Janis
Joplin had a huge influence on rock and roll. Her gutsy, sexy,
raspy blues vocals revolutionized what would become known as “The
San Francisco Sound” and set her apart from the male-dominated
rockers and the few other female vocalists of the genre such as
Grace Slick of the Jefferson Airplane.
Born in Port Arthur Texas on January 19, 1943, she became
fascinated with the blues of Odetta, Big Mama Thornton, and
Leadbelly. She was not physically beautiful and was shunned at
Thomas Jefferson High School. Her classmate Jimmy Johnson, who
became a legendary NFL coach, gave her the nickname of “beat
weeds.” At the University of Texas at Austin, she was named
“Ugliest Man on Campus” in a fraternity contest. She once went on a
blind date with William Bennett, who later became an
archconservative author, Secretary of Education, and George Bush’s
Drug Czar. She began to sing folk music with local beat poets and
musicians.
In 1963 she moved to San Francisco and joined the drug and rock
counterculture. She was romantically involved with songwriter
Leonard Cohen who wrote the song Chelsea Hotel # 2 about their
relationship, and also with drummer Pigpen of the Grateful Dead.
The last verse of Don McLean’s seminal classic "American Pie" is
believed to be about Janis: "I met a girl who sang the blues, and I
asked her for some happy news. She just smiled and turned away..."
She lived at 180 Baltimore Drive in Larkspur.
In October 1970 she was in Los Angeles with
her band to record their next album “Pearl,” which was her
nickname. On October 1 she recorded “Mercedes Benz” and a birthday
greeting for John Lennon. She was to record her vocal track for
“Buried Alive in the Blues” the following Monday. But on Sunday
evening, October 4, she took an overdose of heroin and alcohol and
collapsed in her room at the Landmark Hotel. She died alone and was
not discovered until the next day. She was cremated and her ashes
scattered on the Pacific.
When her
will was
read, it was found that she had left $2,500 for her wake, to be
held at her favorite local rock venue, The Lion’s Share in San
Anselmo, where she had so often sung, often dropping in unannounced
to sit in with the performers.
Invitations were sent out, and the party was held in
this
building on Monday, October 26, 1970.
She made only four albums: “Big Brother
and the Holding Company” and “Cheap Thrills” with Big Brother, “I
Got Dem Ol’ Kozmic Blues Again, Mama” with the Kozmic Blues Band,
and “Pearl” with the Full Tilt Boogie Blues Band. Other albums were
released posthumously: "Typewriter Tape" with Jorma Kaukonen of
Jefferson Airplane, "Janis", "Live at Winterland", "In Concert",
and various compilations. Her professional career had lasted just
three years. In that time, she had moved millions of people, and
continues to do so today. Thanks,
Janis,
wherever you are. Wish you could be here with us.