I always thought of this song as Starship's tribute to SFO, given that their ancestor Jefferson Airplane started there. That, and the radio bits in the 2nd verse of San Francisco radio. When this song was released, many other radio stations across the country inserted their own radio cuts to promote their cities and towns.
Wait, I never heard of people hating this song. Why does it get hate though? Is it just because people dislike it, or is there a backstory of some sort?
@@NickyD9 It had tone of hate since the 80's. Some idiots at Rolling Stone mag even considered it one of the worst songs of all time. I honestly think that only Americans have a problem with the song. Because they changed their name 3 times, because they consider them sellouts when they went "full 80's", because of the lyrics... Who the hell knows... To me it's just another cool and catchy 80's song with cool synth lines like many other 80's songs, and with a kick ass line to any 80's kid: "We Built This City On Rock And Roll"... I mean if that's not cool in the 80's i don't know what is...
@@cleekmaker00 Exactly! I'm pretty sure that's what they intended the song to be about. It was the perfect song for radio due to this fact and the way other radio stations could put in their own cuts.
@@NickyD9 I think it was "fashionable" to hate this song at one point - actually, it was a RULE that you had to hate it. I never followed that rule, ha.
I never, never understood why so many people hate this song. If this is a song to hate, it means many of today's music would cause people to bash their heads against the walls.
I could care less of the negative comments made towards this song and many others..it's a time capsule to my teen years, and I will always sing to it when I play it..
Bernie Taupin, who is most famous for being Elton John's longtime songwriting partner, wrote the initial set of lyrics for "We Built This City". Though the lyrics were slightly altered from the much-darker original set, much of what Bernie wrote remained intact. Taupin said that the lyrics he wrote were about the number of rock music venues that were closing down in the mid-1980s, a phenomenon that continues to this day. This, and "These Dreams" by Heart, were significant successes for Taupin, since it gave him two #1 hits outside of his songwriting partnership with Elton, giving him increased credibility as a songwriter in his own right. Certainly, his monumental success with Elton made him a legend in rock songwriting circles, but having a hit with another writer is a testament to one's skills.
I was 8 years old when this came out and I can still remember how captivating it would sound when all of a sudden you'd hear "WE BUILT THIS CITY" come out of the radio.
I was in my teens when this came out and I LOVED IT and always have. It's so true (in a sad way) but such a fun song nevertheless. You cannot stop your foot tapping along with this - and I've danced along to this as well (of course). Brilliant song to drive to - in so many ways I wish I had grown up and lived in America.instead of the UK.
I was in high school when this came out, and I remember how awful it was - a shame on the legacy of once-great Jefferson Airplane. Want to get beat up in the school parking lot? Play this on your car stereo at high volume and wait 30 seconds. It was one of those songs where if you heard the opening bars on the radio, you have about three seconds to change the station before suffering permanent brain damage. Sorry Rob Squad, i enjoy your reactions, but I can't watch this one because I would be forced to listen to this travesty.
This band has been through many regrouping and renaming phases. It was Jefferson Airplane in their beginning, then Jefferson Starship, and then just Starship featuring Mickey Thomas who was a co-lead singer in the Elvin Bishop Group, their famous song that you reacted to was called, "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" from 1976.
Ok, I’ll try to keep this short. The bands name changed from Jefferson Airplane (60s - 70s) to Jefferson Starship (80s ), then just Starship . Same core members, but changed names to get out of bad contracts (like Prince did ) and take control of their music publishing by releasing music under a new Band names. This song is talking about the rock influence of the 60s and how activism was needed because of corrupt politicians and corporations . San Francisco of today is the direct result of rock and roll. As a side note, in 1989 the World Series was between the Giants and the Oakland A’s. The A’s won games 1&2 at home. Games3,4&5 in San Francisco. On Oct 11 At 504 pm a 6.9 Earthquake hit the Bay Area. My wife and I were in the stands when the quake hit. The World Series game 3 was getting ready to start the game. The TV announcer had just said “welcome to Game 3 of the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the visiting Oakland A’s… wait hold on, yes I think we are having an earth”. The TV went black. The players ran from the dugouts onto the diamond. Their wives and families streamed from the stands to the field. The maintenance man up on the light standards unraveling streamers and bunting swung back and forth holding on for his life. We heard it before we felt it. We wondered why jets from SFO would be flying over the stadium on game day. It wasn’t jets we heard, it was the rumble of the earthquake. Freeways collapsed. Fires raged in downtown SF. It took us 5 hours to drive 45 miles home. Cell phones didn’t really exist yet. It was pay phones. All power was shut down on our route home. You might be wondering what all of this has to do with Starship. Game 3 was rescheduled… a week later. Starship played before the game …. We built city on rock and roll….. the crowd went wild. Sorry for the long post.
