Answer: Janis started singing at age 4. She wanted to be a singer all her life. Raised in small town Texas, she suffered bullying and "shunning" by her classmates and was very unhappy at school. She quickly ran outta there to start a band, "The Holding Company" and travelled around the states performing with them where she could. Years later, during her meteoric rise in the industry (see Dick Cavette interview), she recvd offer to return to her hometown to do a performance and guess what...nothing had changed - she deeply regreted that decision. Janis loved the blues and music so much but remember, in the 60's, there was still a lot of racial tension and anxiety against black Americans - and there Janis was, singing the blues, "Black folks music". I love her not only for her unique sound and talent, but because she said, to hell with what anybody else thinks, gave her ALL during every performance, and persevered to reach her dreams. Janis was an original. The way she thought, dressed and talked. A colorful, energized, personality. Like so many performers then and now, Janis sought out the comforts of drugs, namely Heroin, which accidentally killed her, alone, in her hotel room, after she called a dealer she didn't have any experience with. What a lot of people don't know, is that Janis had begun social activism, speaking out for racial equality, for peace, and for a variety of people in societies that were suffering or discriminated against. Janis stood alone, and was self-fueled, yet she craved acceptance and love, something she didn't get from her peers and many adults in her hometown. There will never be anyone like Janis again. Times are different now - lots of great singers, but no one has the sound, rhythm or passion that she stylized from the heart; THAT voice, THAT sound, is all her own.
Yeah, she first came on the scene in the late-ish 1960’s with the mentioned band, except The Holding Company was only part of their name. Can’t remember the full name of the band right now. Gotta look it up, and will post it below.
Jamel, there was no organ in the studio when we recorded that. That was a duplex keyboard on which I could play the piano setting with one hand and organ setting with the other simultaneously or separately because there were two boards stacked. There were two organ settings used, one electric piano setting and one standard piano setting - 4 different settings used altogether. That gig was the only time a keyboard was used in a performance of Me and Bobby McGee. Sam Andrew was the the lead guitar for Big Brother and the Holding company (he was also the founder) and though we were friends until he died 5 years ago, he didn't want any keyboardist in the group - he just wanted guitars drums, bass and vocals. When Janis moved on to the Kozmic Blues band I went with her. It was over too soon, we were devastated by her death. Then Hendrix and Jim Morrison died that same year, year and a half. When Cass Elliot, who I loved dearly, died a couple of years later, I had enough - they seemed to be dropping like flies. I left the business and never looked back.
My heart goes out to Janis. In an interview, she once said-"In a concert, I make love to ten thousand people, and I go home alone. I hope she found peace.
Fear not ! She had many dear friends such as Ron McKernan , as well as others from the GratefulDead , Jerry Garcia was very close as well as Bob Weir , from what I know as well RamRod (Laurence Shurtliff (lead roadie for GD ) as well as many other close friends . yes she also did feel lonely a lot
In Don McLean's song "American Pie", he "met a girl who sang the blues", referring to the Janis Joplin version of the song, where she and Bobbie sang the blues. He asks for some happy news from her. However, "she just smiled and turned away", referring to her death in 1970.
@@danwesterhouse6627 I know there are some good current ones, but back in those days you had to have talent. Today everyone sounds exactly the same - especially the women singers. Just watching Woodstock shows how diverse the musicians and MUSIC was. Jimi to Richie to CSNY to Joe Cocker at woodstock and then the musicians who weren't at Woodstock All different, all stand the test of time. That's why I love the reaction videos from the younggins'
@Cobb Knobbler You mean dying from addiction? Some of these "partiers" did a tone of drinking and drugging ALONE - you know, kinda like how she died in a hotel room?
@Cobb Knobbler And yet in the four years we got her music, she made more difference than you could ever hope to. Guess that makes you even more pathetic kid.
@Cobb Knobbler - you're a moron for two reasons you've shown here. One is that you won't even recognize the greatness that can exist, even in people who are (or were) far from perfect. The other is that you used a horrid word to try to make your point. Grow up; you have no room to judge Janis Joplin for any shortcomings she might have had.
country music Hall of famer, producer/writer Fred Foster called Kristofferson with the idea, Bobby McGee in original, a woman...Joplin changed it to a man
Kristoffeson is so under appreciated. Served int he Army, he was a Rhodes Scholar who studied Shakespeare at Oxford. became a janitor which is how he met Johnny Cash, who encouraged him write songs. WOW! what a journey
It’s believed she’s mentioned in Don McLean’s American Pie, a song sometimes referred to an the Boomer anthem. The line is “I met a girl who sang the blues And I asked her for some happy news But she just smiled and turned away”. The turning away is a reference to her death.
That is a great song and it’s speculated that Don McLean referenced the Beatles as the quartet that practiced in the park, Bob Dylan as the jester in a cast as he was wearing JFKs (or was it Bobby Kennedy?) jacket, Janis Joplin as the woman that sang the blues, The Rolling Stones, and, of course, it’s speculated that the song is about the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper. That was the day the music died. I may have missed a couple of references in there, but it’s not confirmed that any of that is fact. But in my tiny little music driven mind, it makes sense.
