Jorma Kaukonen is driven to play improvisational roots music like a bootlegger destined for the state border. His passion for jamming blues, country, folk, gospel and good old rock 'n' roll forced him to leave Jefferson Airplane in 1972 to pursue Hot Tuna full time. The split came four years after forming the back-to-roots band with Airplane bassist Jack Casady, Kaukonen's friend since high school.

While the Airplane -- which was named after Kaukonen's roots-inspired nickname, Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane -- has long since crashed, Hot Tuna is more popular than ever, thanks to a legion of young jam fans who discovered the band on three Further Festivals with surviving members of the Grateful Dead. The Dead has been friends with Kaukonen since the '60s trip of San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury scene. Like many other pioneers of the Haight's psychedelic rock sound, including members of the Airplane, the Dead and Janis Joplin, Kaukonen got his start playing folk clubs. After he joined the Airplane in 1965, he convinced Casady to head West from their hometown of Washington, D.C. Two years later, such Airplane hits as "Somebody To Love" and "White Rabbit" rocketed the group to superstardom.

But both Kaukonen and Casady loved the blues and other roots music too much to let them go for good, so Hot Tuna -- originally named Hot Shit much to RCA Records' chagrin -- was born with Airplane vocalist Marty Balin and drummer Spencer Dryden occasionally sitting in between mothership gigs. In 1970, Hot Tuna released its self-titled RCA debut, a live acoustic outing with harmonica player Will Scarlet.

The followup, 1971's "First Pull Up Then Pull Down," featured drummer Sammy Piazza and Jefferson Airplane's electric violinist Papa John Creach. This lineup spawned the '70s live anthem "Keep Your Lamps Trimmed and Burning" and the dichotomous acoustic and electric Hot Tuna sets.

For 1972's "Burgers" record, the band switched to the Airplane's RCA-distributed Grunt Records. Two years later, Hot Tuna's "The Phosphorescent Rat" and Kaukonen's Casady-produced solo debut, "Quah," were released on Grunt. After a couple more albums, including the acclaimed 1976 effort "Hoppkorv," and hundreds of epic acoustic and electric shows, Hot Tuna called it quits in 1978.

Right after Kaukonen released 1979's "Jorma," the tattooed singer-guitarist went new wave with the San Francisco-based band Vital Parts. Casady also materialized in a new wave outfit called SVT. But both projects were short lived, and the longtime musical partners reunited in 1983 for a concert that was followed a year later by Hot Tuna's Relix Records debut, "Splashdown," featuring a 1975 radio performance.

Relix, the label offshoot of the New York fanzine dedicated to the Haight-Ashbury and jam band scenes, since has released several live Hot Tuna records and a handful of Kaukonen solo recordings, including 1984's "Too Hot To Handle," 1995's "The Land of Heroes," 1996's "Christmas" and the recent "Too Many Years," Hot Tuna, which now includes vocalist-guitarist-mandolinist Michael Falzarano, keyboardist-accordionist Pete Sears and drummer Harvey Sorgen, also can be heard on "And Furthermore," a new live outing on Grateful Dead Records captured during the 1998 Further Festival tour.

Kaukonen's longtime relationship with the Dead also has made him a frequent contributor to Phil Lesh & Friends, the rotating allstar outfit headed by the Dead's legendary bassist. Kaukonen stands out on Phil Lesh & Friends' recent debut recording, "And Love Will See You Through." He nails a superb ragtime version of the Dead's "Dupree Diamond Blues." The two-CD live disc also contains "I Am the Light of this World," one of several Rev. Gary Davis covers Kaukonen has performed over the years.

When not busy with Hot Tuna, Phil Lesh & Friends or his trio, which also features Falzarano and Sears, Kaukonen heads the Fur Peace Ranch Guitar Camp in Darwin, Ohio. Nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains of Southeast Ohio, the camp teaches various roots guitar techniques and boasts an allstar faculty that has included Casady, Falzarano, Arlo Guthrie, John Hammond, Chris Smither, Alvin "Youngblood" Hart, Rory Block and G.E. Smith. For more information, check out the website furpeaceranch.com.