"Knee-deep in the hoopla" is one of the greatest phrases ever invented. Fun song, although miles away from where they started (as happens to all bands over time).
Lots of interesting references in this song. The line "Marconi plays the mamba" is a nod to the inventor of the radio - Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi.
There's several great songs on that album ("Freedom at Point Zero")! Jane was the hit single, but the title song (my favorite!), Rock Music, Girl With the Hungry Eyes & Awakening are all really good. If I'm not mistaken, this album featured the debut of new singer, Mickey Thomas, replacing the departing original singer, Marty Balin. They seemed to be going after a harder rock sound, in which I think they succeeded. Grace Slick also sat that one out, due to her alcohol addiction getting out of control, but she was back for the next album, "Modern Times" (featuring Find Your Way Back, Stranger & the f-bomb filled "Stairway to Cleveland", another great album cut).
So this is THE Starship song to me....the song I always think of and remember rocking out to on MTV whenever I think of Starship. This is the Starship from the 80's when I was a teenager. I love how it showcases both of their voices too.
I love the beat and Grace and Mickey. I truly don’t understand the hate at all. Always been a fan since the earliest days of Jefferson Airplane! They began the San Francisco sound in the 60’s.
Right? I was only a few years old when it came out, but I have always loved this song! Is it a departure from the JA days? Sure. But it's still so dang good. I do wish it showcased Grace's vocals a bit more, but it's such a bop!
No hate intended just my opinion of this song I loved the Airplane and appreciate anyone that can write and release a song that gets released,they all have more talent that I could dream of having, just never been a fan of such sappy music.
This was a big hit on the pop charts for Starship. It just showed how over the decades the group adapted their music to the times yet in a good way. You can't go wrong with Mick and Slick.
The song Hair of the dog , By the Rock band Nazareth is a MUST ,,, Its From 1975 ,, Rob Squad you will thank me ,, I PROMISE , They did the cover of Love Hurts, Great 70s Rock for sure
In the 60's and 70's Jefferson Airplane and The Grateful Dead ruled San Francisco's hippy and music scene. Free concerts in golden gate park happened all the time. Music was in the air. In the early 80's things started to change. The city banned the free shows in the park, and really cracked down on rock shows in the theaters etc. This song, as well as the Dead Shakedown street, was sort of their answer to it all. " they tell me this town ain't got no heart, but i can feel it beat out loud. There's something shakin on shakedown street" "We built this city on rock and roll"
I was there. I remember sitting in the park, a picnic lunch by my side, down by the speakers house left. The Stones were on the menu that day (along with the best of San Fran rock-n-roll) . Jagger was in his Superman stage. I remember feeling the music vibrate my entire body. Yeah - the Bay Area was one helluva place to grow up!
@@donjackson5522 They have reacted to the Dead a few times. But always with a studio recording, which any deadhead will tell you, is not the band at it's best. A famous Quote by Jerry himself is "we make shitty records". That said, I wish they, and you, would take a look at this. And the many many others like it. ruclips.net/video/jkY6ZOx411g/видео.html
During that section where the radio guy talks about “looking out over the bridge” local radio stations were allowed to out in their own info. So “this city” was YOUR city. It was awesome! At least it was to this 15 year old.
No, my “city” was Ann Arbor, Michigan so the DJ talked about about “traffic coming out of Michigan Stadium on another gorgeous sunny football Saturday”
A few other (Jefferson)Starship songs worth listening to: "Familiar Stranger" "Winds Of Change" "Layin' It On The Line" "No Way Out" "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" "Set The Night To Music" "Wild Again" "It's Not Enough" "Didn't Mean To Stay All Night" And my all-time favorite... "It's Not Over'Til It's Over"
In my personal opinion, Marty Balin of this band was our crooner in the 70's. His songs were truly beautiful. "Count on Me", "With Your Love," "Miracles", etc... . but my all time favorite that is never acknowledged was "Tumblin'." I still think it is one of the most beautiful love songs alongside any others. Marty is truly missed! He was one talented artist!
This song went to # 1 on the Billboard charts in 1985, not without good reason. It was ALL over radio, it had a perfect sound for the time, and I remember everyone loving it. It was only years later that for whatever reason, it became maligned. I think some critic somewhere decided they hated it and then everyone jumped on the bandwagon. And of course, there is sometimes a backlash if something becomes too popular. Regardless, this is still one of my favorite 80s songs. It's fun, upbeat, and catchy, how can you not love that? And the references and shout-out to radio gave me a special thrill because that was such a huge part of my childhood growing up in a small town; listened to radio like my life depended on it, ha.