@@azadventurefamily Yeah, that's pretty much as I've always understood it although McLean has never explained the song. Aside from the catchy melody, and that great hook (bye, bye, Miss American Pie, . . . ) the song is really sheer poetry because it is so enigmatic. It's pop culture allusions inside pop culture allusions.
I got to see her in a concert in 1969. Very conservative town and the Police arrested her after the show for using the "F" word, which they thought was directed at them. It wasn't, but still arrested after concert. Her opening act was B.B. King !!!! A very powerful concert.
Yes you can even tell it in the vocals and in the way she sings, anyone that's ever listened to Bessie Smith you can hear the definite influence she had on Janis and I'm glad she had such a great inspiration for her music because Bessie was incredible but was never really given as much credit as she deserved.
Yeah, blues, folk, rock, soul with a little psychedelia thrown in here and there. I'd say she's really beyond being able to categorize though. She kinda transcends labeling.
You, sir, are so fricking adorable when you really get into the music and it makes me smile and giggle every damn time. In the dark days that are happening right this minute you have brought light to my day. :)
Never say "Music that I have neglected." You have not neglected it, you just now being turned on to it. It is a "forward" looking thing, not backward! I enjoy seeing you experiencing some of the past.
Victoria, I saw her after Woodstock, Labor Day weekend in Lewisville, TX, at the Dallas In'tl Pop Festival. Who knew 1 year later she would be gone? RIP, Janis, you took a little piece of my heart.
In 1967, Joplin rose to fame following an appearance at Monterey Pop Festival, where she was the lead singer of the then little-known San Francisco psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company. thanx to wikipedia
Had to smile when you said she gave "a piece of her heart" - 'Piece of My Heart' was one of her hits. Janis didn't make much more than she spent and gave away - she'd be appalled that any videos of hers were getting pulled by UA-cam's lawyers. She started singing in Texas bars in her teens - can't recall exact age, but it was young - before moving to California and an eventual rock career.
This is so accurate, Janis didn't give a fuck about money.. to her money really meant nothing Janis was into her music because she love to entertain the crowd and make people happy.. Now days people just get into music to make money and most of them could care less about their audience even though their the ones that buy the music that supports them.
I also recommend listening to Piece of my Heart by Janis Joplin. She is one of my favorite singers. She left this world way to early. Hope she found the peace she was looking for. She is missed but not forgotten.
So glad I ran across this - I was at Woodstock (yeah, I go way back), and when she started singing...everyone disappeared except Janis. Such a phenomenal loss. And your reaction gave me a huge smile!
Janis is by far my favorite female singer ever, bordering on obsession.She died at 27,as lots of the greats did.They even created something called the 27 club for actors and musicians who died at 27.I still listen to her daily.I even literally have the t shirt(freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose)
Tonya Rogers seen him live three times .and your right but his songs an story are superb .last gig I seen in Aberdeen a couple years back he sat on the edge of the stage at the end an just had a chat to anybody left in the gig .👍🏻
I too had first started with JANIS with piece of my heart. (Big Brother and the Holding Co.) Stayed with her all the way to this final curtain call. A polished and fitting encore to a once in a lifetime Star and Soul.
The first time I heard her she was with "Big Brother and the Holding Company". THAT version of Ball & Chain was something ELSE! You are so adorable when you are grooving out on this oldie but goodie stuff! Thanks!
Those words are haunting for me, I know that feeling and it stays with me to this day. I gave up my soul mate and would now "Trade All My Tomorrows.. For One Single Yesterday" just to have that moment back.
Her voice is a roadmap to the human soul, lots of bumps and detours along the way. If you can’t get what she’s singing or how she’s singing it, you haven’t truly lived.
Man, Janis could sure "work a song." She mesmerizes you at first, then gradually cranks up the emotion, ending up with a sad, sad ending...and she makes you FEEL her regret.
Janis lived in San Francisco for awhile. She went into a store and was trying to buy a mink or fur coat. She wanted to write a check but did not have an ID. The clerk refused to sell it to her. She left the store and a few doors down was a news stand. There was a Time magazine with her picture on the cover. She bought a copy. Took is back to the clerk as her ID and, of course, they let her write a check!
Thanks for making this 51 year old man cry like a little girl for about 6 minutes. We used to go camping when I was young boy to Colorado for the summer. Me, my brother and my mother LOVED Janis Joplin and would listen to this on the 8 track for hours and hours. My dad HATED Janis saying she sounded like someone was strangling a cat and he would hide the 8 track so he would not have to hear it. Hearing this song and your reactions bring back fantastic memories. Thank you.
It should be noted that this is a cover. Me and Bobby McGee was written by the great Kris Kristofferson and songwriter Fred Foster. Janis' version was not released until after her death.
Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose. As a man who lost everything he ever had I can say no truer words have ever been spoken. Great song great artist and great reaction!
