What "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane is Really About

Written by Grace Slick, the "Acid Queen," and recorded by the American rock band Jefferson Airplane for their 1967 album Surrealistic Pillow, "White Rabbit" is the quintessential psychedelic anthem of the Summer of Love, an LSD trip of a song that draws on imagery from Lewis Carroll's 1865 book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its 1871 sequel Through the Looking-Glass.
It was released as a single and became the band's second top-10 success, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100, and appears on The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
Let us take time to appreciate this masterpiece by examining its message and history through its lyrics, and delve into its hidden meanings together as we go through line by line with a fine toothed comb to answer the question as to what White Rabbit is truly all about.
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[@JammyGit]

I don't think there was ever any confusion about the real meaning of White Rabbit ✌👍

[@Luked0g440]

I thought it was about the Easter bunny.

[@OspreyFlyer]

Nope

[@miyojewoltsnasonth2159]

*@JammyGit* Holy crap, wait a minute ... White Rabbit was a _drug song?_ I had no idea. (hee hee hee) Although, more seriously, I bet less than half the people who loved it in the 60s knew it was about drugs rather than Alice in Wonderland. *Reply to:* _"I don't think there was ever any confusion about the real meaning of White Rabbit"_

[@OspreyFlyer]

@@Luked0g440 You're getting warmer! 😂

[@emmitstewart1921]

@@miyojewoltsnasonth2159 I had avoided drug use and lived a mostly drug free life here in Ohio. I was in the Army when they released the song in 1967. Even so, I knew from the first verse exactly what the song was about. believe me, all of us who loved the song knew what every word signified and what the song was about. Some of us saw it as a warning and some of us saw it as praise for the drug life, but all of us knew and understood it. Beyond that we loved it as just plain good music.

[@deborahtomasi2197]

Although the war in Vietnam was tragic and many of us suffered through it with tears and loss, the song White Rabbit was a symbol of a counterculture that yet gave us hope to persevere. Even the drugs at that time were available to help us get through it all. Then we matured, some married, raised families, and led semi normal lives. But the Zeitgeist of the time was never really lost in our minds and hearts. We believed in peace and love, and the strangeness of a culture that embraced war was something foreign to our hearts and minds, and this continues to this day.

[@Marktheshark-e7f]

I noticed the baby boomers never hated any war except the one they fought in🙄. Don't give me the peace and love BS

[@lynnrinaldo6795]

I was just going into HIGH SCHOOL, and I always played that song. I love it.I had a poster on my wall of white rabbit I was so cool.

[@denniswinters3096]

The power of Grace Slick's vocal on this track suggests something a bit darker going on than just standard Sixties psychedelia. As it builds to its climax there is something almost psychotic in its accusatory tone, that foreshadows punk era singers like Siouxsie Sioux and Patti Smith. While it certainly encapsulate the harder edge of the Sixties zeitgeist, it also, for me, seems to transcend the rather naive idealism of that time. An "All-Time" classic, I'd say.

[@davehooper5115]

One of my all-time favourite songs ever, and I think you hit It on the nail of what this song Is about, cuz I always thought the same way for the last 50 years

[@terrencelynch6810]

Nicely done. I don't regret a single trip I took. As it happened, I became a soldier after I'd taken a...few trips. As as it happened, I never had to kill anybody. I've known a bunch, a bunch of guys who did, who--who...had. Psychedelics, today, are saving are saving people's lives whose memories are otherwise unbearable. Bless you, Gracie.

[@JammyGit]

Same mate. I only ever had 1 uncomfortable time on mushrooms and that wasn't too bad. I think everyone should take mushrooms or acid at least 3 times in their life, I still vividly remember the first time I ate mushies. I knew that my life had changed and I just wouldn't be the same again.....and I was right 😆 A bit of psychedelic will definitely open your eyes and mind, but too much will burn your soul, so it demands that you give it respect ✌️

[@NotInMYName_AntiZionistJew]

This song is the perfect anthem for 2024.

[@D-osOrg]

ditto !

[@elishebameade1441]

@@NotInMYName_AntiZionistJew yep!😅👍🏻

[@user-fu2mi1nd5l]

lucky for you cause I had some bad trips, man

[@pommelhorsepommelhorse8731]

'I never thought there were corners in time til I was told to stand in one" - Grace Slick - Hyperdrive

[@stevesmith291]

The Jefferson Airplane was not the first band to record "White Rabbit." Before she joined the Airplane, Grace Slick was lead singer for a San Francisco band called The Great Society, where she sang two songs that would later appear on the Airplane's second album, and the first on which Grace appeared, "Surrealistic Pillow." Live versions of the songs appeared on the album, "Conspicuous Only in its Absence." It was released after "Surrealistic Pillow" to cash in on Grace's popularity. Anybody curious can find these versions on KZbin with a simple search.

[@libertyann439]

Thanks

[@jatco84]

Classic,...and love the history behind this vid..

[@ronalderb9692]

That was a time when protesters wanted to end the Vietnam war and bring our troops home, but spit on them when they did.