If you discovered JA back in the 60s, you generally hated this tune for deserting their sound and gravity and half their talent ( Jorma) to make money makers. While I don't begrudge bands for doing this to a degree, I don't have to listen to it. If you discovered JS in the mid 70s, I can understand loving the song. It's a good pop song, but you didn't expect such lightweight fare from a seminal rock heavyweight like JA.
Let's face it, it is that hormonally overloaded time in our teens and early 20s that music really MOVES you. Musical tastes are really influenced by when exactly we were born.
This channel has the BEST commentary! Listening to you guys almost always helps me identify and clarify my own gut feelings about why I like the music and the lyrics, which does not always come easily for some of us. Thanks so much!
Another 80s JA/JS/Starship song, "No Way Out" has got a real compelling harmonic turn into a strong vocal chorus, and some deep, soul-searching lyrics, and Jefferson Starship hit big in the late 70s, on the radio with an Rock/R&B sound: "Miracles," "With Your Love," and "Runaway." They had a very groovy sound, then!
I still love this song 😆 I remember it really vividly as a music obsessed kid in the 80s. Come Dancing by The Kinks is another 80s song with nostalgic lyrics. So good! ✨
I love their version of "Set The Night To Music" which was featured in the movie Vice Versa. Another great tune is "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" featured in the movie Mannequin.
Iam 60 and it´s cool & amazing seeing you guys react to songs of my youth. Exact interpretation of the theme, btw. Taking care of what we all built is exactly what it´s all about! Thx & best from Hamburg , Germany!
A lot of people dump on this song. I'm with ya'll I like the statement. Love Grace! I don't care if people want to argue talk to the hand. I grew up on the Airplane and stayed with them all along. It's a BIG catalog working several decades. Try my favorite Have you Seen the Stars Tonight.
@@tvgator1 I interviewed Grace, she was the most fascinating interview ever. She was in Denver promoting her artwork. Her comments about “elderly rockers” were interesting. I asked her about Starship. She was kind and told me her comments were off the record. You’re in essence correct but I will maintain her confidentiality.
This song always reminds me of the radio playing at construction sites blaring out Rock and Roll music. "We built this city on Rock and Roll", literally.
I basically grew up in a skating rink. Saw Jefferson Airplane at an after-hours "sock-hop" in the mid 60s, (before I was old enough to appreciate it). Others have mentioned "Jane" and "Miracles" as your next reaction. I agree. "Don't You Want Somebody to Love" comes in close though.
I often went to skating rinks with my older sister when I was a kid in the 80s (I was 13 in 1990) but I was always bad at skating so at roller rinks I stuck to the practice area, at ice rinks I just hung out in the warm skate rental room.
Starship got a new lead singer in the 80's but Grace Slick still shared the lead in this song. She was the original lead singer of Jefferson Airplane from the 60's and 70's.
the second verse is a slam on their record company: someone always playing corporation games, who cares they're always changing corporation names, etc. Their record company forced them to change their name from Jefferson Airplane to Jefferson Starship and then again to Starship for legal reasons. This song was a strkeback at their record company and such. They are saying, "We built this, not you."
Mickey Thomas shown here singing was a very good singer. Grace Slick who sings with him was a long time singer with this band all the way back to White Rabbit and Somebody To Love in 1967.
Jay n Amber for a 70s Rock your socks off song , REACT to the Jefferson Starships song JANE from 1979 , It will be a new song on your play list ,, I promise ,,, Take Care and keep the 70s coming
Oh WOW! This track isn’t about just singing rock and roll. This track is about the freakin Music Industry. How could I not have known that? I heard this as a teenager in the 80’s. WOOOOOW!
Where the radio broadcast broke in from the SF radio station, back in the day every city substituted their own local radio soundbites. It was pretty cool.
Totally unrelated, but next time you're listening to Olivia Newton-John, can I suggest, "Come On Over" (written by Barry/Robin Gibb), "If Not For You" (written by Bob Dylan), “Tied Up”, “My Old Man’s Got A Gun”, "Deeper Than The Night", and "Gimme Some Lovin’"... Oh! and "The Air I Breathe" ..... I was trying to think outside her usual standards… A few of those are on the lesser-known side, but great live performances/music videos!
I recommend y'all check out these Doobie Brothers songs - Can't let it get away - you never change - sweet feeling - open your eyes -Dependin on you -dont stop to watch the wheels - Take Me In Your Arms almost got ahead of myself lol
The Marconi reference in this song hits me hard with my Italian heritage. He had a lot to do with the reason why you are bobbing your heads to the beat. Grazie!
I suggest the next Starship track should be "It's Not Over ('till it's Over)." I believe it's actually a cover but their version was more of a hit. The original was used in one of the corniest '80s movies ever, Playing for Keeps. Christopher Columbus, ya'll. lol
I know this song has been included on those "worst songs" but I always liked it. It was cool to see 60's hippie band Jefferson Airplane evolve into 80's MTV pop/rock band Starship. Mickey Thomas has a great voice!