As a teenager, Joplin befriended a group of outcasts, one of whom had albums by blues artists Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, and Lead Belly, whom Joplin later credited with influencing her decision to become a singer. You inspired me dust off my old records and give some janis Joplin/big brother and holding company records a spin. Thank you for sharing your passion for music with us
Janis Joplin was a huge Bessie Smith fan. In Aug. 1970, Janis and Juanita Green split the cost of a headstone for Bessie's grave, which had been unmarked since her 1937 death. Juanita Green was then president of the North Philadelphia NAACP, but as a child had done housework for Bessie Smith.
And incredible blues artists, sadly most people today will never listen to them or get their music, different time growing up and living back then when there were a lot more struggles than today and that's not to say the struggles don't exist but the segregation and racism back then was much worse than today but sadly even today they are still issues in this world that won't seem to end :(
A lot of singers may have sounded like Janis Joplin, but she didn't sound like anyone else. Totally different from anything we had ever heard before or since. You'd see her doing hard-core raw lyrics and then, turn around and sing something like "Me and Bobby McGee " What an amazing entertainer! You never left seeing her and walk out thinking, not worth the money to see. RIP Janis, I'm going to be greedy here... you were taken away from us far too soon. 😢 Peace ✌️ you sister .❤❤❤❤
She first recorded in 1962, but her first large audience performance was in 1967 at the Monterey Festival with the legendary performance of "Ball and Chain". That performance alone catapulted her to stardom overnight.
You are correct about this song being released posthumously, but the last song she recorded was Mercedes Benz. She died like a week after she recorded Mercedes Benz
@@palermotrapani9067 Yeah it was three days later. Janis recorded Mercedes Benz in one take, no band. It was easy for her (I could vouch for that, I used to lead drunk singing in bars too lol), so she just told producer Paul Rothchild to roll tape. The sound board was still set for her vocal tracking, so tape rolled, and we've all heard what happened next.
@@djhrecordhound4391 Ok, my memory is not what it once was. You are correct. I was a kid when Janis Died so have reasonable memory of the events but yes it was indeed just 3 days after.
@@palermotrapani9067 It's a bad habit of mine to spew record stuff, and a week or few days doesn't really matter. You were pointing it out great. Sorry I geeked out all over you.
@@djhrecordhound4391 No I did not take you comment anyway but trying to accurately correct the record.So if I may say, no offense but I am not of this recent generation were everyone gets offended by everything. Nothing disrespectful in your post nor did I take it as such.
This is my favorite song using the Hammond organ. I never think of it as a "Church organ" but to me it is a blues organ. My second favorite use of the Hammond is CCR's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain".
She became a star at the Monterey Pop Festival with "Ball and Chain" in 1967. She died in 1970 of a drug overdose, recording this song three days before she died. It became her only #1 hit posthumously.
Remembering this was a Kris Kristopherson song, might wanted to listen to Johnny Cash sing another of Kris's songs. Sunday Morning Coming Down. When Cash performed the song on his television show the censors want to change a few words they found objectionable. Johnny sang it as written in spite of that. Kris was forever grateful to Johnny Cash for that....
Not a pop music guy, but I like Pink. Some of her songs are quite good. So I heard she did a cover of a Joplin song (was it this one? Can't remember), and I have to say it, when I listened to it she couldn't hold a candle to Janis. As talented as Pink is, it just shows how talented Janis really was.
This awesome young lady was born near me....I was born in Beaumont texas....she, in Port Arthur. Such a shame to lose her so young.....she was so talented.
You should watch the movie “The Rose”, it stars Bette Midler. She portrays a version of Janis. Old movie. Great acting that shows how messed up she was in her daily life.
She was a Beatnik first. She had a very sweet voice then. Unfortunately, her love for Southern Comfort took its toll on her voice. She was a sweet talented tragedy.
I would have loved to hear her belt out her songs with Elvis's TCB band behind her. Easily one of my top 3 female singers. This was her biggest hit. Written by Kris Kristoffersen and I highly recommend you check out three of his songs. Perhaps the greatest song writer of our time.
Oh, I Agree! Kris is a Very Gifted Writer! Absolutely! This is One of my All Time Favorite Songs Ever Written! 😃👍. I can’t get the video to play though! My phone must be messed up or something! Ugh! 🙄.
Good, but my new discovery is her 'typewriter tape', 1964 casette, room mates wife types in the background, "Trouble In Mind" ... the only song that Janis and Bob Wills both did. I'm a Tommy Duncan fan. Jazz chops on a country singer. ua-cam.com/video/QNr0Nfyb1SY/v-deo.html
Ode to Billy Joe is another absolute classic. I'm a British Asian, 33 years old, born and brought up in London, UK but for some reason I'm obsessed with all this old American stuff. Chess Records, Atlantic, Ray Charles, Muddy Waters, Janis, Canned Heat...literally all of it.
"I'll trade all my tomorrows for one single yesterday"......How many of us can relate to that
Even to this day I can, I gave up someone that I think about even now and would trade all of those tomorrows just to be with her one last time..
Most definitely!!!
Amen!
