Alexander Lee "Skip" Spence (April 18, 1946 – April 16, 1999) was a Canadian-born American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was co-founder of

Moby Grape Moby Grape is an American rock band founded in 1966, known for having all five members contribute to singing and songwriting, and who collectively merged elements of folk music, blues, country, and jazz with rock and psychedelic music. They we ...

, and played guitar with them until 1969. In the same year, he released his only solo album, '' Oar'', and then largely withdrew from the music industry. He had started his career as a guitarist in an early line-up of Quicksilver Messenger Service, and was the drummer on

Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, that became one of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock. Formed in 1965, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the Bay Area to ach ...

's debut album, '' Jefferson Airplane Takes Off''. He has been described on the

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

website as "one of psychedelia's brightest lights"; however, his career was plagued by

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use oft ...

coupled with mental health problems, and he has been described by a biographer as a man who "neither died young nor had a chance to find his way out."

Biography

Early life: 1946–1965

Alexander Lee Spence was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on April 18, 1946. His father, Alexander Lett "Jock" Spence (1914–1965),Alexander Lett Spence
Distinguished Flying Cross Citation
; airforce.ca; retrieved 2013-02-09; "Alexander Lett Spence later resided in

Flower Station, Ontario A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

, a small community in the Lanark Highlands of eastern Ontario, before moving to

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the southe ...

. Spence received the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery during a raid on Aulnoye, as a member of the

434 Squadron 434 Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron is a Royal Canadian Air Force bomber squadron that flew bombing operations over Europe during World War II and was later a post-war fighter and combat support unit. It was disbanded in 2000. The squad ...

of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Spence died in San Jose, California, on May 1, 1965, at the age of 50. His body was returned to Canada, and interred at Clyde Forks Cemetery, in Lanark County, Ontario." was a machinist, a salesman, and played Route 66 as a solo singer-songwriter and piano player. He was also a decorated Canadian WWII bomber pilot, having been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. In the late 1950s, the family relocated from Windsor to

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, based on Spence's father finding work in the aircraft industry. At the age of ten, he was given his first guitar by his parents.

Music career: 1966–1969

Spence was a guitarist in the band the Other Side before Marty Balin recruited him to be the drummer for

(apparently because he looked the part). Spence drummed on their debut, '' Jefferson Airplane Takes Off'', which was recorded before

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 ...

joined the group. He was dismissed by the band after taking an unannounced vacation to Mexico. He briefly considered joining Buffalo Springfield as a drummer before returning to the guitar to co-found

. During the recording session of Moby Grape's second album, '' Wow'', in 1968, Spence attempted to break down a bandmate's hotel room door with a fire axe, while under the influence of LSD. Spence's deterioration in New York and the "fire axe incident" are described by bandmate Jerry Miller as follows:

Skippy changed radically when we were in New York. There were some people there that were into harder drugs and a harder lifestyle, and some very weird shit. And so he kind of flew off with those people. Skippy kind of disappeared for a little while. Next time we saw him, he had cut off his beard, and was wearing a black leather jacket, with his chest hanging out, with some chains and just sweating like a son of a gun. I don't know what the hell he got a hold of, man, but it just whacked him. And the next thing I know, he axed my door down in the Albert Hotel. They said at the reception area that this crazy guy had held an axe to the doorman's head.

Bandmate Peter Lewis, describes

Don Stevenson Don Stevenson (born October 15, 1941, Seattle, Washington) is the American drummer and a singer and songwriter for Moby Grape, a band which was formed in San Francisco in 1966 and continues to perform occasionally today. History Don Stevenson fi ...

as also being target of Spence and what happened to Spence afterwards:

We had to do he albumin New York because the producer avid Rubinsonwanted to be with his family. So we had to leave our families and spend months at a time in hotel rooms in New York City. Finally I just quit and went back to California. I got a phone call after a couple of days. They'd played a
Fillmore East The Fillmore East was rock promoter Bill Graham's rock venue on Second Avenue near East 6th Street in the (at the time) Lower East Side neighborhood, now called the East Village neighborhood of the borough of Manhattan of New York City. I ...
gig without me, and Skippy took off with some black witch afterward who fed him full of acid. It was like that scene in The Doors movie. He thought he was the anti-Christ. He tried to chop down the hotel room door with a fire axe to kill Don tevensonto save him from himself. He went up to the 52nd floor of the CBS building where they had to wrestle him to the ground. And Rubinson pressed charges against him. They took him to
The Tombs ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...
otorious prison in New Yorkand that's where he wrote ''Oar''. When he got out of there, he cut that album in
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...
. And that was the end of his career. They shot him full of Thorazine for six months. They just take you out of the game.

In June 1968 Spence was admitted to

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States b ...

in New York; during his six months stay, he was diagnosed with

schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wi ...

. According to an urban myth, on the day of his release, he drove a motorcycle, dressed in only his pajamas, directly to Nashville to record his only solo album, with no other musicians appearing on it, the now-classic psychedelic/folk album '' Oar'' (1969,

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

Decline: 1970–1999

During the early 70s Spence also founded and experimented with a three-man rock band called Pachuca and later a larger ensemble called The Rhythm Dukes. He continued to have minor involvement in later Moby Grape projects and reunions. He contributed to ''

20 Granite Creek ''20 Granite Creek'' is the rock band Moby Grape's fifth album. After recording their last album for Columbia Records, '' Truly Fine Citizen'', the band went on hiatus until 1971 when they reunited with Skip Spence and Bob Mosley and recorded thi ...

'' (1971) and '' Live Grape'' (1978), though his bandmates always included at least one of his songs on group recordings, irrespective of whether he was capable of performing with the group at the time. He had been similarly remembered by

, whereby his song " My Best Friend" was included on the group's ''

Surrealistic Pillow ''Surrealistic Pillow'' is the second album by the American rock band Jefferson Airplane, released by RCA Victor on February 1, 1967. It is the first album by the band with vocalist Grace Slick and drummer Spencer Dryden. The album peaked at numbe ...

'' album (1967), despite his departure from the group. Due to his deteriorating state and notwithstanding that he was no longer functioning in the band, Spence was supported by Moby Grape band members for extended periods. Voluminous consumption of heroin and cocaine resulted in a further involuntary committal for Spence. As described by Peter Lewis, "Skippy was just hanging around. He hadn't been all there for years, because he'd been into heroin all that time. In fact he actually OD'ed once and they had him in the

morgue A morgue or mortuary (in a hospital or elsewhere) is a place used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification (ID), removal for autopsy, respectful burial, cremation or other methods of disposal. In modern times, corpses have c ...

in San Jose with a tag on his toe. All of a sudden he got up and asked for a glass of water. Now he was snortin' big clumps of coke, and nothing would happen to him. We couldn't have him around because he'd be pacing the room, describing axe murders. So we got him a little place of his own. He had a little white

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include ''Neotoma'' ( pack rats), ''Bandicota'' (bandicoot ...

named Oswald that would snort coke too. He'd never washed his dishes, and he'd try to get these little grammar school girls to go into the house with him. He was real bad. One of the parents finally called the cops, and they took him to the County Mental Health Hospital in Santa Cruz. Where they immediately lost him, and he turned up days later in the women's ward."

Mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitt ...

and

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...

thus prevented Spence from sustaining a career in the music industry. Much of his life was spent in third party care, as a ward of the State of California, and either

homeless Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

or in transient accommodations in his later years. He remained in and around San Jose and Santa Cruz. Peter Lewis regularly visited Spence during the latter years of his life: "The last five years I'd go up‚ he lived in a trailer up there‚ Capitola. I used to hang around with him; we'd spend the weekends together. But he just basically kind of hit the...he was helpless in a way in terms of being able to define anything or control his feelings." In 1994, he participated in a music program for the mentally ill, sponsored by the City of San Jose. Two years later, in 1996, he was commissioned to write a song for ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'' soundtrack, ''

Songs in the Key of X ''Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by the X-Files'' is a 1996 compilation album released in association with the American science fiction television series '' The X-Files''. The album contained a mixture of songs that were either f ...

