By 1973, after the breakup of Jefferson Airplane, with Kaukonen and Casady now devoting their full attention to Hot Tuna, several of the musicians who worked on Kantner, Slick, and Freiberg's album "Baron von Tollbooth & the Chrome Nun" formed the core of a new lineup that was formally reborn as "Jefferson Starship" in 1974. Kantner, Slick, and Freiberg were charter members. The line-up also included late-Airplane holdovers drummer John Barbata, Marty Balin,and fiddler Papa John Creach (who also played with Hot Tuna), along with Pete Sears (who, like Freiberg, played bass and keyboards) and twenty-year-old guitarist Craig Chaquico.
Eventually, Slick's alcoholism became a problem, which led to two nights of disastrous concerts in Germany in 1978. The first night, fans ransacked the stage when Slick failed to appear. The following night, Slick, in a drunken stupor, shocked the audience by using profanity and sexual references throughout most of her songs. She also reminded the audience that their country had lost during World War II , repeatedly asking "Who won the war?", and implied that all residents of Germany were responsible for the wartime atrocities. After the debacle, she left the band.
The band soon cribbed vocalist Mickey Thomas from the popular Elvin Bishop Group. After the 1979 release of 'Freedom at Point Zero' (which spawned the hit single "Jane"), Slick returned to the band. She joined in time to contribute one song, "Stranger", on the group's next album, Modern Times (1981). Modern Times also included the notorious "Stairway to Cleveland," in which the band defended the numerous changes it had undergone in its musical style, personnel, and even name. One noted personnel change in the group was when Dunbar left and was replaced by Donny Baldwin (also of the Elvin Bishop Group). Slick remained in the band for Jefferson Starship's final two albums, Winds Of Change (1982) and Nuclear Furniture (1984).
Around this time, the band began enthusiastically embracing rock's video age. Grace Slick would appear frequently on MTV and such music-oriented television shows as Solid Gold, giving the band a high visibility in the MTV era. However, the Jefferson Starship albums of this era were only modestly successful, yet the band remained a gold-selling (and thus commercially credible) act, and a popular concert draw.
In 1984, Kantner (the last remaining founding member of Jefferson Airplane) left the group, but not before taking legal action over the Jefferson name against his former bandmates, who wanted to continue as Jefferson Starship. Kantner settled out of court and signed an agreement that neither party would use the names "Jefferson" or "Airplane" unless all members of Jefferson Airplane, Inc. (Bill Thompson, Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady) agreed. The band used the titles "Starship Jefferson" and "Jefferson Starship" during the proceedings, but ultimately settled on the shortening 'Starship'.
In 1992, Kantner restarted Jefferson Starship as Jefferson Starship - The Next Generation before returning simply to Jefferson Starship after a couple of years. This incarnation of the band continues to perform and record to this day.
Champion
Jefferson Starship Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And suddenly all and everything we know
Had burst into flames
Erupted in fire
In the heat of the river
In the heat of the morning sun
I saw rose
Staring down the city guns
She said
I am the one
I am the champion
Protector
Leader
Defender
Optimum champion
She said
I am the one
I am the only one
In the aftermath of atomic fire
I'll be your champion
Distinctly unhumble they said
That's what they called her then
But everything she touched
Seemed to turn out like magic then
And the walls
The walls of the city
They fell down like magic then
And the walls
The walls of my heart
They fell apart like magic then
She was the one
She was the number one
In this age of madness
This age of the gun
Rose was the champion
Hot war who could ask for more
Six minutes on a cold winter morning
Cold war ain't here no more
Rose, rose, take me home
Rose
Lightning rose
Carry me home
Take me home
Home home home
Nanananananananana
Nanananananananana
There is no more order
Nanananananananana (continues in the background until **)
And there is no more yale
There is no more new york
No more central park
No more walter cronkite
Duran duran
No more bruce springsteen (he bought it)
No more ray charles
Or mtv
Or rca victor
And yale is a sheet of radio-active glass thirty miles across
No more jodie foster
And there is no more california
No more moscow, or mecca, no tel aviv,
or riyadh or peking or cuba no london
No washington dc
Kansas is left
They didn't touch cleveland!
And there are no more bombs
They used them all!
Not many russians left
And there no more assholes
There'll always be assholes
Why couldn't we stop it then, what did we do so wrong
And it's such a bloody drag
to have to rebuild civilization all over again
**
Nananananana nananana
Nananananana nananana
There is no more order
But there is rose
And rose is your heart
And rose is love
And rose is spirit
And faith and light
Rose is friday night
And we all have rose
If we start right now
And if we sing long enough
And if we sing loudly enough
And if we sing strong enough
We can make a difference
We can make a difference
Yeah yeah yeah, she said
I'll be the one
I'll be the only one
Unused lyrics on lyric sheet:
Let there be light on this planet
And let it shine through me
Let there be travellers who venture
Far from the beaten path
And let one of them be me
The song "Champion" by Jefferson Starship tells the story of a woman known as Rose, who claims to be the champion, protector, leader, defender, optimum champion. The song begins with a vivid description of a world in flames, and in this chaos, Rose emerges as the leader. The lines 'I am the one. I am the champion. In the aftermath of atomic fire. I'll be your champion' highlight her desire to serve and protect others in a world where there are no laws or governments left.
The song goes on to describe how Rose is different from the rest. Her touch seems to turn everything magical, and the walls of the city fall down with her magic. She is the one who brings order to the chaos and emerges victorious when the world is burning down. Rose is here to lead and protect us in these crazy times of war, and she thinks that she is the only one who can survive in a world without laws and order. The song's chorus repeats this call to be the champion, the one who will take care of everyone, and sing loudly enough to make a difference.
Line by Line Meaning
In the heat of the river
Amidst the chaos of the times
In the heat of the morning sun
In the midst of a new dawn
I saw rose
I met Rose, who inspired hope
Out on the river
Out on the water, observing from afar
Staring down the city guns
Defying oppressive forces
She said
Rose spoke with conviction
I am the one
I am on a mission
I am the champion
I represent an unstoppable force
Protector
I will shield and safeguard
Leader
I will guide and motivate
Defender
I will stand up and fight
Optimum champion
I am the best there is
She was the number one
Rose was top-tier
In this age of madness
In this world of chaos and destruction
This age of the gun
This era of violence and hate
Rose was the champion
Rose was the hero who saved the day
Cold war ain't here no more
The Cold War is over
Rose, rose, take me home
Rose symbolizes the way forward
Lightning rose
Rose is a force of sudden and dramatic change
There is no more order
The world as we know it has crumbled
But there is rose
But there remains hope in Rose
And rose is your heart
Rose represents the goodness within us
And rose is love
Rose embodies the love we must share
And rose is spirit
Rose inspires us to rise above
And faith and light
Rose brings faith and light to the darkness
Rose is friday night
Rose is the start of a new beginning
And we all have rose
We all have the capacity to make a difference like Rose
If we start right now
If we act with urgency and determination
And if we sing long enough
And if we persevere endlessly
And if we sing loudly enough
And if we let our voices resonate loudly
And if we sing strong enough
And if we sing with a powerful message
We can make a difference
We can change the world
Yeah yeah yeah, she said
All it takes is the willpower to carry on
I'll be the one
I will fight the fight
I'll be the only one
I'll stand alone, but I won't give up
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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