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Big Brother & The Holding Company
Janis Jopin
 

Trips Festival(1/21-23/66)
Hard-lovin', hard-drinkin', blues-singin' gal from Port Arthur, Texas joins the band in the spring.
Would become a super nova that burned out way too soon.
All Is Loneliness / Blindman
Moondog (2:17) / Albin (1:59)
Mainstream 657, 9/66

 
Down On Me / Call On Me
Joplin (2:25) / Andrew (2:27)
Mainstream 662, 3/67 BB

 
Monterey International Pop Festival(6/17, 18/67)
Festival Of Growing Things(7/2/67)
Bye Bye Baby / Intruder
St John (2:29) / Joplin (2:27)
Mainstream 666, 8/67

 

Big Brother & The Holding Company
Mainstream 6099
8/67 BB [UK: 11/67]
Back Cover


 
Reissue Cover

Side One
Bye Bye Baby St. John 2:29
Easy Rider Gurley 2:24
Intruder Joplin 2:27
Light Is Faster Than Sound Albin 2:27
Call On Me Andrew 2:27
Side Two
Women Is Losers Joplin 2:00
Blindman Albin-Andrew-Getz-Gurley-Joplin 1:59
Down On Me Joplin 2:25
Caterpillar Albin 2:14
All Is Loneliness Hardin 2:17
----------------------------------
Janis Joplin-vocals
Sam Houston Andrew-guitar, vocal
James Gurley-guitar
Pete Albin-bass, vocal
Dave Getz-drums
§Cover Art-Lonshein
Produced by: Bob Shad

Note: In 1968, Columbia reissued this first album, with Coo Coo and The Last Time added (one per side)
 

Women Is Losers / Light Is Faster Than Sound
Joplin (2:00) / Albin (2:27)
Mainstream 675, 12/67

 
Coo Coo / The Last Time
Albin (1:55) / Joplin (2:11)
Mainstream 678, 2/68 BB

 

 ➜ Live: 4/12-13, Winterland; released 1998: Live At Winterland '68 

Northern California Folk-Rock Festival(5/18/68)
Petulia(6/10/68)
Some rare live clips

 ➜ Live: 6/23, Carousel Ballroom; released 2012: Live At The Carousel Ballroom 1968 

Newport Folk Festival(7/27/68)

Cheap Thrills
Columbia KCS-9750
8/12/68  #1  RS500 [UK: 9/68]
Back Cover

 
Inside Cover

 
UK Back Cover


No gatefold for the UK.

Playin' An' Singin' Fer Yew The Following Tunes...

Side One
Combination Of The Two Andrew 5:45
I Need A Man To Love Andrew-Joplin 4:56
Summertime Gershwin-Gershwin-Heyward 3:59
Piece Of My Heart Berns-Ragavoy 4:12
Side Two
Turtle Blues Joplin 4:21
Oh, Sweet Mary Albin-Andrew-Getz-Gurley-Joplin 4:16
Ball And Chain† Thornton 9:30
----------------------------------
Janis Joplin-vocals
Sam Houston Andrew-guitar, vocals (Combination Of The Two and Oh, Sweet Mary)
James Gurley-guitar
Pete Albin-bass
Dave Getz-drums
with:
John Simon-piano (Turtle Blues)
§Cover Art-R Crumb
Produced by: John Simon

Note: †Cover states live material recorded at the Fillmore Auditorium, however only Ball And Chain is live, and was
recorded at Winterland (probably Apr), with a new guitar solo added in the studio
The other two "live" tracks were done in the studio and "Turtle Blues" ambiance was recorded at Barney’s Beanery.
The album was to be called Sex, Dope and Cheap Thrills, but was vetoed by Columbia Records.
 

Piece Of My Heart³ / Turtle Blues
Berns-Ragavoy (2:43) / Joplin (4:26)
Columbia 44626, 8/68 T20

 
Joplin to solo work, below (taking Sam with her and forming Kozmic Blues Band...)
Debuts new band at Fillmore East Feb 11-12, 1969 (after "preview" in Boston) to mostly bad reviews.
Monterey Pop(12/26/68)
First and best rockumentary on festivals
The Ed Sullivan Show: 3/16/69,
Janis: Raise Your Hand, Maybe
4/21/69: Royal Albert Hall, London
Janis & Kozmic Blues Band, Yes was supporting band
June 7, 1969: Drinkin' and ballin' buddies Pigpen & Pearl stun the crowd at the Fillmore West with
a 20 minute version of Lovelight (Youtube link).
Mississippi River Festival(7/1/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
Atlanta International Pop Festival(7/5/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
Atlantic City Pop Festival(8/3/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
Woodstock Music & Art Fair(8/16/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
Texas International Pop Festival(8/30/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
New Orleans Pop Festival(8/31/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band

I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again
Columbia CS-9913
9/11/69 T20 [UK: 10/69]
Back Cover

