| Share on Facebook |
Janis Joplin Biography
Singer
Photos ( See all 14 )
Janis Joplin was a middle-class white girl who sang the blues with the San Francisco band Big Brother and The Holding Company. A local sensation, they became nationally famous after their performance at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival (organized by John Phillips). In 1968 they had a hit with "Piece Of My Heart." Joplin died of a heroin overdose in a Los Angeles hotel in 1970, two weeks after the death of fellow rock star Jimi Hendrix. In 1971 her posthumous album Pearl, featuring a new backup band, had a number one hit with "Me And Bobby McGee." She lived fast and died young, an American icon and souvenir of the 1960s.
Extra credit: The 1979 film The Rose starred Bette Midler as a character based on Joplin.
Joplin appears with Natalie Wood in the loop Autopsy by Noguchi.
Blog posts mentioning Janis Joplin:
Four Good Links
Janis Joplin Official Site
From her estate, a wide-ranging collection of Joplin info
RollingStone.Com: Janis Joplin
Joplin bio and more from the mag that was there when it all happened
In the Quiet Morning
Musical remembrances reprinted in a fan tribute to Joplin
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Sturdy Joplin bio and timeline, plus links to other stars in the HOF
Vital Stats
Birth
Birthplace
Death
4 October 1970
(drug overdose, age 27)
Best Known As
1960s blues/rock singer of "Me and Bobby McGee"