This is one of those songs we're all supposed to hate, yet all of us know every single word of the thing.. lol. Or, as one Dean Winchester put it, "Jefferson Starships. Because they're horrible and hard to kill." 🤣🤣🤣🤣
As many have suggested, you really need to try "Miracles" from the Jefferson Starship era...and Amber, you talk about great saxophone, some of the best ever in that song
I don't care how many people hate this song or say it's lame, i'll always love this song.
And Sara will always be my favorite Starship song
I always thought of this song as Starship's tribute to SFO, given that their ancestor Jefferson Airplane started there. That, and the radio bits in the 2nd verse of San Francisco radio.
When this song was released, many other radio stations across the country inserted their own radio cuts to promote their cities and towns.
Wait, I never heard of people hating this song. Why does it get hate though? Is it just because people dislike it, or is there a backstory of some sort?
@@NickyD9 It had tone of hate since the 80's. Some idiots at Rolling Stone mag even considered it one of the worst songs of all time.
I honestly think that only Americans have a problem with the song. Because they changed their name 3 times, because they consider them sellouts when they went "full 80's", because of the lyrics... Who the hell knows...
To me it's just another cool and catchy 80's song with cool synth lines like many other 80's songs, and with a kick ass line to any 80's kid: "We Built This City On Rock And Roll"... I mean if that's not cool in the 80's i don't know what is...
@@cleekmaker00 Exactly! I'm pretty sure that's what they intended the song to be about. It was the perfect song for radio due to this fact and the way other radio stations could put in their own cuts.
@@NickyD9 I think it was "fashionable" to hate this song at one point - actually, it was a RULE that you had to hate it. I never followed that rule, ha.
I never, never understood why so many people hate this song. If this is a song to hate, it means many of today's music would cause people to bash their heads against the walls.
Exactly how I feel when I hear today's music.
This is okay, though.
"Jane" is one of their very best, incredible musicianship.
I second that! Jane is my favoriteof their songs!
Best Jefferson song ever.
I could care less of the negative comments made towards this song and many others..it's a time capsule to my teen years, and I will always sing to it when I play it..
To anyone who hates this song, you are all dead to me 😂👍💯
Ditto.... they need to go fuck themselves
And they are dead inside 😂
I prefer The Rock of Ages Movie version
Bernie Taupin, who is most famous for being Elton John's longtime songwriting partner, wrote the initial set of lyrics for "We Built This City". Though the lyrics were slightly altered from the much-darker original set, much of what Bernie wrote remained intact. Taupin said that the lyrics he wrote were about the number of rock music venues that were closing down in the mid-1980s, a phenomenon that continues to this day. This, and "These Dreams" by Heart, were significant successes for Taupin, since it gave him two #1 hits outside of his songwriting partnership with Elton, giving him increased credibility as a songwriter in his own right. Certainly, his monumental success with Elton made him a legend in rock songwriting circles, but having a hit with another writer is a testament to one's skills.
Martin Page was Taupin’s co-writer, who also wrote Go West’s “King of Wishful Thinking” and had a few hits as a solo artist…
Facts
TY worst hit of the 80s explainer...but what did they eat the day they recorded this magnum opus?? tells us more!! 😂
I never knew this either....thanks for sharing.
Desmond Child is pretty amazing too
I was 8 years old when this came out and I can still remember how captivating it would sound when all of a sudden you'd hear "WE BUILT THIS CITY" come out of the radio.
For some reason I've felt that "MARCONI PLAYS THE MAMBA" is epic.
@@STOCKHOLM07 so did I!
I was in my teens when this came out and I LOVED IT and always have. It's so true (in a sad way) but such a fun song nevertheless. You cannot stop your foot tapping along with this - and I've danced along to this as well (of course). Brilliant song to drive to - in so many ways I wish I had grown up and lived in America.instead of the UK.
I was in high school when this came out, and I remember how awful it was - a shame on the legacy of once-great Jefferson Airplane. Want to get beat up in the school parking lot? Play this on your car stereo at high volume and wait 30 seconds. It was one of those songs where if you heard the opening bars on the radio, you have about three seconds to change the station before suffering permanent brain damage. Sorry Rob Squad, i enjoy your reactions, but I can't watch this one because I would be forced to listen to this travesty.
I was 15 years old, so the 80s is the music I grew up with. I love that time. It was happy, hopeful even late 80s hard rock.
This band has been through many regrouping and renaming phases. It was Jefferson Airplane in their beginning, then Jefferson Starship, and then just Starship featuring Mickey Thomas who was a co-lead singer in the Elvin Bishop Group, their famous song that you reacted to was called, "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" from 1976.
