Hot Tuna kicks off today's Mountain Stage performance, which was recorded on the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. Formed by Jack Casady and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Jorma Kaukonen as a side project of legendary San Francisco group Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna has spent decades both playing its own material and covering songs by American blues artists like Rev. Gary Davis and Jelly Roll Morton.
Sometimes acoustic, sometimes electric, the band has gone through several iterations over the years, and now features Barry Mitterhoff on mandolin and Skoota Warner on drums. The four plug in for their Mountain Stage set, which begins with the road song "A Little Faster" and features a psychedelic bass solo by Jack Casady (who recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Bass Player). Hot Tuna just released its first album of new material in 20 years, Steady As She Goes, which was recorded at Levon Helm's studio in Woodstock, N.Y.
This segment originally ran on November 25, 2011.
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