As members of the highly influential 60s psychedelic band Jefferson Airplane, Jack Casady and Jorma Koukonen found themselves with some free time in 1969 after the band's singer, Grace Slick, needed time off to recovery from a surgery that left her unable to perform. Casady and Koukonen filled their down time jamming on old blues covers from the likes of Arthur Blake and Jelly Roll Morton. As the music went so well, the duo gathered enough musicians to fill out a band which became known as Hot Tuna.

After playing a handful of shows and later serving as Jefferson Airplane's opening act in 1970, Casady and Koukonen ultimately left their full-time gig to focus soley on Hot Tuna. After releasing their self-titled debut later that year, the band moved away from their acoustic, bluesy sound and incorporated more electric instruments. After releasing albums like Burgers (1972) and The Phosphorescent Rat (1973), Hot Tuna moved towards a louder, harder sound with albums like America's Choice (1975) and Yellow Fever, released later that year. With new drummer Bob Steeler, Hot Tuna had become a genuine power trio.

With various solo and side projects between Casady and Koukonen, the duo took time off from Hot Tuna throughout the later part of the 70's and into the 80's. Hot Tuna, however, regrouped several times in the 80's, and as Casady and Koukonen participated in Jefferson Airplane's reunion 1989, the duo also performed as Hot Tuna during a special acoustic set in the middle of the shows.

As Hot Tuna has gone through various incarnations, Casady and Koukonen have fruitfully carried the band's legacy right through the 21st century. With a live reissue box set released in 2004, Hot Tuna continue to tour to wildly devoted audiences. The band even performed at some of the America's biggest music festivals, including Merlefest in 2007 and Bonnaroo this past summer.