[@sodaaccount]

Yeah no shit. Dont aid in a genocide then! Tbh the US even behaved worse than ruZZia is doing rn. Its just not a popular topic amongst americans...

[@monicatemple5083]

Thank you I really did enjoy that and looking forward to more of your content❤

[@davebrewer9279]

“Far East Goods” was one of the euphemisms used by British merchants to describe the opium trade. Silk, tea and spices were commodities that merchants were claiming to import but they weren’t too keen on admitting that those ships holds were full of opiates as well. Lots of artists in particular were using drugs to help them create their art. Louis Carroll as mentioned in this video, Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes), Van Gogh, Jackson Pollack, Andy Warhol, even Thomas Kincade………Salvador Dali would use psychoactive drugs before bedtime and hold a spoon in his hand as he drifted off to sleep. The idea was that he would drop the spoon and wake up allowing himself then to immediately paint what he had been dreaming about. We think about drugs and music as an invention of the 1960’s but yeah, that practice dates back hundreds of years.

[@annae1086]

Excellent..thank you!

[@Lyristoric]

Thank YOU! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@doubledrats235]

When I was in elementary school in the late 1960s the “drug lady” played this song for our class and told us it was about taking drugs. She then passed around a board with samples of drugs attached. By the time she got it back several of the drug samples were missing.

[@Lyristoric]

😄 🤣 😂

[@marziodalmontejukebox]

Best Song and meaning ever

[@iwanbottos5128]

Fantastic story , my friend ,And WR is the anthem of my youth . I was 13 when it came out and fell madly in love with this girl and her magical journey. All way stayed one of my most favorite songs. It's absolutely perfect and a masterpiece. Being 500+ if Rolling Stone's Top 1000 most iconic (rock)songs is an insult. Should be at least in first 10 places,

[@Lyristoric]

Definitely!

[@Marktheshark-e7f]

As a 54 year old man, always loved the song and everything about it. Since 1991 have taken LSD twice a year. It keeps your mind open. It keeps my cravings for alcohol under control.😊

[@bevklayman4158]

An excellent exposition! And I learned a lot I didn't know before. Thank you.

[@Lyristoric]

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@PattiJorgensen]

Don't forget the "follow the White Rabbit" instruction at the beginning of the Matrix

[@aisforapple2494]

'White Rabbit' has always been about Lewis Carroll and LSD.

[@Spencerzcool]

It’s about mushrooms, but basically the same thing

[@judycolson6047]

I just started listening to your videos. They are all fantastic and in-depth to these classic rock songs I grew up with. I so appreciate your insight and it really gets you to thinking about the songs, the lyrics and what all went on during that time of our lives. It's amazing but Grace Slick was probably right on when referring to all those Mother Goose rhymes we grew up with. I always thought many of them were strange. Rock a Bye Baby in the Treetop was kinda morbid. Thank you for these. I'll continue to listen to others and subscribe.

[@dougferguson3074]

Nailed it

[@WarDog793]

Thank you! That was very revealing. Also, your theory coming after all what was said from Grace's explanations, sounds pretty plausible. IF she were tripping while writing this, I can see how she was able to bring it all together so fantastically well. Can't quite agree with her view of the authors' intentions though; they may have meant to convey something more profound. But it makes for good fantasy and pithy self-examination.

[@Lyristoric]

Appreciate this! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Lisarata]

All I can say is, if you've never read Alice in Wonderland, this song as your only introduction to it, you miss a lot of thinking. The queen was shouting "Off with their heads," not "feed your head." the queen was being idiotic and yet she was the queen.

[@bethpent8851]

No I'm almost positive Gracie Slick says Feed your head at least 3 or 4 times at the end so feed it with more drugs. I forgot THC and Angel Dust

[@flamencoprof]

You are confused. The song mentions the Red Queen in the line "And the Red Queen's off with her head". I suggest that should have quote marks around "Off with her head", as though Grace is quoting the queen. Then it clearly says the dormouse said "Feed your head", not the queen.

[@Lisarata]

@@flamencoprof My gosh you're right about that. Thanks.

[@flamencoprof]

@@Lisarata Thanks for a gracious reply. (The world needs more Grace, ha-ha.)

[@M.C.Escher2018]

Love

[@laurarussello8195]

This song scares the living s*it out of me. Even after hearing it thousands of times!

[@exquisitebiscuit]

The poppies in Wizard of Oz were a cautionary tale, not an endorsement

[@marybarger6096]

She wasn't endorsing drugs. At the end of why he song she says "Feed your head", meaning do your reseach. Did you not watch this video all the way through?

[@exquisitebiscuit]

@marybarger6096 "Feed your head" can easily be interpreted as do psychedelics.

[@flamencoprof]

@@exquisitebiscuit I never took a psychedelic I hadn't read scientific articles about beforehand. That's why I also never got into Uppers and Downers, because I did my research. In my youthful arrogance I looked down on idiots who freaked out after taking unknown pills under chaotic circumstances. Those dumbwits gave the psychedelics a bad name, unfortunately.

