Janis Joplin
Country of origin:
U.S.
Type of music generally:
Blues-based rock
Status:
Final release, Pearl, appeared in 1971, shortly after her death in 1970
See also:
Wikipedia's entry on Janis JoplinThe Ectophiles' Guide's entry for her previous band, Big Brother and The Holding Company
Comparisons:
Unique. She is the standard others now are compared to. She herself learned a lot from early blue singers like Bessie Smith.
Covers/own material:
Own, covers, traditional Americana
General comments:
Janis Joplin's voice and technique is quite unique; she can rip a song apart in one moment, and then sing it ever so softly and gently the next moment. Not a pretty voice, but extremely expressive. One of her bands was called "Full Tilt Boogie Band" which is a quite accurate description of her music.... (brage@delta.dk)A huge influence on many artists mostly cause of her stage persona. (onealien@mo.himolde.no)
Recommended first album:
Pearl or In Concert or perhaps one of the various greatest hits compilations
Recordings include:
- I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama! (1969)
- Pearl (1971)
- In Concert (live, 1972)
- Pearl Sessions (2CD, 2012)
Pearl
Release info:
1971—Columbia—CDCBS 64188
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Very high
Group members:
Janis Joplin—vocals
Guest artists:
Phil Badella—backing vocals
Richard Bell—piano, backing vocals
Brad Campbell—bass, backing vocals
John Cooke—backing vocals
Sandra Crouch—tambourine, backing vocals
Bobbie Hall—conga, bongos, backing vocals
Vince Mitchell—backing vocals
Pearl—acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Ken Pearson—organ, backing vocals
Clark Pierson—drums, backing vocals
John Till—guitar, backing vocals
Bobby Womack—acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Produced by:
Paul Rothchild
Comments:
Nice consistent album, but not quite as powerful as the live recordings on In Concert. (brage@delta.dk)
In Concert
Release info:
1972—Columbia—466838 2
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Very high
Group members:
Janis Joplin—vocals
Guest artists:
Peter Albin—bass
Sam Andrew—guitar
Richard Bel—piano
Brad Campbell—bass
Dave Getz—drums
James Gurley—guitar
Ken Pearson—organ
Clark Pierson—drums
John Till—guitar
Produced by:
Elliot Mazer
Comments:
Sound quality isn't the best (it's a live album, after all), but the album contains lots of great songs and Janis Joplin really gets to show off her talent. You'll never recognize "Summertime"! (brage@delta.dk);-)
Thanks to Jens P. Tagore Brage for work on this entry.
