Janis Joplin

Janis Joplin
Joplin in June 1970
Born
Janis Lyn Joplin

(1943-01-19)January 19, 1943
Port Arthur, Texas, U.S.
DiedOctober 4, 1970(1970-10-04) (aged 27)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Cause of deathHeroin overdose
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • musician
Parents
  • Seth Joplin (father)
  • Dorothy Joplin (mother)
Awards
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1962–1970
LabelsColumbia Records
Formerly ofBig Brother and the Holding Company
Websitejanisjoplin.com
Signature

Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals,[1] as well as her "electric" stage presence.[2][3][4]

In 1967, Joplin rose to prominence following an appearance at the 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.[5][6][7] After releasing two albums with the band, she left Big Brother to continue as a solo artist with her own backing groups, first the Kozmic Blues Band and then the Full Tilt Boogie Band. She appeared at the 1969 Woodstock festival and on the Festival Express train tour. Five singles by Joplin reached the US Billboard Hot 100, including a cover of the Kris Kristofferson song "Me and Bobby McGee", which posthumously reached number one in March 1971.[8] Her most popular songs include her cover versions of "Piece of My Heart", "Cry Baby", "Down on Me", "Ball and Chain", and "Summertime", as well as her original song "Mercedes Benz", which was her final recording.[9][10]

Joplin died of a heroin overdose in 1970, at the age of 27, after releasing three albums (two with Big Brother and the Holding Company and one solo album). A second solo album, Pearl, was released in January 1971, three months after her death. It reached number one on the Billboard 200. She was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Rolling Stone ranked Joplin number 46 on its 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time"[11] and number 28 on its 2008 list of the "100 Greatest Singers of All Time".[12] NPR dubbed Joplin as the "Queen of Rock" and named her one of the "50 Great Voices".[13] She remains one of the top-selling vocalists in the United States, with Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certifications of 18.5 million albums sold.[14]

  1. ^ Bennett, Gloria (1994). Breaking Through: From Rock to Opera, the Basic Technique of Voice. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-7935-7238-0. Archived from the original on April 30, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
  2. ^ Kemp, Mark. "Janis Joplin Biography". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 20, 2016.
  3. ^ Gaar, Gillian G. (February 9, 2000). "Janis Joplin". Britannica.com. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
  4. ^ "Janis Joplin Collection". Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on March 12, 2012.
  5. ^ "Women Who Rock: Greatest Breakthrough Moments, 1967 Janis Joplin takes a piece of our heart". Rolling Stone. June 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 12, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  6. ^ Yamato, Jen (November 21, 2015). "The Secret Life of Janis Joplin: A Girl, Interrupted". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
  7. ^ Robins, Wayne (2016). A Brief History of Rock, Off the Record. Routledge. pp. 111–112. ISBN 978-1-1359-2346-4.
  8. ^ "Janis Joplin". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 11, 2015.
  9. ^ "The 10 best Janis Joplin songs". The Daily Telegraph. September 23, 2015. Archived from the original on June 21, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
  10. ^ Gallucci, Michael (January 19, 2013). "Top 10 Janis Joplin Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock. Archived from the original on May 4, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
  11. ^ "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Rolling Stone. June 11, 2009. Archived from the original on December 22, 2010. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  12. ^ "100 Greatest Singers of All Time (2008)". Rolling Stone. December 3, 2010. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  13. ^ "Janis Joplin: The Queen of Rock". NPR. Archived from the original on August 19, 2023. Retrieved August 19, 2023.
  14. ^ "Top Artists (Albums)". Recording Industry Association of America. Archived from the original on December 9, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2015.