👋
And now we have WAP winning awards
Answer: Janis started singing at age 4. She wanted to be a singer all her life. Raised in small town Texas, she suffered bullying and "shunning" by her classmates and was very unhappy at school. She quickly ran outta there to start a band, "The Holding Company" and travelled around the states performing with them where she could. Years later, during her meteoric rise in the industry (see Dick Cavette interview), she recvd offer to return to her hometown to do a performance and guess what...nothing had changed - she deeply regreted that decision. Janis loved the blues and music so much but remember, in the 60's, there was still a lot of racial tension and anxiety against black Americans - and there Janis was, singing the blues, "Black folks music". I love her not only for her unique sound and talent, but because she said, to hell with what anybody else thinks, gave her ALL during every performance, and persevered to reach her dreams. Janis was an original. The way she thought, dressed and talked. A colorful, energized, personality. Like so many performers then and now, Janis sought out the comforts of drugs, namely Heroin, which accidentally killed her, alone, in her hotel room, after she called a dealer she didn't have any experience with. What a lot of people don't know, is that Janis had begun social activism, speaking out for racial equality, for peace, and for a variety of people in societies that were suffering or discriminated against. Janis stood alone, and was self-fueled, yet she craved acceptance and love, something she didn't get from her peers and many adults in her hometown. There will never be anyone like Janis again. Times are different now - lots of great singers, but no one has the sound, rhythm or passion that she stylized from the heart; THAT voice, THAT sound, is all her own.
Lyn B, you took the words out of my mouth. There's was and will be only one Janis Joplin.
Thank you for this! Very interesting!
Thanks for that info. I never knew much about her.
Is there a Biography on her life you would recommend?
Yeah, she first came on the scene in the late-ish 1960’s with the mentioned band, except The Holding Company was only part of their name. Can’t remember the full name of the band right now. Gotta look it up, and will post it below.
Jamel, there was no organ in the studio when we recorded that. That was a duplex keyboard on which I could play the piano setting with one hand and organ setting with the other simultaneously or separately because there were two boards stacked. There were two organ settings used, one electric piano setting and one standard piano setting - 4 different settings used altogether. That gig was the only time a keyboard was used in a performance of Me and Bobby McGee. Sam Andrew was the the lead guitar for Big Brother and the Holding company (he was also the founder) and though we were friends until he died 5 years ago, he didn't want any keyboardist in the group - he just wanted guitars drums, bass and vocals. When Janis moved on to the Kozmic Blues band I went with her. It was over too soon, we were devastated by her death. Then Hendrix and Jim Morrison died that same year, year and a half. When Cass Elliot, who I loved dearly, died a couple of years later, I had enough - they seemed to be dropping like flies. I left the business and never looked back.
You are a very lucky man to have been able to participate in such a wonderfully creative time! Thank you!
Thank you for sharing. Peace and love.
She was an amazing individual and you were very lucky to have known her
@@mamastarshine I agree
@@KyOlsen I treasure the memory
When she sings "I'd trade all my tomorrows for one single yesterday" it just rips my heart out.
A single yesterday in the early 1970s.
Cool. That's also the title and lyric in a Merle Haggard song I really like from his Strangers album released in 1965.
A truer statement has never been spoken!
Yessir
Me too 😓
My heart goes out to Janis. In an interview, she once said-"In a concert, I make love to ten thousand people, and I go home alone. I hope she found peace.
Gene Miller, that was something when I heard that. So, so real. Bless her talented heart. I hope she is resting easy.
Fear not ! She had many dear friends such as Ron McKernan , as well as others from the GratefulDead , Jerry Garcia was very close as well as Bob Weir , from what I know as well RamRod (Laurence Shurtliff (lead roadie for GD ) as well as many other close friends . yes she also did feel lonely a lot
I was going to post that quote if nobody hadn't already. Such a powerful statement about her life ...nobody could've said that and meant it like her.
Always wamted to make her hot chocolate, a fireplace and to feel loved
That quote has always hurt my heart.
In Don McLean's song "American Pie", he "met a girl who sang the blues", referring to the Janis Joplin version of the song, where she and Bobbie sang the blues. He asks for some happy news from her. However, "she just smiled and turned away", referring to her death in 1970.
I did not know that was the reference.
That was such an amazing song.
She was amazing. The vocals, tone, and voice octaves.
@@danwesterhouse6627 I know there are some good current ones, but back in those days you had to have talent. Today everyone sounds exactly the same - especially the women singers. Just watching Woodstock shows how diverse the musicians and MUSIC was. Jimi to Richie to CSNY to Joe Cocker at woodstock and then the musicians who weren't at Woodstock All different, all stand the test of time. That's why I love the reaction videos from the younggins'
Heavy, thanks.
Thank you Kris Kristofferson for writing this great song! Janis surely made it her own.
Roger Miller had a hit too!
I was coming to comment exactly this! A good Kris Kristofferson song to react to is Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down.
@@Courdorygirl Most definitely
@@Courdorygirl I love Johnny Cash's version too!
So sad, she died before this song ever made it to the radio. Her biggest hit and she never knew it!
