Weighted Down: The Complicated Life of Skip Spence is scholar Cam Cobb's biography on the legendary '60s cult musician. As a member of era-defining bands Moby Grape, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Jefferson Airplane, Spence played a large part in setting the agenda and aesthetic for many other groups of the era. His only solo album, the hugely psychedelic and occasionally challenging 'Oar', cemented his reputation, and he has since gone on to be celebrated by the likes of Tom Waits, Beck, and Robert Plant. However, the musician's life was aggrieved by substance abuse, erratic behaviour, and poor mental health. Cobb regards Spence's life as a whole, warts and all, from his visionary recordings, to his idiosyncratic personality and untimely death at the age of 52.
Skip Spence was a soldier, a rock star, a folkie, ahusband and father, a biker, an innovator, an addict,a cult phenomenon, and a ward of the state. The castof characters in his story includes some of the biggeststars in music: Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Neil Young,and many more.However, the highs and lows of fame took their toll,and Spence spent much of his life battling addictionand mental illness. He was in and out of hospitals andgroup homes, but would perform in various bandsduring his lucid moments and is best known for hiswork with Jefferson Airplane and as the co-founder ofMoby Grape. Songs from his cult solo album Oar havebeen covered by Tom Waits, Beck and Robert Plant.Weighted Down is the first book to tell the full story.With family photos and accounts from his friends,bandmates, and family, this biography offers newrevelations about Spence that illuminate the troubledlife of a complicated man.