;'' though not used, it was included on the ''More Oar'' tribute record as " Land of the Sun". Spence's final performance with Moby Grape occurred on August 9, 1996, at Palookaville in Santa Cruz. At this final show, Spence led the group through a rendition of "Sailing" (a song performed during the 1971 reunion run) and an impromptu performance of "J.P.P. McStep B. Blues", which he'd written for Jefferson Airplane in 1966.

Death

Spence died of lung cancer on April 16, 1999; two days before his 53rd birthday. He was survived by his four children, eleven grandchildren, a half-brother (Rich Young) and his sister, Sherry Ferreira.John Pareles
Skip Spence, Psychedelic Musician, Dies at 52
Nytimes.com, April 18, 1999; accessed December 31, 2015. '' More Oar: A Tribute to the Skip Spence Album'', an album featuring contributions from

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following th ...

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

, and Beck, among others, was released a few weeks after his death. Prior to its release, the CD was played for Spence at the hospital, in his final stages before death. Spence is interred at Soquel Cemetery in Santa Cruz County.

Legacy

Spence has been described on the Allmusic website as "one of psychedelia's brightest lights". Spence wrote "Omaha" for Moby Grape's first album which ''

Rolling Stone Magazine ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cov ...

'' listed in 2008 as one of the 100 greatest guitar songs of all time. In June 2008, a Skip Spence tribute concert was held in Santa Cruz. The concert featured Spence's son Omar, who has sung with various configurations of Moby Grape in recent years. Omar Spence, singing his father's songs, was backed by the Santa Cruz White Album Ensemble, with Dale Ockerman and Tiran Porter, both formerly of the Doobie Brothers, and both of whom have played with various members of Moby Grape in several bands over the past three decades.

(an original Moby Grape member) also performed.

Keith Graves Keith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Keith (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters * Keith (surname) * Keith (singer), American singer James Keefer (born 1949) * Baron Keith, a line of Scottish baron ...

of Quicksilver Messenger Service played drums. Peter Lewis joined the group onstage for the finale. An additional Skip Spence tribute concert was held in October 2008.

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as ''cyberpunk''. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, hi ...

paid tribute to Spence in his collection of essays, ''

Distrust That Particular Flavor ''Distrust That Particular Flavor'' is a collection of non-fiction essays by American author William Gibson, better known for his speculative and science fiction novels. ''Distrust'' consists of twenty-six pieces written over a period of more th ...

'', in which he marvelled at his tailor adjusted jeans.

Discography

With Jefferson Airplane

*'' Jefferson Airplane Takes Off'' (

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westin ...

, 1966) ;Compilations *'' Early Flight'' (RCA, 1974) *''

Jefferson Airplane Loves You ''Jefferson Airplane Loves You'' is a three-CD boxed set of recordings by the San Francisco rock band Jefferson Airplane with extensive liner notes by Jeff Tamarkin, author of the Jefferson Airplane history ''Got a Revolution: The Turbulent Fligh ...

'' (RCA, 1992)

With Moby Grape

;Original albums *''

'' (

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

, 1967) *'' Wow/Grape Jam'' (Columbia, 1968) *'' Moby Grape '69'' (Columbia, 1969) *''

'' ( Reprise, 1971) *'' Live Grape'' (Akarma, 1978) *''

The Place and the Time ''The Place and the Time'' is a compilation album of demos, outtakes, alternative versions and live versions of songs by Moby Grape, released by Sundazed Records in 2009 in CD and double LP format. History The album was released in April 200 ...

'' ( Sundazed, 2009) *''

Moby Grape Live ''Moby Grape Live'' is a 2010 album, released by Sundazed Records, of previously unissued live recordings of the band Moby Grape. Included are recordings of the band in its prime in 1966 and 1967, as well as 1969 recordings, subsequent to the 196 ...