[@libertyann439]

I'm a karaoke queen when I sing this. But I keep the 'shrooms off the stage!

[@DCfromBC]

Onnnnne makes you larger, aaaannnd, onnne makes you small.... 🍄

[@kevingushlawtruthseeker3493]

left out rabbit in The Matrix and the 2 pills

[@kodym]

Sucker Punch, an updated version was used in that movie & it was awesome.

[@xero_chance818]

Anyone heard the cover by THE CRÜXSHADOWS.... Literal chills!

[@PyckledNyk]

4:20 I understood that reference.

[@chuckmaddison2924]

I thought it was to honour Lewis Carroll. I believe he enjoyed some life enhancement occasionally.

[@neil6958]

Hey Mom, do you want to know what drugs are about? Listen to this song...🌟🌠

[@radiosonde1]

Its inclusion on the Forest Gump film soundtrack, in which the war-rebellion's context is solidified, is an important part of the song's history.

[@Lyristoric]

Great point! The entire soundtrack is perfectly times in that movie. I think I counted 5 Doors songs.

[@BlueSky-Above]

We are seeing it again -- look at college campuses, and this time without drugs

[@Lisarata]

Now it's ritalin

[@fixyourculture9455]

"L"ovely "S"ong "D"escription

[@rev.leonidasw.smiley6300]

…if you really want to know, go ask Alice.

[@OfficeASUUC]

It's about a whimsical children's story. Some people have too much imagination.

[@nazfrde]

Wait, you're telling me it's about drugs? THE HORROR

[@handebarlas6248]

What, you couldn't tell?????

[@user-fu2mi1nd5l]

@@handebarlas6248 SARCASM...look it up

[@chrissiwhizz3033]

😂🤣

[@Oddnoggins]

Obligatory algorithm comment.Great analysis. Thank you.

[@kodym]

White rabbit, white horse, white pony.... Yeah, we got it 😉

[@Rick-or2kq]

Nature does everything with a purpose. In the drug culture of the time organic had a different meaning.

[@fredricclack7137]

👀 ⭐ 🚢 w/ GRACE! 🌌

[@HuibRas-pt8uf]

👍

[@user-fu2mi1nd5l]

it's not ANOTHER PID song is it?

[@Angela22067]

If you weren’t forced to read Go Ask Alice in high school, lucky you.

[@BladeRunnerBear]

No offence, but you would have to be high NOT to get onto the narrative of White Rabbit. It's beyond obvious. I love the line *"When men on the chess board, get up and tell you where to go, and you've just had some kind of mushroom and your mind is moving low"*

[@bethpent8851]

Go ask Alice I think she'll know.

[@davebrewer9279]

I agree with the caveat that I remember being a college freshman whose parents hadn’t allowed any music made after Mozart died, or r rated movies or rebellious teen………well anything really. Then I arrived at a university and it just so happened that the first history professor had attended Kent State University and had witnessed the Vietnam protests firsthand. He was sitting in the student union building on May 4th, 1970when the National Guard opened fire on the student protesters killing four and injuring nine others. That history class changed my life. I had been given one set of facts and one perspective my entire (very young) life and what grew was not names and dates but a rich understanding of how music and art and even drugs had affected real change in America. We spent more time in that class talking about Vietnam protest songs than on the events of the war. 😂I’m sorry for such a long winded comment just to say that everyone hasn’t learned everything yet, but I love telling the story.

[@bethpent8851]

It was about hallucinogenics Acid LSD Mescalline Peyote and probably shrooms it was Alice in wonderland tripping on acid.

[@Glen-cx5kq]

Love this version of the song > kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5jbfWSgrbqBZtU

[@Lyristoric]

Very cool! Great visuals, too!

[@user-tl8du8oe6t]

Who cares. I love the song.

[@CriticalThinker-42]

#6 Jerry Garcia said this music is like sleeping with your head on a Surrealistic Pillow, Inspiring the albums title. Tune in, Turn on, Freak Freely!

[@user-fu2mi1nd5l]

billed as Spiritual advisor on LP sleeve

[@robertengland8769]

What's it about? Drugs, of course. Lol.

[@user-fu2mi1nd5l]

And Lucy, Mother's Little Helper and Eight Miles High...NO F^&H

[@Dr.Claw_M.A.D.]

"if you want to experience it to the fullest we suggest that you... I don't want to offend any of you but we suggest you, eat a banna while you are watching this."

[@danielscott1749]

Incredible Insight to the Obvious. (something every 12 year old knew in 67) Please Tell us all what the Velvet Underground's Heroin is about ....

[@user-nq7ul4oo8p]

this was no fairytale it was a Pure Drugfest

[@user-sv4pj5jl8n]

Same old thing, hippies writing a song about sex, drugs and rock n roll.

[@varianreeves7553]

No, writing a song about a Victorian tripper.

[@garyluciani1082]

It's much more creative than the standard sex, drugs and rock and roll songs.

[@rikmono]

seriously?