thomas' frenetic vocals rip over roaring guitars."

Track listing

Personnel

* Mickey Thomas – lead (1, 3-9) and backing vocals *

– lead (2, 9) and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (3) *

Craig Chaquico Craig Clinton Chaquico (or Chaquiço, ; born September 26, 1954) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and composer. From 1974 to 1990 he was lead guitarist for the rock bands Jefferson Starship and Starship. In 1993, he started a solo career as ...

– lead guitar, rhythm guitar *

David Freiberg David Freiberg ( ; born August 24, 1938) is an American musician best known for contributing vocals, keyboards, electric bass, rhythm guitar, viola and percussion as a member of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, and Jefferson ...

– bass (1, 2, 4, 6, 8) synthesizer (3, 5, 7, 9), backing vocals *

Pete Sears Peter Roy Sears (born 27 May 1948) is an English rock musician. In a career spanning more than six decades, he has been a member of many bands and has moved through a variety of musical genres, from early R&B, psychedelic improvisational rock ...

– bass (3, 4 (intro), 5, 7, 9), piano (1, 2, 4), electric piano (6), organ (8), rhythm guitar (8), backing vocals *

– drums, percussion

Additional personnel

*Steven Schuster – saxophone (1-3, 6, 9) *

Tower of Power Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. There have been a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted the ...

– horns (1)

Production

Ron Nevison Ron Nevison is an American record producer and audio engineer. He started his career in the early 1970s as an engineer on ''Quadrophenia'' by the Who and Bad Company's debut album. He eventually became a producer, working with artists including ...

– producer for Gadget Productions, Inc., engineer * Michael Clink – engineer *Mike Reese – mastering *Pat Ieraci (Maurice) – production coordinator *Paul Dowell – amp consultant *Ria Lewerke-Shapiro – art direction, design *Gary Regester – photography *Tyrone Q. Thompson – star scout *Bill Thompson – manager *Recorded and mixed at

The Record Plant The Record Plant is a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and currently operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it has produced highly influential albums, including Blond ...

, Los Angeles - Sausalito *Mastered at The Mastering Lab, Hollywood

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Jefferson Starship albums 1979 albums Albums produced by Ron Nevison Grunt Records albums Albums recorded at Record Plant (Los Angeles)