 
Cover With Sticker

Side One
Try (Just a Little Bit Harder) Ragavoy-Taylor 3:57
Maybe Barrett 3:41
One Good Man Joplin 4:12
As Good As You've Been To This World Gravenites 5:27
Side Two
To Love Somebody Gibb-Gibb 5:14
Kozmic Blues Joplin-Mekler 4:24
Little Girl Blue Rodgers-Hart 3:51
Work Me, Lord Gravenites 6:45
----------------------------------
Janis Joplin-vocals
with:
Kozmic Blues Band
Sam Andrew-guitar
Richard Kermode-organ
Gabriel Mekler-organ
Brad Campbell-bass
Maury Baker-drums
Lonnie Castille-drums
Cornelius "Snooky" Flowers-baritone sax
Terry Clements-tenor sax
Luis Gasca-trumpet
and:
Mike Bloomfield-guitar (One Good Man, Work Me Lord, Maybe)
§Cover Photo-Bruce Steinberg, sticker art by R Crumb
Produced by: Gabriel Mekler

 

Kosmic Blues³ / Little Girl Blue
Joplin-Mekler (3:45) / Rodgers-Hart (3:48)
Columbia 45023, 11/69 BB

 
Palm Beach Music & Art Festival(11/29/69) Janis & Kozmic Blues Band
This Is Tom Jones: Janis & Tom belt out Hold Your Hand, 12/4/69
Joplin breaks up Kozmic Blues Band and goes to Brazil to vacation and rest, returns in Spring 70 to form Full Tilt
Boogie Band; meanwhile, Sam goes back to Big Brother...
Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) / One Good Man
Ragavoy-Taylor (3:54) / Joplin (4:14)
Columbia 45080, 1/70

 
Woodstock(3/26/70)
From Richie to Jimi—3 days of music, mud, and meandering
Maybe / Work Me, Lord
Barrett (3:38) / Gravenites (6:34)
Columbia 45128, 4/70

 
Festival Express(6/27-7/5/70) Janis & Full Tilt Boogie Band
Summer Festival For Peace(8/6/70) Janis & Full Tilt Boogie Band
Note: Bittersweet show for Pearl: was going to re-unite with Big Brother (no show), sings duet with Dionne Warwicke, and has great
show with her new band. No video or audio exists of this (or any other performers) and she'd be gone in two months.
 

Janis Joplin 10/4/70, Los Angeles, drug overdose
Just after finishing the album that would then be titled in her honor.

Be A Brother
Columbia KC-30222
11/70 BB [UK: 1/71]
Back Cover

Side One
Keep On Andrew-Albin-Getz-Gurley 4:17
Joseph's Coat Cipollina-Gravenites 3:07
Home On The Strange Arr Albin-Andrew 2:11
Someday Andrew 2:14
Heartache People Gravenites 6:32
Side Two
Sunshine Baby Andrew-Albin-Getz-Gurley-Schallock 3:29
Mr Natural Andrew 3:28
Funkie Jim Andrew-Albin-Getz-Gravenites-Gurley-Schallock 3:42
I'll Change Your Flat Tire, Merle Gravenites 3:10
Be A Brother Gravenites 2:59
----------------------------------
Nick Gravenites-vocals
Sam Andrew-guitar, vocals
Pete Albin-guitar, bass
Dave Shallock-guitar, vocals
James Gurley-bass, guitar
Dave Getz-drums, piano
with:
Richard Greene-violin (Heartache People, I'll Change Your Flat Tire, Merle)
Kathy McDonald-vocals (I'll Change Your Flat Tire, Merle)
Janis Joplin-chorus vocal (Mr Natural) [uncredited]
Mike Finnigan-keyboard
Mark Naftalin-keyboard
Tower of Power-horns (Funkie Jim)
§Cover Art-Bob Seidemann
Produced by: Nick Gravenites

 

Keep On / Home On The Strange
Andrew-Albin-Getz-Gurley (3:22) / arr Albin-Andrew (2:11)
Columbia 45284, 1/71

 

Pearl
Columbia C-30322
1/11/71  #1  RS500 [UK: 1/71] T20
Back Cover

Side One
Move Over Joplin 3:40
Cry Baby Meade-Russell 3:55
A Woman Left Lonely Oldham-Penn 3:26
Half Moon Hall 3:50
Buried Alive In The Blues Gravenites 2:23
Side Two
My Baby Ragavoy-Shuman 3:43
Me And Bobby McGee Foster-Kristofferson 4:28
Mercedes Benz(Janis solo) Joplin-McClure 1:45
Trust Me Womack 3:14
Get It While You Can Ragavoy-Shuman 3:22
----------------------------------
Janis Joplin-vocals, acoustic guitar (Mercedes Benz)
with:
Full Tilt Boogie Band
John Till-guitar
Ken Pearson-Hammond organ
Richard Bell-piano
Bobbie Hall-conga/bongos
Brad Campbell-bass
Clark Pierson-drums
and:
Bobby Womack-acoustic guitar (Trust Me)
Sandra Crouch-tambourine
Phil Badella-vocals
John Cook-vocals
Vince Mitchell-vocals
§Cover Photo-Barry Feinstein
Produced by: Paul Rothchild