She came, she hit it hard, she left.
@Cobb Knobbler You mean dying from addiction? Some of these "partiers" did a tone of drinking and drugging ALONE - you know, kinda like how she died in a hotel room?
@Cobb Knobbler And yet in the four years we got her music, she made more difference than you could ever hope to. Guess that makes you even more pathetic kid.
@Cobb Knobbler - you're a moron for two reasons you've shown here. One is that you won't even recognize the greatness that can exist, even in people who are (or were) far from perfect. The other is that you used a horrid word to try to make your point. Grow up; you have no room to judge Janis Joplin for any shortcomings she might have had.
Cobb Knobble
@Cobb Knobbler sitting alone and drowning your emotional pain/loneliness is partying? 🤨
This is a Kris Kristofferson original but Janis definitely made it hers.
Off -Kilter steinkerke hé released it with Gordon lightfoot.
country music Hall of famer, producer/writer Fred Foster called Kristofferson with the idea, Bobby McGee in original, a woman...Joplin changed it to a man
Kristoffeson is so under appreciated. Served int he Army, he was a Rhodes Scholar who studied Shakespeare at Oxford. became a janitor which is how he met Johnny Cash, who encouraged him write songs. WOW! what a journey
@@xkrickett He is a gifted brilliant musician turned actor!!!
Kris wrote this
It’s believed she’s mentioned in Don McLean’s American Pie, a song sometimes referred to an the Boomer anthem. The line is
“I met a girl who sang the blues
And I asked her for some happy news
But she just smiled and turned away”.
The turning away is a reference to her death.
I didn't know that.
You're correct about that line
American pie is an enigma and a masterpiece to be sure!
That is a great song and it’s speculated that Don McLean referenced the Beatles as the quartet that practiced in the park, Bob Dylan as the jester in a cast as he was wearing JFKs (or was it Bobby Kennedy?) jacket, Janis Joplin as the woman that sang the blues, The Rolling Stones, and, of course, it’s speculated that the song is about the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper. That was the day the music died. I may have missed a couple of references in there, but it’s not confirmed that any of that is fact. But in my tiny little music driven mind, it makes sense.
@@azadventurefamily Yeah, that's pretty much as I've always understood it although McLean has never explained the song. Aside from the catchy melody, and that great hook (bye, bye, Miss American Pie, . . . ) the song is really sheer poetry because it is so enigmatic. It's pop culture allusions inside pop culture allusions.
Janis was a gritty hippie chic who Brought It like NO OTHER. She left her Heart on that stage. Phenomenal woman!
One of the most beautiful woman of her era.
She did bring it. But she considered herself a beatnik, not a hippie. 😉
'hippy' not exactly accurate.
I got to see her in a concert in 1969. Very conservative town and the Police arrested her after the show for using the "F" word, which they thought was directed at them. It wasn't, but still arrested after concert. Her opening act was B.B. King !!!! A very powerful concert.
@@KindCountsDeb3773 Cops abusing their power? Nothing new here.
Janis was influenced by Bessie Smith. And when Janis found out that Bessie’s grave was unmarked, Janis bought a headstone for it.
@Mario Arlo ua-cam.com/video/OgPWBntG49Q/v-deo.html
Yes you can even tell it in the vocals and in the way she sings, anyone that's ever listened to Bessie Smith you can hear the definite influence she had on Janis and I'm glad she had such a great inspiration for her music because Bessie was incredible but was never really given as much credit as she deserved.
Wow--what a wonderful story.
I found out that Dorothy Parker's needed a headstone, I had to contribute and I was proud to.
No one like Janis. She was an original for sure
💕
Janis was like a blues/folk/rock. Unparalleled passion in her voice. Everything she had in every word she sang.
Yeah, blues, folk, rock, soul with a little psychedelia thrown in here and there. I'd say she's really beyond being able to categorize though. She kinda transcends labeling.
She was an old soul, musical maturity at such a young age, sad we didn't get to see her evolve!
You, sir, are so fricking adorable when you really get into the music and it makes me smile and giggle every damn time. In the dark days that are happening right this minute you have brought light to my day. :)
Christina Powers I’m here with ya sister!
Same. Handsome and cute all in one.😉 (hope he feels better fast!)
He’s adorable.
Amen sister couldn't have put it better
Same. What fun he isx
"I'd trade all my tomorrows for a single yesterday, to be holding Bobby's body next to mine." That's love when it hurts the most.
Yes
Great name, 12thDecember- should be mine too!
“Her voices pierces your soul” YES 🙌
Never say "Music that I have neglected." You have not neglected it, you just now being turned on to it. It is a "forward" looking thing, not backward! I enjoy seeing you experiencing some of the past.
Same here!
Well said. It wasn't until the mid 80s until I heard Days of Future Past, and I instantly had eargasms. I'm a Moodies fan to this day.
@@bethmerryfield7186 I grew up with my parents listening to the Moody Blues often. And until this day I love there music
@@cjw2661 that's so great! Looking back, I think if I had played the Moodies albums on my folks turntable, they would have liked it.