While still on the road with Phil Lesh & Friends and Bob Dylan last month, just before another Hot Tuna tour kicked off, Kaukonen spoke with me about the growing popularity of his beloved roots music on stage, on record and at his 119-acre guitar camp. By the way, Kaukonen will turn 59 on Dec. 23, so send him a merry birthday e-mail via the above site or www.hottuna.com.

So Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane, why has Hot Tuna been cooking so long, yet the Airplane crashed?

Well, gosh, I don't know. Good fortune? The blessings of God. I guess a lot of it had to do -- I mean, for me -- I just had to pursue my own voice, which was Hot Tuna. I've been very fortunate, of course, but I think the nature of roots music just is a little more durable than some pop stuff. And I don't mean that in a judgmental kind of way. I feel that my favorite music was recorded in the '20s. I can't hardly remember anything recorded in the '80s.

I think the music speaks for itself. I'm not sure it has that much to do with me. Although being alive helps. And I am alive.

Very much so. And very busy. It's good to see. Comment on how you've been buddies with Jack Casady for more than 40 years.

Well, Jack is not even arguably my oldest friend. We were in the same high school together. I didn't know him in junior high school, but we went to the same junior high school. Our paths threw us together at an early age. When I asked him to come out and play in the Airplane, we just locked up in some bizarre way. It's so odd. I think the both of us marvel at this too. We just seem to be able to get into each other's musical head.

You've also been with friends of members of the Grateful Dead for more than 30 years. How has that relationship, such as playing at each of the Further Festivals, increased the visibility of Hot Tuna and your trio work with Hot Tuna's Michael Falzarano and Pete Sears?

The Grateful Dead, in my opinion, are one of the most amazing musical phenomenons of our century. They're just so durable either as themselves or as these sub groups that they comprise. The music has just become part of our culture. Having said that, when we got to do the Further Festival with various members of the Dead and The Other Ones and whatever you want to call the Dead family, it turned us onto a lot of people that I think we're aware of us but never really listened to us before. And they liked us too. It's no question that it's helped us a lot.

I was speaking with Phil Lesh a few weeks back and he said that there might not be another Further Festival. You seemed to have a lot of fun on the Further Festival. And, of course, now there's 'And Furthermore,' Hot Tuna's live album from the last Further Fest. So you've gotten a record out of it. How would you feel if there were no more Further Festivals?

Well, I think that I would miss it, because it certainly is a lot of fun. However, Phil's issues are different than mine. For us, as Hot Tuna, we just get to go along for the ride and have a good time. For the Dead family, there's much more pressing issues. I'm not in the inner circle, so I'm not aware of those. But I know that theirs are certainly different than mine. But for me, I'd certainly miss it, because it's a great gig, you reach a lot of people and you get to hang out with a bunch of your friends for a month and a half. It's really fun. If it were not to happen, I would surely miss it, but something else will happen.

Well, for instance, you're playing with Ratdog and Mickey Hart on New Year's Eve in San Francisco. How do you feel about that?

I think it's great. And I'm playing with Phil Lesh and Bob Dylan tonight. This is really a treat. I have to tell you that Phil is such a consummate professional, but at the same time, he's not an autocratic musical director. He knows what he likes, but he gives everybody their head, so to play with him in any of his bands is really a treat. To play on a show with him and Bob Dylan, I can't even begin to tell ya'.

What's been the best part?

It's all been great. We tend to travel before Dylan's set is over, but we've had a chance to see the first half of the set, and it's just great. The whole thing is great.

Have you gotten to play with Dylan?

No. That's probably not going to happen. But he really has a terrific band. Phil has played with him on a couple of occasions, but not since I joined the tour. The vibe is great, the music is great. It may not get too much better than this.

Are you happy with 'And Furthermore'?

Yeah, I think it came out great.

I really love your version of 'Dupree's Diamond Blues' on Phil Lesh & Friends' new live album, 'And Love Will See You Through.' It sounds like you're having a lot of fun.

It really was. It's really funny, because I've been friends with Jerry (Garcia) and the Dead guys for years, but I'd never really gotten into their music. And 'Dupree's Diamond Blues' sounds like it ought to be a keep-on-truckin' ragtime thing. Having to learn stuff I wasn't familiar with before really opened a lot of doors. I had a great time with it. It's a great song. I wish I wrote that song.

