16 December 1965. The first songs to be recorded were "Runnin' 'Round This World" and "It's Alright", neither of which appeared on the final record. The band continued through 18 December before returning to San Francisco for the holiday season. They recorded again on 19-28 February 1966 and 16-21 March. A total of 14 songs were recorded over the three sets of sessions. Music and lyrics Jefferson Airplane Takes Off is regarded as being more grounded in straightforward folk rock than the band's subsequent releases. Katz dubbed the band's sound "fo-jazz", which Anderson described as rock with "folk roots [and] jazz chords". Balin wrote or co-wrote all of the original material on the album and sang most of the lead vocals, leading William Ruhlmann of AllMusic to state that Jefferson Airplane at the time "was still Balin's group", before Grace Slick joined and became the group's "vocal and visual focal point." Kantner and Anderson provided backup vocals and harmonies, showcasing the three-part, male-female vocal work that would continue to be staple of the band's sound after Anderson's departure. According to band biographer Jeff Tamarkin, "although [Jefferson Airplane] had every intention of being successful, they let it be known from the outset that they would not pander to get there." At the time of the band's formation, many acts in pop music such as the Beatles, Bob Dylan, the Byrds, and the Rolling Stones had begun developing more mature approaches to their songwriting, and Tamarkin noted that many of Jefferson Airplane's early original works also exhibited "a sophisticated lyrical outlook and progressive instrumental arrangements". Although the majority of the album consists of love songs, music journalist Richie Unterberger observed that their lyrics were written from an unusual "young adult" perspective that was "not as immediately accessible" to teenagers, who were generally considered pop's target audience. In his book Jefferson Airplane: every album, every song, Richard Butterworth describes the lyrics on Takes Off as "optimistic" and exhibiting a "growing social awareness" of the era's music. Comparatively, Unterberger noted that the band's cover version of Chet Powers' "Let's Get Together", later made famous by the Youngbloods, was foretelling of a "communal idealism that transcended boy-girl relationships." Release Shortly before the album's release, RCA demanded that the band return to the studio and change the lyrics of "Let Me In" and "Run Around". The label's executives had become concerned that certain lines in the