Ok, I’ll try to keep this short. The bands name changed from Jefferson Airplane (60s - 70s) to Jefferson Starship (80s ), then just Starship . Same core members, but changed names to get out of bad contracts (like Prince did ) and take control of their music publishing by releasing music under a new Band names. This song is talking about the rock influence of the 60s and how activism was needed because of corrupt politicians and corporations . San Francisco of today is the direct result of rock and roll. As a side note, in 1989 the World Series was between the Giants and the Oakland A’s. The A’s won games 1&2 at home. Games3,4&5 in San Francisco. On Oct 11 At 504 pm a 6.9 Earthquake hit the Bay Area. My wife and I were in the stands when the quake hit. The World Series game 3 was getting ready to start the game. The TV announcer had just said “welcome to Game 3 of the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the visiting Oakland A’s… wait hold on, yes I think we are having an earth”. The TV went black. The players ran from the dugouts onto the diamond. Their wives and families streamed from the stands to the field. The maintenance man up on the light standards unraveling streamers and bunting swung back and forth holding on for his life. We heard it before we felt it. We wondered why jets from SFO would be flying over the stadium on game day. It wasn’t jets we heard, it was the rumble of the earthquake. Freeways collapsed. Fires raged in downtown SF. It took us 5 hours to drive 45 miles home. Cell phones didn’t really exist yet. It was pay phones. All power was shut down on our route home.
You might be wondering what all of this has to do with Starship. Game 3 was rescheduled… a week later.
Starship played before the game …. We built city on rock and roll….. the crowd went wild.
Sorry for the long post.
"Knee-deep in the hoopla" is one of the greatest phrases ever invented. Fun song, although miles away from where they started (as happens to all bands over time).
And the title of the album!
Lots of interesting references in this song. The line "Marconi plays the mamba" is a nod to the inventor of the radio - Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi.
And a mamba is a snake LOL. That must be painful.😁
I never knew that.
If you haven’t reacted to “Jane” by Starship you should. Mickey Thomas’s vocals are amazing
There's several great songs on that album ("Freedom at Point Zero")! Jane was the hit single, but the title song (my favorite!), Rock Music, Girl With the Hungry Eyes & Awakening are all really good. If I'm not mistaken, this album featured the debut of new singer, Mickey Thomas, replacing the departing original singer, Marty Balin. They seemed to be going after a harder rock sound, in which I think they succeeded.
Grace Slick also sat that one out, due to her alcohol addiction getting out of control, but she was back for the next album, "Modern Times" (featuring Find Your Way Back, Stranger & the f-bomb filled "Stairway to Cleveland", another great album cut).
Jane is actually by Jefferson Starship, not Starship.
You don’t hear the southern accent in his singing at all either.
So this is THE Starship song to me....the song I always think of and remember rocking out to on MTV whenever I think of Starship. This is the Starship from the 80's when I was a teenager. I love how it showcases both of their voices too.
Never Gonna Stop Us Now is another favorite of mine besides We Built This City.
Remember the lead singer is also the lead singer on Elvin Bishop's "Fooled Around and Fell in Love."
Another cool song by Elvin Bishop was "Travellin' Shoes", an up-tempo, country-ish funk-rocker, that was sadly overlooked.
I love the beat and Grace and Mickey. I truly don’t understand the hate at all. Always been a fan since the earliest days of Jefferson Airplane! They began the San Francisco sound in the 60’s.
Right? I was only a few years old when it came out, but I have always loved this song! Is it a departure from the JA days? Sure. But it's still so dang good. I do wish it showcased Grace's vocals a bit more, but it's such a bop!
The 80's were awful for a lot of once great bands. This song is a very good example.
Sorry, but this song is awful. That's when I knew Starship was done. Just like Styx and Mr. Roboto.
No hate intended just my opinion of this song I loved the Airplane and appreciate anyone that can write and release a song that gets released,they all have more talent that I could dream of having, just never been a fan of such sappy music.
The hate? Because it's horrible.
One of my absolute favourite 80s songs! “Nothing’s Gonna stop us now” is my second x
Songs of my teenage years, totally love it. I spent a lot of time singing this song in front the mirror.
They reinvented themselves with this album kind of around the same time that Yes did the same thing when they came out with owner of a lonely heart.
Reinvented themselves into obsolescence...
Such a classic 80s Bop!!!
This was a big hit on the pop charts for Starship. It just showed how over the decades the group adapted their music to the times yet in a good way. You can't go wrong with Mick and Slick.
Of course “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” was their huge, huge follow up hit.
An underrated 80s tune you should check out is "Something About You" by Level 42.
