A Bite of Janis Joplin 🍪
The undeniable greatness of rock's first female superstar
Monday Bites are bite-sized musician spotlights & playlists by Grace Lilly.
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• 3 min read •
She was magnetic
When Janis performed, everyone paid attention. Her energy was undeniable. “Overpowering” and “staggering” are words often used to describe her.
Janis came onto the male-dominated rock scene in the late 60s, breaking new ground for women in the genre. Before her, few women had been able to gain national attention as rockstars. Joplin biographer Holly George-Warren explains,
“She did not ever see a boundary that she did not try to jump over or kick down.”
Even when she was a teenager, she did things differently. In high school she resisted wearing the trendy girls’ clothes she was expected to wear and instead opted to dress in men’s shirts.
I love that she wasn’t afraid to stand out.
Years later, Janis played with the big boys — Jimi Hendrix, Jerry Garcia, Roger Daltrey, Carlos Santana — and she held her own. She was always bound and determined to reach greatness in her own way, and she did.
Janis Joplin
The basics
🤝 American singer and songwriter
🤝 b. 1943 (Port Arthur, Texas) - 1970 (Los Angeles, California)
🤝 The “Queen of Rock,” named one of the 50 greatest voices of all time
Why you should know her: Often called America's first female rock star, Janis was one of the most iconic performers in music history and remains one of the top-selling vocalists in the U.S.
If you like
✨ Jimi Hendrix
✨ The Doors
✨ Grateful Dead
✨ Paramore
Known for
🏆 Her trademark powerful voice and electric stage presence
🏆 Performing at Monterey Pop Festival (1967) & Woodstock (1969)
🏆 Flamboyant hair styles with colored streaks, scarves, beads and feathers
🏆 Long-lasting popularity even after her death, 18.5 million albums sold
🏆 Ranked no. 28 on Rolling Stone′s list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, no. 46 on their list of 100 Greatest Artists of All Time
🏆 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 5 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Bite-sized facts
🍪 Started singing in high school after befriending a group of outcasts who introduced her to blues
🍪 Left Texas at 20, hitchhiked to San Francisco and became the lead singer of psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company
🍪 Close friends with Grateful Dead members (lived less than 2 miles apart), dated Ron “Pigpen” McKernan
🍪 Rose to prominence after performing at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 with Big Brother and the Holding Company (like Otis Redding)
🍪 Performed with Jimi Hendrix and Joni Mitchell at the Wake for Martin Luther King Jr. concert in New York in 1968
🍪 After releasing two albums with the Big Brother band, left to pursue a solo career
🍪 Performed at 1969 Woodstock festival and on the 1970 Festival Express train tour
🍪 Died of an accidental heroin overdose in 1970, at the age of 27
Songs & dates
♫ 1967 Sings lead vocals on singles “Down on Me,” “Bye Bye Baby,” “Call On Me” and “Coo Coo” off Big Brother & the Holding Company’s debut studio album
♫ 1968 “Piece of My Heart” and “Summertime” become popular hits off Big Brother’s second album Cheap Thrills which reaches No. 1 on the Billboard 200
♫ 1969 “Kozmic Blues” hits No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 off her debut solo album, I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama! which becomes certified gold and reaches No. 5 on the Billboard 200
♫ 1971 The posthumous Pearl becomes the biggest-selling album of her career, reaches number one on the Billboard 200, and features her biggest hit single, a cover of Kris Kristofferson’s “Me and Bobby McGee”
Songs about Janis
The Mamas & the Papas
🎤 Their song “Pearl” (1971) is a tribute to Joplin
Jerry Garcia
🎤 His song “Bird Song” (1972) is about Joplin
Leonard Cohen
🎤 His song “Chelsea Hotel#2” (1974) is about Joplin
Patti Smith
🎤 Wrote “Lullaby (I Was Working Real Hard)” (1975) for Joplin
She said
⭐ “I'm one of those regular weird people.”
⭐ “Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got.”
⭐ “Guess what, I might be the first hippie pinup girl.”
We love Janis
The Daily Texan, Janis’ college campus newspaper
💗 “She goes barefooted when she feels like it, wears Levi's to class because they're more comfortable, and carries her autoharp with her everywhere she goes so that in case she gets the urge to break into song, it will be handy. Her name is Janis Joplin.”
Pete Townshend of The Who
💗 “Even Janis on an off-night was incredible."
John Segraves, Washington Evening Star
💗 “Whatever she does and whatever she sings she'll do it well because her vocal talents are boundless.”
My Janis Joplin Playlist
I gathered my fav Janis songs, from me to you with love. Like & save on Spotify and listen all week 💗
Where to start
Electric live energy
Performing her song “Tell Mama” in Calgary, Alberta during The Festival Express tour in 1970
〰️
Her final interview
Discussing cars, cops, and rock and roll with Dick Cavett on August 3rd, 1970
Down the rabbit hole
If you wanna dive even deeper:
Janis: Little Girl Blue (2015)
A New York Times Critics' Pick, this award-winning biographical documentary explores the meteoric rise and untimely fall of one of the most iconic and influential rock 'n' roll singers of all time through electrifying archival footage, exclusive interviews and rare personal letters. Watch on Amazon.
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Love this 🍪🍪🍪
Sometimes I get a bit tired of Boomer nostalgia for the Woodstock- era icons. But as you say, Joplin is undeniable. She was a force of nature. "Piece of My Heart" is like a hurricane. An incredible white soul singer.