AMEN! Well put!
The timbre of her voice was a gift from the gods to all of us.
I thought it was R.J. Reynolds.
Blue eyed soul. Janis was too good for this world. Thanks for the trip.
Janis started in 66 with Big Brother and the Holding company. What magic! Saw her live at Woodstock. Never will forget and still miss her!
That really is something to remember I am very jealous lol
The year I was born, that’s why I just have old recordings, born too late for the good stuff.
Fact check: That’s when she was in a legitimate band. But she started playing, recording, and performing in 1962.
Victoria, I saw her after Woodstock, Labor Day weekend in Lewisville, TX, at the Dallas In'tl Pop Festival. Who knew 1 year later she would be gone? RIP, Janis, you took a little piece of my heart.
How I envy you
It is so much fun seeing you enjoy music that I have loved for years. Janis was one of a kind.
Thanks for reminding me 🙏🏾
Janis gave a piece of her heart every time she sang! She and I share a birthday Jan. 19th. She always had a piece of my heart ❤
My man you’re just a brother from another mother, we all bleed RED. You make me laugh every day. Just wanna say THANKS
You're quite welcome, Joe
In 1967, Joplin rose to fame following an appearance at Monterey Pop Festival, where she was the lead singer of the then little-known San Francisco psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company. thanx to wikipedia
Yes I think it was the first time a record company executive heard her sing.
When you said her voice just pierces your soul, it was spot on!
Had to smile when you said she gave "a piece of her heart" - 'Piece of My Heart' was one of her hits. Janis didn't make much more than she spent and gave away - she'd be appalled that any videos of hers were getting pulled by UA-cam's lawyers. She started singing in Texas bars in her teens - can't recall exact age, but it was young - before moving to California and an eventual rock career.
This is so accurate, Janis didn't give a fuck about money.. to her money really meant nothing Janis was into her music because she love to entertain the crowd and make people happy.. Now days people just get into music to make money and most of them could care less about their audience even though their the ones that buy the music that supports them.
And that, my friend, is called "bringin' it home".
NO ONE comes even close to Janis, she had the voice of a tiger, & then the most sensual tender voice. AMAZING
I also recommend listening to Piece of my Heart by Janis Joplin. She is one of my favorite singers. She left this world way to early. Hope she found the peace she was looking for. She is missed but not forgotten.
great song
So glad I ran across this - I was at Woodstock (yeah, I go way back), and when she started singing...everyone disappeared except Janis. Such a phenomenal loss. And your reaction gave me a huge smile!
Janis is by far my favorite female singer ever, bordering on obsession.She died at 27,as lots of the greats did.They even created something called the 27 club for actors and musicians who died at 27.I still listen to her daily.I even literally have the t shirt(freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose)
Kris Kristoferson has a ton of great songs he's written.
I love Kris but he can't sing worth shit. Seen him live in the 80s.
One helluva songwriter though
Him and ex wife Rita Coolidge!! ❤❤❤
@@tonyarogers6997 The hell of it is though, that he did not need to sing well, Haha
Tonya Rogers seen him live three times .and your right but his songs an story are superb .last gig I seen in Aberdeen a couple years back he sat on the edge of the stage at the end an just had a chat to anybody left in the gig .👍🏻
My favorite line of his about Janis doing this song was, "She could have at least waited until I was finished writing it."
Janis was a gift to us all. A joy. She is much missed.
I too had first started with JANIS with piece of my heart. (Big Brother and the Holding Co.) Stayed with her all the way to this final curtain call. A polished and fitting encore to a once in a lifetime Star and Soul.
Miss Pearl! may she rest in eternal peace! what an incredible talent.
The first time I heard her she was with "Big Brother and the Holding Company". THAT version of Ball & Chain was something ELSE! You are so adorable when you are grooving out on this oldie but goodie stuff! Thanks!
If you like that, listen to her version of "Summertime".
my favorite
definitly have to react to summertime, partied with her at Woodstock... fun lady
"I'd trade all my tomorrows for a single yesterday"---- one of the most perfect lyrics ever created. That is an entire song in it's own right.
Kris kristofferson wrote the dong--he wrote a lot of good stuff.
Kristofferson is a true poet. The proof is how various artists can make his lyrics fit their style.
Yes absolutely yes and yes again.
Those words are haunting for me, I know that feeling and it stays with me to this day. I gave up my soul mate and would now "Trade All My Tomorrows.. For One Single Yesterday" just to have that moment back.
@@bcaye Pretty bad ass in Blade too.
Her voice is a roadmap to the human soul, lots of bumps and detours along the way. If you can’t get what she’s singing or how she’s singing it, you haven’t truly lived.
Written by Kris Kristofferson and I really like hearing him sing this. But this will forever be a Janis Joplin song to me! Love your reaction!
Man, Janis could sure "work a song." She mesmerizes you at first, then gradually cranks up the emotion, ending up with a sad, sad ending...and she makes you FEEL her regret.