The song Hair of the dog , By the Rock band Nazareth is a MUST ,,, Its From 1975 ,, Rob Squad you will thank me ,, I PROMISE , They did the cover of Love Hurts, Great 70s Rock for sure
That song is one of my Top 10 songs of the 80's .... Maybe Top 5!
I LOVE THIS SONG! It was such a big part of my life when it came out. The video was great too!♥
Grace Slick!!! Heart be still!
In the 60's and 70's Jefferson Airplane and The Grateful Dead ruled San Francisco's hippy and music scene. Free concerts in golden gate park happened all the time. Music was in the air. In the early 80's things started to change. The city banned the free shows in the park, and really cracked down on rock shows in the theaters etc. This song, as well as the Dead Shakedown street, was sort of their answer to it all. " they tell me this town ain't got no heart, but i can feel it beat out loud. There's something shakin on shakedown street" "We built this city on rock and roll"
SF didn’t all free concerts. I remember watching a few in the late 80’s and early 90’s.
I was there. I remember sitting in the park, a picnic lunch by my side, down by the speakers house left. The Stones were on the menu that day (along with the best of San Fran rock-n-roll) . Jagger was in his Superman stage. I remember feeling the music vibrate my entire body. Yeah - the Bay Area was one helluva place to grow up!
Mentioning The Grateful Dead, I don’t think you’ve ever reacted to them. I think their only video is Touch of Grey.
@@donjackson5522 there are a zillion videos of the dead. They recorded everything for 30 years.
@@donjackson5522 They have reacted to the Dead a few times. But always with a studio recording, which any deadhead will tell you, is not the band at it's best. A famous Quote by Jerry himself is "we make shitty records". That said, I wish they, and you, would take a look at this. And the many many others like it. ruclips.net/video/jkY6ZOx411g/видео.html
During that section where the radio guy talks about “looking out over the bridge” local radio stations were allowed to out in their own info. So “this city” was YOUR city. It was awesome! At least it was to this 15 year old.
My young daughter use to dance to this song she couldn’t even walk yet! She would move her hips to the music …everybody would join in!
I remember that. It WAS awesome!
When you were 15 years old, was “your city” the city by the bay?
Les Garland….
No, my “city” was Ann Arbor, Michigan so the DJ talked about about “traffic coming out of Michigan Stadium on another gorgeous sunny football Saturday”
The "radio announcer" is Les Garland, who was head of programming at MTV in 1984 when the song was recorded.
I loved this song growing up but I was too young to know that this was a legendary band despite the name changes.
i love this song. I always want to get up and dance and sing along with the chorus whenever it comes on.
Mickey Thomas still amazes me with his voice. So fantastic! 💓💓
Yesss thank you!! His vocals here are insane and he’s the one hitting the high notes!
Beautiful Day - U2 (Bono)
Touch of Grey - The Grateful Dead (Jerry Garcia)
Just Another Day - Oingo Boingo (Danny Elfman)
A few other (Jefferson)Starship songs worth listening to:
"Familiar Stranger"
"Winds Of Change"
"Layin' It On The Line"
"No Way Out"
"Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight"
"Set The Night To Music"
"Wild Again"
"It's Not Enough"
"Didn't Mean To Stay All Night"
And my all-time favorite...
"It's Not Over'Til It's Over"
In my personal opinion, Marty Balin of this band was our crooner in the 70's. His songs were truly beautiful. "Count on Me", "With Your Love," "Miracles", etc... . but my all time favorite that is never acknowledged was "Tumblin'." I still think it is one of the most beautiful love songs alongside any others. Marty is truly missed! He was one talented artist!
They also need to hear Marty's solo song "Hearts".
"Jane" is pretty good also., I suspect you've already done "Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now".
What an awesome time for music in late 1985. You guys would've loved growing up in the 70's and 80's.
This song went to # 1 on the Billboard charts in 1985, not without good reason. It was ALL over radio, it had a perfect sound for the time, and I remember everyone loving it. It was only years later that for whatever reason, it became maligned. I think some critic somewhere decided they hated it and then everyone jumped on the bandwagon. And of course, there is sometimes a backlash if something becomes too popular.
Regardless, this is still one of my favorite 80s songs. It's fun, upbeat, and catchy, how can you not love that? And the references and shout-out to radio gave me a special thrill because that was such a huge part of my childhood growing up in a small town; listened to radio like my life depended on it, ha.
@@pompanomark2024 me too!
@@pompanomark2024 Agree !
If you discovered JA back in the 60s, you generally hated this tune for deserting their sound and gravity and half their talent ( Jorma) to make money makers. While I don't begrudge bands for doing this to a degree, I don't have to listen to it. If you discovered JS in the mid 70s, I can understand loving the song. It's a good pop song, but you didn't expect such lightweight fare from a seminal rock heavyweight like JA.