I also like the Rev. Gary Davis covers you do on 'Love Will See You Through' ('I Am the Light of this World') and on your recent trio outing, 'Too Many Years...' ('Say No to the Devil'). Comment on the influence Davis has had on you and why you love to cover his material so often.

I do love Gary Davis a lot. I'm not a Rev. Gary Davis scholar, but I think there's no question that his spirit has certainly influenced my voice immensely. I do a bunch of his songs in my own inimitable fashion. I loved the Rev. the first time that I was turned onto him, and I love him no less today. He was a great American artist.

Now Derek Trucks will have been the opening act for Hot Tuna on this most recent tour. You just played with him with Phil Lesh & Friends and this summer when Hot Tuna participated in The Allman Brothers Band's 30th anniversary tour. Comment on what you think of young Trucks' playing.

What a great guy he is. He is such a wonderful talent. I told him, 'I not only wish I played as well as you do when I was your age, I wish I played that well today.' He just really is great. He's a fine player, and his head is screwed on so straight. He has such a great attitude. He's going to be around for the long haul. There's no question about it.

How did the Allmans shows go this summer? Did you jam with them during their sets?

Oh yeah. They're jamming fools. Dickey (Betts) asked me up every night. It was really great. And boy, do they play loud.

Tell me about the Fur Peace Ranch Guitar Camp.

I've been teaching off and on for many years. My wife and I bought this piece of property out in Southeastern Ohio 10 years ago. We just got to thinking, wouldn't it be nice? I'd done some stuff with Wavy Gravy and really liked his interactive performing arts camp. Over the years, it just began to coalesce. My wife, Vanessa, and her sister Ginger actually started putting it together three years ago. There's a lot of stuff I never would have done. I don't fill out forms well and get permits and do all that kind of stuff, but t hey do. The real hard work was theirs.

And we finally got it together. We're in our second year. I am just thrilled with it. We really have a lot of fun. It's a beautiful part of the country. Southeastern Ohio is sort of a forgotten part of the state, because most people think about the flat farm country that's up north. We're in the Appalachian foothills. It's just beautiful and the people are great. There's a lot of musicians around, and we have some great guests that come. I hope this is going to be a doable thing. It looks like it's going to be.

How do you like passing on music knowledge with this allstar faculty?

That's what it's really all about. The stuff that I know was so freely given to me by so many people. While the Fur Peace Ranch is not free, it certainly is affordable. And we have some wonderful people there who pass on a form of music that is less than mainstream but that a lot of people love. There's just some wonderful stuff that goes on, and some great players come. Not just the teachers too. We've had some great players in the students also. Some of the guys play so well, I'll say, 'What are you here for?' And they'll say, 'I'm just trying to get some more mojo.' And that's great. That's what it's all about.

On 'Too Many Years,' this there's funny photo of your mom holding you at gunpoint while you practice the piano. I'm sure you don't do that with your students, and, of course, that photo is one of the silly poses that your fun-loving father came up with during your childhood. But you dedicate that album to your mother, Beatrice. How much of an influence did your parents on your music?

They were very influential. My dad played a number of instruments: piano, violin, recorder. My mom played some piano and she sang. There was just a lot of music in the family. When I was a kid, I was encouraged to take piano lessons, which was were that picture is from. I enjoyed it, because I liked the music, but it really wasn't my instrument. I also played recorder for a while, but when I played guitar, the door opened. I said, 'Yeah, this is what I want to do.'

When you left the Airplane to do Hot Tuna full time, did you ever think that nearly 30 years later, you'd still be playing to such a young audience. How do you feel about all these young jam fans and jam bands that have gravitated to this rootsy stuff?

I'm not sure I had the long view back then, but I'm absolutely thrilled and flattered that so many people, especially young people, find this interesting after all this time. That's something you can't buy. Once again, I think it's the music, not me. I do it fairly well, but there's a lot of people out there. I've just been so lucky. And I'm glad that people love this stuff. If not, I don't know what I'd be doing.

With all of this talk of the 21st century and technology and that kind of thing, it must feel pretty good to bring the simple musical foundation of blues, country, folk, gospel and rock full steam ahead.

I'll tell ya, I love technology too. But that's just a tool. Ultimately, it's the man not the machine. Technology is great, but the art comes from the person.