Janis lived in San Francisco for awhile. She went into a store and was trying to buy a mink or fur coat. She wanted to write a check but did not have an ID. The clerk refused to sell it to her. She left the store and a few doors down was a news stand. There was a Time magazine with her picture on the cover. She bought a copy. Took is back to the clerk as her ID and, of course, they let her write a check!
“If it sounds country, that’s because it’s a country song, man.” Kris Kristofferson, about this song.
She was another Gem we were blessed with❤
Thanks for making this 51 year old man cry like a little girl for about 6 minutes. We used to go camping when I was young boy to Colorado for the summer. Me, my brother and my mother LOVED Janis Joplin and would listen to this on the 8 track for hours and hours. My dad HATED Janis saying she sounded like someone was strangling a cat and he would hide the 8 track so he would not have to hear it. Hearing this song and your reactions bring back fantastic memories. Thank you.
It should be noted that this is a cover. Me and Bobby McGee was written by the great Kris Kristofferson and songwriter Fred Foster. Janis' version was not released until after her death.
"Yall KNOW how I git about the church organ, man!" Son, I just fell in love with you. I'm subscribing now!
Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose. As a man who lost everything he ever had I can say no truer words have ever been spoken. Great song great artist and great reaction!
As a teenager, Joplin befriended a group of outcasts, one of whom had albums by blues artists Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, and Lead Belly, whom Joplin later credited with influencing her decision to become a singer.
You inspired me dust off my old records and give some janis Joplin/big brother and holding company records a spin.
Thank you for sharing your passion for music with us
Janis Joplin was a huge Bessie Smith fan. In Aug. 1970, Janis and Juanita Green split the cost of a headstone for Bessie's grave, which had been unmarked since her 1937 death. Juanita Green was then president of the North Philadelphia NAACP, but as a child had done housework for Bessie Smith.
@@wnsafford1854 ,I knew about this Beautiful Tribute to the Amazing Bessie Smith.
And incredible blues artists, sadly most people today will never listen to them or get their music, different time growing up and living back then when there were a lot more struggles than today and that's not to say the struggles don't exist but the segregation and racism back then was much worse than today but sadly even today they are still issues in this world that won't seem to end :(
A lot of singers may have sounded like Janis Joplin, but she didn't sound like anyone else. Totally different from anything we had ever heard before or since. You'd see her doing hard-core raw lyrics and then, turn around and sing something like "Me and Bobby McGee " What an amazing entertainer! You never left seeing her and walk out thinking, not worth the money to see.
RIP Janis, I'm going to be greedy here... you were taken away from us far too soon. 😢 Peace ✌️ you sister .❤❤❤❤
Thanks for this great reaction. You don't listen to a song by Janis Joplin, you fall in
Kris Kristopherson wrote many wonderful songs. This is my favorite.
She first recorded in 1962, but her first large audience performance was in 1967 at the Monterey Festival with the legendary performance of "Ball and Chain". That performance alone catapulted her to stardom overnight.
She died not long after recording this song. It was released posthumously
You are correct about this song being released posthumously, but the last song she recorded was Mercedes Benz. She died like a week after she recorded Mercedes Benz
@@palermotrapani9067 Yeah it was three days later. Janis recorded Mercedes Benz in one take, no band. It was easy for her (I could vouch for that, I used to lead drunk singing in bars too lol), so she just told producer Paul Rothchild to roll tape. The sound board was still set for her vocal tracking, so tape rolled, and we've all heard what happened next.
@@djhrecordhound4391 Ok, my memory is not what it once was. You are correct. I was a kid when Janis Died so have reasonable memory of the events but yes it was indeed just 3 days after.
@@palermotrapani9067 It's a bad habit of mine to spew record stuff, and a week or few days doesn't really matter. You were pointing it out great. Sorry I geeked out all over you.
@@djhrecordhound4391 No I did not take you comment anyway but trying to accurately correct the record.So if I may say, no offense but I am not of this recent generation were everyone gets offended by everything. Nothing disrespectful in your post nor did I take it as such.
Janis in her pop mode. Cheap Thrills was her best. There will always be a soft spot in my heart for her .
Watching you listening to this song is bringing tears of sadness and of joy to the eyes of this 60 year old.
This is my favorite song using the Hammond organ. I never think of it as a "Church organ" but to me it is a blues organ. My second favorite use of the Hammond is CCR's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain".
Janis was a woman of The Blues back in my day! My all-time favorite singer!!
My most favourite female singer.
When she sings I almost don't hear the music her voice is that powerful to me...
That’s a perfect description of her artistry
I grew up listening to Janice she was my mothers favorite artist. Great memories
Jamel you would have been part of the “ flower 🌸 power “ movement back in the 60s ☮️ 😊
I love her voice it just send chills all over your body
There’s a time when her legend was so immense. She will always be in a class by herself.
Freedom´s just another word for nothing left to lose...
Another uplifting reaction!!! Thank you muchly!!!
She became a star at the Monterey Pop Festival with "Ball and Chain" in 1967. She died in 1970 of a drug overdose, recording this song three days before she died. It became her only #1 hit posthumously.
