Skip Spence

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

He was a founder of Moby Grape and played guitar with them until 1969.

He released Oar, a 1969 solo album, but the music industry was largely absent from the scene.

He began his career as a guitarist in an early version of Quicksilver Messenger Service, and he was the drummer on Jefferson Airplane's debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off.

On the AllMusic website, he was described as "one of psychedelia's best lights"; however, his career was marred by heroin use and mental health issues, and a biographer has characterized him as a man who "neither died young nor had a chance to find his way out."

Early life: 1946–1965

Alexander Lee Spence was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, in 1946. Alexander Lett "Jock" Spence (1914–1965), his father, a salesman, lived on Route 66 as a solo singer-songwriter and piano player. Alexander Spence, a distinguished Canadian WWII bomber pilot, had been named the Distinguished Flying Cross.

The family migrated from Windsor, California, in the 1950s, after Spence's father found work in the aircraft industry. He was given his first guitar by his parents at the age of ten.

Spence had been a guitarist on the Other Side of the band before Marty Balin recruited him to be the drummer for Jefferson Airplane (apparently because he looked the part). Spence drummed on their debut, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, which was not released before Grace Slick joined the company. He was kicked out of the band after returning to Mexico for an unannounced holiday. He briefly considered joining Buffalo Springfield as a drummer before returning to the guitar to co-found Moby Grape.

Spence attempted to crack down a bandmate's hotel room door with a fire axe during Moby Grape's second album, Wow, 1968, although LSD was not present. "Skippy changed dramatically when we were in New York, and the "fire axe incident" were characterized by bandmate Jerry Miller. There were some people there who were into harder drugs and a more active lifestyle, as well as some that were a little strange. And so he kind of departed with those people. Skippy was on the decline for a short time. He had shaved off his beard and was sporting a black leather jacket, with his chest hanging out, with some chains, and just sweating like a son of a gun. I'm not sure what the hell he got hold of, but it certainly whacked him. And the next thing I know is that he axed my door in the Albert Hotel. This strange fellow had a axe to the doorman's head, according to them at the reception desk.

Both Jerry Miller and bandmate Don Stevenson were suspected of Spence, as bandmate Peter Lewis said.

Spence was diagnosed with schizophrenia after six months in Bellevue. He rode a motorcycle on the day of his debut, and not true according to his wife), dressed in only his pajamas, straight 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).

Spence formed and performed with Pachuca, a three-man rock band, and later The Rhythm Dukes, a larger ensemble. He continued to play a small part in subsequent Moby Grape projects and reunions. He was involved in 20 Granite Creek (1971) and Live Grape (1978), but his bandmates subsequently included at least one of his songs on group records, regardless of whether he was capable of performing with the group at the time. Despite his departure from the corporation, he had been remembered by Jefferson Airplane, whereby his song "My Best Friend" was included on the group's Surrealistic Pillow album (1967).

Spence was aided by Moby Grape band members for extended stretches of time due to his depreciating health and the fact that he was no longer playing in the band. Spence's compulsory participation resulted in a new involuntary commitment. "Skippy was just hanging around," Peter Lewis said. He hadn't been out for years because he'd been addicted to heroin all the time. He actually OD'ed once and the San Jose morgue had him wearing a tag on his toe. He stood up and asked for a glass of water all at once. Now he was snortin' big clumps of coke, and nothing would happen to him. We couldn't have him around because he'd been pacing the room yelling axe murders. So we have a little house of his own. Oswald, a little white rat, would snort coke too. He'd never washed his dishes, and he'd like to convince these little grammar school girls to come into the house with him. He was really bad. One of the parents' children called the cops and was admitted to the County Mental Health Hospital in Santa Cruz. He was discovered straight away in the women's ward, and he appeared a few days later.

Spence was therefore reluctant to pursue a career in the music industry due to mental illness, heroin use, and alcoholism. As a ward of California's state of California, a lot of his life was spent in third party care, and later years, he was homeless or in boarding facilities. He stayed in and around San Jose and Santa Cruz. During the latter years of his life, Peter Lewis used to visit Spence: "I'd go up." Capitola said in a trailer. I used to hang around with him; we'd spend the weekends together. However, he just kind of hit the...he was helpless in the sense of being able to describe anything or control his emotions."

He was involved in a music program for the mentally ill in 1994, which was sponsored by the City of San Jose. He was hired to write a song for The X-Files soundtrack, Songs in the Key of X; though not used, it was included on the More Oar tribute album as "Land of the Sun."

Spence's final appearance with Moby Grape took place in Palookaville, Santa Cruz, on August 9, 1996. Spence led the group through a recreation of "Sailing" (a song performed during the 1971 reunion run) and an impromptu rendition of "J.P.P." McStep B. Blues, a writer who had written for Jefferson Airplane in 1966, had to be rewritten.