@@markmurphy558that's a reasonable explanation. But for me, I like their music from the 70s, 80s, and even 90s. I thought it was all good.
Let's face it, it is that hormonally overloaded time in our teens and early 20s that music really MOVES you. Musical tastes are really influenced by when exactly we were born.
Always LOVED this song. I highly recommend Sara by them as well.
The 80’s really brought out the sappiness and gooey. Never Gonna Stop Us Now also brought that out.
Sara is an amazing track, My favourite of theirs! Mickeys vocals and the soaring guitar is awesome on that!
@@taoist32 Thank God for that. Sadly ad we progressed further that was forgotten. I'll take my 80's "sappiness" and ballads any day over today's crap
@@conan5885 Me too.
This channel has the BEST commentary! Listening to you guys almost always helps me identify and clarify my own gut feelings about why I like the music and the lyrics, which does not always come easily for some of us. Thanks so much!
I was 6 or 7 when this song came out. My favorite song as a kid
Me too. I used to jump on my mini trampoline when i was the same age.
One of my favorite songs of all time.
Another 80s JA/JS/Starship song, "No Way Out" has got a real compelling harmonic turn into a strong vocal chorus, and some deep, soul-searching lyrics, and Jefferson Starship hit big in the late 70s, on the radio with an Rock/R&B sound: "Miracles," "With Your Love," and "Runaway." They had a very groovy sound, then!
Nothing's gonna stop us now is another good one by Starship
My favorite song of 1985 and off this album
Grace Slick, the lead singer is still around at the age of 82, although she retired from the music scene in 1990.
One of my favorites from the 80's! Thanks for bringing it back!
Jane and Find Your Way Back were 2 great bangers of theirs. Definitely a must!
This is one of my favourite songs by Starship
This is a great song. It's one of those songs I don't play often but it's one of those songs that you think of and put it on and jam
I still love this song 😆 I remember it really vividly as a music obsessed kid in the 80s.
Come Dancing by The Kinks is another 80s song with nostalgic lyrics. So good! ✨
Thank you for the reaction... one of my favorite rocking songs by Jefferson Starship is "Jane". If you would like a soft one try "Miracles".
Yuuuuuuucccccchhhhhh !!!! This is a 80's mainstream pop electronic synth type song.
Same lead singer that sang "Fooled around and Fell In Love" with Elvin Bishop....great set of pipes...
Finally! A song worth listening to this week!
I love their version of "Set The Night To Music" which was featured in the movie Vice Versa. Another great tune is "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" featured in the movie Mannequin.
Thanks for watching this I've always loved the song and video brings back good memories when i was 15. Now I'm in my early 50's
Iam 60 and it´s cool & amazing seeing you guys react to songs of my youth. Exact interpretation of the theme, btw. Taking care of what we all built is exactly what it´s all about! Thx & best from Hamburg , Germany!
A lot of people dump on this song. I'm with ya'll I like the statement. Love Grace! I don't care if people want to argue talk to the hand. I grew up on the Airplane and stayed with them all along.
It's a BIG catalog working several decades.
Try my favorite
Have you Seen the Stars Tonight.
That’s nice but, don’t even mention this song to Grace Slick today; she’ll have you removed. She hates this song.
@@tvgator1 I interviewed Grace, she was the most fascinating interview ever. She was in Denver promoting her artwork. Her comments about “elderly rockers” were interesting.
I asked her about Starship. She was kind and told me her comments were off the record.
You’re in essence correct but I will maintain her confidentiality.
Love your hair Amber!!🥰
Mickey FOOLED AROUND AND FELL IN LOVE Thomas, and Grace Slick, Marty Balin HEARTS.
This song always reminds me of the radio playing at construction sites blaring out Rock and Roll music. "We built this city on Rock and Roll", literally.
I basically grew up in a skating rink. Saw Jefferson Airplane at an after-hours "sock-hop" in the mid 60s, (before I was old enough to appreciate it).
Others have mentioned "Jane" and "Miracles" as your next reaction. I agree. "Don't You Want Somebody to Love" comes in close though.
I often went to skating rinks with my older sister when I was a kid in the 80s (I was 13 in 1990) but I was always bad at skating so at roller rinks I stuck to the practice area, at ice rinks I just hung out in the warm skate rental room.
They already did "Somebody to Love". It was over a year ago. ruclips.net/video/_tsK7IkGkwQ/видео.html
I can't help thinking that this is the same band that did the psychedelic classic 'White Rabbit."
My fav was Jefferson Starship - Miracles.
Beautiful laid back kinda song.
This brings me back to the 80s and my teenage years !! It was the best time ever
One of my favorite "feel good" songs. Sometimes it's better to not dig too deep and just allow yourself to be entertained :)
It was so cool to listen to this band change over the years!