Yes , ''Ball and Chain'' with Big Brother !
Remembering this was a Kris Kristopherson song, might wanted to listen to Johnny Cash sing another of Kris's songs. Sunday Morning Coming Down. When Cash performed the song on his television show the censors want to change a few words they found objectionable. Johnny sang it as written in spite of that. Kris was forever grateful to Johnny Cash for that....
I love hearing Tricia Yearwood sing that song.
I grew up with Janice and I agree that her music pierces your soul! 💗
She always had a bottle of Southern Comfort with her whenever she was on stage !!!
I learned how to play this song on the guitar when I was 14 & I've always loved Janis 💝
Every few years I hear someone touted as the "new Janis Joplin". Nope. Not interested. She was just amazing and really, irreplaceable.
listen to Pinks version
@@andyuscum I love Pink's cover.
@@andyuscum My thoughts exactly! Pink kills it
Not a pop music guy, but I like Pink. Some of her songs are quite good. So I heard she did a cover of a Joplin song (was it this one? Can't remember), and I have to say it, when I listened to it she couldn't hold a candle to Janis. As talented as Pink is, it just shows how talented Janis really was.
Janis was, well, Janis. What a talent! Hit notes others only try to replicate. To soon gone!
She started playing folk music in high school in the early 60's.
This is all about zero regrets. Love her, may she sing and dance in the other dimension.
I just saw this - my favorite song of all time! You should listen to & react to Mercedes Benz from the same Pearl album. Love it
This awesome young lady was born near me....I was born in Beaumont texas....she, in Port Arthur. Such a shame to lose her so young.....she was so talented.
You should watch the movie “The Rose”, it stars Bette Midler. She portrays a version of Janis. Old movie. Great acting that shows how messed up she was in her daily life.
She was a Beatnik first. She had a very sweet voice then. Unfortunately, her love for Southern Comfort took its toll on her voice. She was a sweet talented tragedy.
I cant remember not knowing Janis Joplin's music. She was and is still my Mom's favorite artist
I would have loved to hear her belt out her songs with Elvis's TCB band behind her. Easily one of my top 3 female singers. This was her biggest hit. Written by Kris Kristoffersen and I highly recommend you check out three of his songs. Perhaps the greatest song writer of our time.
Oh, I Agree! Kris is a Very Gifted Writer! Absolutely! This is One of my All Time Favorite Songs Ever Written! 😃👍. I can’t get the video to play though! My phone must be messed up or something! Ugh! 🙄.
I just started watching your videos...I love your reactions !! This is music I grew up with and it never gets old!!! Keep on rockin!!
Check out 'cry baby' next. Her opening wails just melt my brain everytime I hear that song.
Nalin X Oh yes.
Oh yeah!!! That's a good one
She was a gift from another place too good for us mere mortals so she had to move on . She's still belting them out somewhere. wish i had a ticket.
We all will, someday...
I love your reaction, man. I'm so glad to see young people these days appreciating the classics. Keep on keeping on, my friend!
This and Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay, have something in common. Big hits for the artists, Janis or Otis Redding, after their early deaths.
REQUESTING JANIS JOPLIN MERCEDES BENZ
@connie baldwin totally agree.
Good, but my new discovery is her 'typewriter tape', 1964 casette, room mates wife types in the background, "Trouble In Mind" ... the only song that Janis and Bob Wills both did. I'm a Tommy Duncan fan. Jazz chops on a country singer. ua-cam.com/video/QNr0Nfyb1SY/v-deo.html
I had thought of that one also...
@connie baldwin I believe the line ends with "You must make amends."
Yes
I get goosebumps! This is on my greatest road trip list!!!
Her band, Big Brother, got their own separate induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
My dad taught me to sing this when I was 3 and I've lived Janis ever since.
My mind, for some reason, always pairs this with "ode to billy joe."
So do I!
Ode to Billy Joe is another absolute classic. I'm a British Asian, 33 years old, born and brought up in London, UK but for some reason I'm obsessed with all this old American stuff. Chess Records, Atlantic, Ray Charles, Muddy Waters, Janis, Canned Heat...literally all of it.
That's a great song!
I knew you would like this one man.. her voice was something special.. like a controlled scream when she gets loud
Pink did a very solid version of this. Also you should check out Janis Joplin- Maybe
I LOVE IT!
Janis... my all time favorite.... above all
Piece of My Heart was actually credited to Big Brother and the Holding Company
Kris Kristofferson wrote it. I also like his version.
Nothin ain't worth nothin, but it's free...
Janis is just amazing. Always and forever. Please look up "Sad to be Alone".
Thete wouldn't have been an Amy Winehouse without Janis Joplin,.
there wouldn't even be Judas Priest, Rob Halford the singer always wanted to sound like Janis
Patty J. Ayers Especially Big Mama Thornton!
I’m sure Amy would agree with you!
My brother was in love with Whinehouse. He had posters of her all over her walls before i had ever heard her music.
Her version of "Summertime" is amazing.
This is true!
Hell YES!!!!!!!