Spence died of lung cancer just days before his 53rd birthday. He was surviving by his four children, eleven grandchildren, a half-brother (Rich Young) and his sister, Sherry Ferreira. More Oar: A tribute to the Skip Spence Album, which featured contributions from Robert Plant, Tom Waits, and Beck, among other things, was published a few weeks after his death. The CD was performed in Spence at the hospital in his last stages before death, prior to its publication. Spence is interred at Soquel Cemetery in Santa Cruz County.

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Music career: 1966–1969

Spence was a guitarist on the Other Side of the band before Marty Balin ordered him to be the drummer for Jefferson Airplane (apparently because he looked the part). Spence drummed on their first, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, which was recorded before Grace Slick joined the group. Since arriving in Mexico for an unannounced holiday, he was fired by the band. He briefly considered joining Buffalo Springfield as a drummer before returning to the guitar to co-found Moby Grape.

Spence attempted to crack down a bandmate's hotel room door with a fire axe during Moby Grape's second album, Wow!, although under the influence of LSD. Spence's decline in New York and the "fire axe incident" were portrayed by bandmate Jerry Miller as follows: "Skippy changed dramatically when we were in New York." There were some people on the street that were into harder drugs and a harder lifestyle, as well as some that were completely bizarre. So he kind of escaped with those people. Skippy has been gone for a while. We saw him again, he had shaved off his beard, was wearing a black leather jacket with his chest hanging out, with some chains, and just sweating like a son of a gun. I'm not sure what the hell he got hold of, but it certainly whacked him. And here's the next thing I heard: he axed my door down in the Albert Hotel. "This crazy guy had held an axe to the doorman's head," the receptionist announced.

Both Jerry Miller and bandmate Don Stevenson seem to have been Spence's intended victims, as bandmate Peter Lewis has said.

Spence was diagnosed with schizophrenia during his six months in Bellevue. He rode a motorcycle on the day of his debut (and not true according to his wife), dressed in only his pajamas, heading straight to Nashville to record his first solo album, with no other performers appearing on it, the now-classic psychedelic/folk album Oar (1969, Columbia Records) on the day of his release.

Spence formed and performed with a three-man rock band named Pachuca, then called The Rhythm Dukes, as a teenager. He continued to play a small part in subsequent Moby Grape projects and reunions. He performed with 20 Granite Creek (1971) and Live Grape (1978), but his bandmates also included at least one of his songs on group recordings, regardless of whether he was capable of performing with the group at the time. Despite his expulsion from the company, he had been remembered by Jefferson Airplane, whereby his song "My Best Friend" appeared on the group's Surrealistic Pillow album (1967).

Spence was helped by Moby Grape band members for extended stretches of time due to his deteriorating health and despite the fact that he was no longer active in the band. A new involuntary obscene commitment to Spence resulted from a flurry consumption of heroin and cocaine. "Skippy was just hanging around," Peter Lewis said. He hadn't been around for years because he'd been into heroin all along. In reality, he OD'ed once before, and they found him in San Jose's morgue with a tag on his toe. He woke up and ordered a glass of water. He was snortin's massive clumps of coke, and nothing would happen to him. We didn't have him around because he'd be pacing the room, describing axe murders. So we have him a little house of his own. He had a little white rat named Oswald that would snort coke too. He'd never washed his dishes, and he'd like to convince these little grammar school girls to join him in the house. He was incredibly bad. One of the parents called the cops and took him to the County Mental Health Hospital in Santa Cruz. He turned up in the women's ward just days later, where they almost lost him.

Spence was unable to pursue a career in the music industry due to mental illness, heroin use, and alcoholism. As a ward of the State of California, a part of his life, a significant portion of his life was spent in third party care, and he was either homeless or in temporary housing in his later years. He remained in and around San Jose and Santa Cruz. During the latter years of his life, Peter Lewis used to visit Spence: "I'd go up" has been a lifelong resident. Capitola, Inc. I used to hang around with him; we'd spend the weekends together. However, he did not really get what he was doing in terms of being able to say or control his emotions."

In 1994, he was involved in a music service for the mentally ill, which was sponsored by the City of San Jose. He was asked to write a song for The X-Files' soundtrack, Songs in the Key of X, in 1996; although not used, it was included on the More Oar tribute album as "Land of the Sun."

Spence's last appearance with Moby Grape occurred on August 9, 1996, in Palookaville, Santa Cruz, Mexico. Spence led the group through a rendition of "Sailing" (a song performed during the 1971 reunion tour) and an improved version of "J.P. McStep B. Blues, a writer who had written for Jefferson Airplane in 1966, has been writing for the Jefferson Airplane.

Spence died of lung cancer 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. More Oar: A Tribute to the Skip Spence Album, an album containing contributions from Robert Plant, Tom Waits, and Beck, among others, was published a few weeks after his death. The CD was pre-released and performed for Spence at the hospital in his last moments before death. Spence is interred at Soquel Cemetery in Santa Cruz County.

Source