Agreed change equals growth.
You should listen to the song by starship called "nothing gonna stop me now " another great eighties song
One of my favourite songs. I love Grace slick.
Starship got a new lead singer in the 80's but Grace Slick still shared the lead in this song. She was the original lead singer of Jefferson Airplane from the 60's and 70's.
I always loved Grace's voice.
Love her songs "Dreams" & "Seasons"
@@falchoon Yes!
the second verse is a slam on their record company: someone always playing corporation games, who cares they're always changing corporation names, etc. Their record company forced them to change their name from Jefferson Airplane to Jefferson Starship and then again to Starship for legal reasons. This song was a strkeback at their record company and such. They are saying, "We built this, not you."
Mickey Thomas shown here singing was a very good singer. Grace Slick who sings with him was a long time singer with this band all the way back to White Rabbit and Somebody To Love in 1967.
"Ride the Tiger" from the album Dragonfly is one of their absolute best songs as Jefferson Starship.
This was part of my twirling routine for awhile. I loved the rhythm. I also loved Sarah, not sure if y’all have heard that one.
Jay n Amber for a 70s Rock your socks off song , REACT to the Jefferson Starships song JANE from 1979 , It will be a new song on your play list ,, I promise ,,, Take Care and keep the 70s coming
It’s Not Enough is stellar!
Oh WOW! This track isn’t about just singing rock and roll.
This track is about the freakin Music Industry. How could I not have known that?
I heard this as a teenager in the 80’s.
WOOOOOW!
Where the radio broadcast broke in from the SF radio station, back in the day every city substituted their own local radio soundbites. It was pretty cool.
Totally unrelated, but next time you're listening to Olivia Newton-John, can I suggest, "Come On Over" (written by Barry/Robin Gibb), "If Not For You" (written by Bob Dylan), “Tied Up”, “My Old Man’s Got A Gun”, "Deeper Than The Night", and "Gimme Some Lovin’"... Oh! and "The Air I Breathe" ..... I was trying to think outside her usual standards… A few of those are on the lesser-known side, but great live performances/music videos!
Love, love, love this song! Came out when I was a senior in high school.
I was surprised to learn recently that people think this song sucks. It's one of my all time favorites.
The people singing it think it sucks. They were kind of forced to do it by the record company. They didn't write it.
@@danieldougan269 ...and...?
Mickey’s vocals are insane and he’s the one hitting the high notes! 👍🏼
She’s like a rainbow, by The Rolling Stones.. lovelovelove ❤️🌸✌🏻
I hear a few bars of this song and suddenly I'm 12 years old at a school skating party again. The vibe is real!
I recommend y'all check out these Doobie Brothers songs
- Can't let it get away
- you never change
- sweet feeling
- open your eyes
-Dependin on you
-dont stop to watch the wheels
- Take Me In Your Arms
almost got ahead of myself lol
Constant rotation on MTV back in the day. Such an 80's feel!
The Marconi reference in this song hits me hard with my Italian heritage. He had a lot to do with the reason why you are bobbing your heads to the beat. Grazie!
I still remember being 10 yrs old and someone in my neighborhood was washing their car in the parking lot, and blasting this song. 1985 😎
I suggest the next Starship track should be "It's Not Over ('till it's Over)." I believe it's actually a cover but their version was more of a hit. The original was used in one of the corniest '80s movies ever, Playing for Keeps. Christopher Columbus, ya'll. lol
I prefer Airplane to Starship. Just saying. : ) ☮❤🎶
Plastic Fantastic Lover next!
This song was on my '80’s car tape' along with Billy Ocean - “Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car”. Those were the days!
I was just telling a friend the other day that I used to do aerobics to this song back in the mid 80s. I'm old! 😅
I know this song has been included on those "worst songs" but I always liked it. It was cool to see 60's hippie band Jefferson Airplane evolve into 80's MTV pop/rock band Starship. Mickey Thomas has a great voice!
Jefferson Starship is the transition from psychedelics to cocaine.
Thanks for the chuckle!
40 years on this song is still a banger!
aaah man, I cried a little! Honest, this brought emotion to me...
These old school classics never die! 😂😎🤘
This is one of those songs we're all supposed to hate, yet all of us know every single word of the thing.. lol. Or, as one Dean Winchester put it, "Jefferson Starships. Because they're horrible and hard to kill." 🤣🤣🤣🤣
As many have suggested, you really need to try "Miracles" from the Jefferson Starship era...and Amber, you talk about great saxophone, some of the best ever in that song
"Stranger" is also an awesome song. They had some great music.
The next Jefferson Starship song you should react to is either Jane or Find Your Way Back