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Pearl was the nickname Janis Joplin gave herself, and the name of her second and final solo album that was released following her death at the age of 27. Pearl was recorded with her third band, the Full Tilt Boogie Band, and produced by Paul A. Rothchild. Rothschild, having previously produced The Doors, regarded Janis as a “producer’s dream”. While Janis’s final recording session on 1 October 1970 fortunately yielded the a cappella version of “Mercedes Benz”, the album remains forever incomplete.
Following Janis’s death on 4 October 1970, the album was released in January 1971, peaking at Number 1 and ultimately going on to become a quadruple platinum selling record. “Me and Bobby McGhee”, written by Kris Kristofferson went on to top the singles chart and become one of her biggest hits. Kristofferson claims he had been unaware Janis had recorded the song until after she died.
Janis rose to fame after a particularly stand out performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 with the then little-known San Francisco psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company. After releasing two albums with this band, she put together the Kozmic Blues Band to record her first solo album, and with whom she performed at Woodstock.
Janis was a free spirit who lived loud and proud and embraced the 1960’s spirit of free love. She had notable relationships and flings with both men and women, including Country Joe McDonald (the founder of Rag Baby records), Kris Kristofferson and Leonard Cohen. Cohen famously pretended to be Kristofferson when he ran into her in New York City; an occasion he recounts in his song “The Chelsea Hotel (No. 2)”.
Stevie Nicks summed up the experience of hearing Janis sing:
“Janis put herself out there completely, and her voice was not only strong and soulful, it was painfully and beautifully real. She sang in the great tradition of the rhythm & blues singers that were her heroes, but she brought her own dangerous, sexy rock & roll edge to every single song. She really gave you a piece of her heart.”
However, just as the secret to understanding often lies not in what is said, but that which is left unsaid, perhaps the same is true for Janis; the key is not in the songs she sang, but rather the lyrics left unsung…
