Janis Joplin

01 Piece Of My Heart (Jerry Ragovoy, Bert Berns)

02 Summertime (DuBose Heyward, George Gershwin)

03 Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) (Jerry Ragovoy, Chip Taylor)

04 Cry Baby (Jerry Ragovoy, Sam Bell)

05 Me and Bobby McGee (Kris Kristofferson, Fred Foster)

06 Down On Me (Eddy Head, arr. Janis Joplin)

Live

07 Get It While You Can (Jerry Ragovoy, Mort Schuman)

08 Bye, Bye Baby (R. Powell St. John, Jr.)

09 Move Over (Janis Joplin)

10 Ball and Chain (Willie Mae Thornton)

Live

1. 32190
   LP CBS
2. 122491
   Columbia 11/1998
3. 65869
   CD, Cassette Legacy Records 31/8/1999
   Available on Mini Disc on Columbia (32168). NOTES: GREATEST HITS spans the length of Janis Joplin's recording career, and features songs recorded with each of her three bands--Big Brother & The Holding Co., the Kozmic Blues Band, and the Full Tilt Boogie Band. Producers: Paul Rothchild, Bob Shad, John Simon, Gabriel Mekler. Reissue producer: Bob Irwin. Originally released on Columbia (32168). Includes liner notes by Jaan Uhelszki. Digitally remastered by Vic Anesini at Sony Music Studios, New York, New York. Drawing inspiration from Bessie Smith and Odetta, Joplin developed a brash, uncompromising vocal style quite unlike accustomed folk madonnas. In 1966 Janis was invited to the Bay Area to front Big Brother And The Holding Company. Their CHEAP THRILLS, a joyous celebration of true psychedelic soul, contained two Joplin 'standards', "Piece Of My Heart" and "Ball And Chain", but she left the group in November 1968. Electric Flag members Mike Bloomfield, Harvey Brooks and Nick Gravenites helped assemble a new act, known as the Kozmic Blues Band. I Got Dem Ol' KOZMIC BLUES Again Mama was coolly received, but the set contained several excellent Joplin vocals, notably "Try," "Maybe" and "Little Girl Blue". The singer subsequently dissolved the band and undertook medical advice for drink/drug abuse. A slimmed-down group, the Full Tilt Boogie Band, was unveiled in May 1970 featuring a tighter, more intimate sound. Sessions for a debut album were all but complete when, on 4 October 1970, Joplin died of a heroin overdose at her Hollywood hotel. The posthumous PEARL proved her most consistent work, with "My Baby," "Cry Baby" and the anthemic "Get It While You Can." The highlight was the chart-topping "Me And Bobby McGee", which allowed Joplin to be both vulnerable and assertive. Janis knew few boundaries, artistic or personal, and her sadly brief catalogue is marked by bare-nerved honesty.
4. PC 32168
   Columbia 7/1973

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