'' (Sundazed, 2010) ;Compilations *''Omaha'' (

Harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. Howev ...

, 1971) *''

Great Grape ''Great Grape'' is a compilation album released by Columbia Records in 1972 that compiles songs from three of Moby Grape's Columbia albums - '' Moby Grape'', ''Wow'', and ''Moby Grape '69''. It has been speculated that Columbia's decision to re ...

'' (Columbia, 1972) *''Murder in My Heart'' (Edsel, 1986) *'' Vintage: The Very Best of Moby Grape'' (Columbia/Legacy, 1993) *'' Crosstalk: The Best of Moby Grape'' (Sony International, 2004) *''

Listen My Friends! The Best of Moby Grape ''Listen My Friends! The Best of Moby Grape'' is a compilation album by Moby Grape, released in 2007 by Columbia Records as part of its "Legacy" series. The title of the album is a reference to lyrics repeated in the song "Omaha" on the group's ...

'' (Columbia/Legacy, 2007)

Solo

Studio album

*'' Oar'' (Columbia, 1969), remastered and expanded in 1999 by Sundazed

Other release

*''AndOarAgain'' (Columbia, 1969), remastered and expanded "Oar" with three discs (Modern Harmonic/Sundazed)

Single releases

*" Land of the Sun" ( Sundazed, 1999) *"After Gene Autry" b/w "Motorcycle Irene" (aka ''Previously Unissued Demo Recordings'') (Sundazed, 2009)

Compilation appearances

*''Psychodelia'' (MCI, 1994) - "War in Peace" *''Psychodelic'' Frequencies (

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called church (building), churches), Hindui ...

, 1996) - "War in Peace" *''L'odyssee Du Rock'' (Sony Music Media/Sony, 2004) 4XLP - "Cripple Creek" *''Meridian 1970 (Protest, Sorrow, Hobos, Folk and Blues)'' ( Forever Heavenly/ EMI, 2005) - "Cripple Creek" * ''Woodstock Generation'' (

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...

, 2009) MP3 - "War in Peace" *''Pure...Psychedelic Rock'' (Sony Music), 2010) 4XCD - "War in Peace" *''Come on Back to The War'' (

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...

, 2011) cassette - "Margret Tiger Rug" *''The Anniversary of Light'' (Mississippi, 2013) cassette - "Weighted Down" *''Bobby Gillespie Presents Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down'' ( Ace, 2015) - "War in Peace" *''Institute-A Mixed Tape Made By Institute'' (

Sacred Bones Sacred Bones Records is an American independent record label founded in 2007 and based in Brooklyn, New York. The label has released recordings from artists including Zola Jesus, David Lynch, John Carpenter, Blanck Mass, Crystal Stilts, Marissa ...

, 2015) ltd. edition cassette - "Cripple Creek" *''Between the Music Vol. One'' (End of the Road, 2022) 2XLP - "Cripple Creek" *''Music For The Stars (Celestial Music 1960-1979)'' (Two Piers, 2022) 2XLP/CD - "Broken Heart" *''Who Has Seen The Wind'' (Mississippi) cassette - "Broken Heart"

Tribute album

*'' More Oar: A Tribute to the Skip Spence Album'' ( Birdman, 1999)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spence, Skip 1946 births 1999 deaths 20th-century American drummers 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male singers 20th-century Canadian drummers 20th-century Canadian guitarists 20th-century Canadian male singers American male drummers American male guitarists American male singer-songwriters American rock drummers American rock guitarists American rock singers American rock songwriters Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian male drummers Canadian male guitarists Canadian male singer-songwriters Canadian rock drummers Canadian rock guitarists Canadian rock singers Canadian singer-songwriters Deaths from lung cancer in California Guitarists from California Jefferson Airplane members Moby Grape members Musicians from San Jose, California Musicians from Santa Cruz, California Musicians from Windsor, Ontario Outsider musicians People from Capitola, California People with schizophrenia Psychedelic folk musicians Psychedelic rock musicians Quicksilver Messenger Service members Singer-songwriters from California