 

Me And Bobby McGee³ / Half Moon
Foster-Kristofferson (4:09) / Hall (3:50)
Columbia 45314, 1/71  #1 

 
Cry Baby / Mercedes Benz
Meade-Russell (3:55) / Joplin-McClure (1:45)
Columbia 45379, 4/71 BB

 
Get It While You Can / Move Over
Ragavoy-Shuman (3:23) / Joplin (3:40)
Columbia 45433, 8/71 BB

 

How Hard It Is
Columbia KC-30738
8/71 BB [UK: 8/71]
Back Cover

 
Inside Cover

Side One
How Hard It Is†‡ Andrew-Getz 4:16
You've Been Talkin' 'Bout Me Baby‡ Hirsch-Garnett-Rivera 3:26
House On Fire† Getz-Rappaport 3:54
Black Widow Spider†‡ Andrew 3:33
Last Band On Side One Andrew-Rosco 2:06
Side Two
Nu Boogaloo Jam† Andrew-Nudelman 3:23
Maui Andrew-Rosco 3:23
Shine On‡ Albin-Andrew-Getz 5:18
Buried Alive In The Blues‡ Gravenites 4:05
Promise Her Anything But Give Her Arpeggio† Shallock 3:52
----------------------------------
Sam Andrew-vocals, guitar
Peter Albin-guitar, bass, mandolin, vibraslap (Last Band On Side One)
James Gurley-bass
David Getz-drums, piano, marimba, percussion
with:
Kathy McDonald-vocals (Black Widow Spider)
Nick Gravenites-vocals (Buried Alive In The Blues)
David Schallock-lead guitar†
Mike Finnigan-vocals, organ, piano‡
Janis Joplin-vocals (Buried Alive In The Blues) [uncredited]
Tower of Power-horns (Nu Boogaloo Jam, Buried Alive In The Blues)
§Cover Art-Dennis Nolan
Produced by: Roscoe & Roy Segal

 

Black Widow Spider / Nu Boogaloo Jam³
Andrew (3:33) / Andrew-Nudelman (2:38)
Columbia 45502, 11/71

 
End of the line for Big Brother in 72. Reformed in 87 with rotating members.
 

 

The power of "Pearl" live can sometimes make your hair stand-on-end

Culling through hours of tapes, Elliott Mazer compiled this two-record set of Janis. Record one with the sorta sloppy, but always entertaining Big Brother & The Holding Company recorded at their various San Francisco stomping grounds (and one legendary dance hall in Detroit). Record two is taken from the great liquor-fueled train ride in the summer of 1970, with the slick Full Tilt Boogie Band.

Since 1972, many, many CDs of Joplin live have been released. Some should go straight to the recycle bin. This set is still pretty good.


In Concert
Columbia C2X-31160
5/72 T20 [UK: 7/72] UK
Back Cover

 
Inside Cover

Record One: Big Brother & The Holding Company
Side One
Down On Me Joplin 3:05
Bye, Bye Baby St John 4:29
All Is Loneliness Hardin 5:44
Piece Of My Heart Berns-Ragavoy 4:19
Side Two
Road Block Albin-Joplin 2:53
Flower In The Sun Andrew 3:07
Summertime Gershwin-Gershwin-Heyward 4:31
Ego Rock Gravenites-Joplin 8:32
Record Two: Full Tilt Boogie Band
Side Three
Half Moon Hall 4:36
Kozmic Blues Joplin-Mekler 6:05
Move Over Joplin 5:09
Side Four
Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) Ragavoy-Taylor 8:13
Get It While You Can Ragavoy-Shuman 7:04
Ball And Chain Thornton 9:15
----------------------------------
Record One with Big Brother & The Holding Company
Janis Joplin-vocals
Sam Andrew-guitar, vocals
James Gurley-guitar
Peter Albin-bass
Dave Getz-drums
Recorded:
March 2, 1968, at The Grande Ballroom, Detroit: Down On Me, Piece Of My Heart
April 12, 1968, at Winterland, San Francisco: Bye, Bye Baby
June 23, 1968, The Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco: Road Block, Flower In The Sun, Summertime
and from a reunion concert:
with:
Nick Gravenites-vocal (Ego Rock)
April 4, 1970, Fillmore West, San Francisco: All Is Loneliness, Ego Rock
 
Record Two with Full Tilt Boogie Band
Janis Joplin-vocals
John Till-guitar
Richard Bell-piano
Ken Pearson-organ
Brad Campbell-bass
Clark Pierson-drums
Recorded:
recorded during Festival Express
6/28/70, Toronto: Half Moon, Kozmic Blues
7/4/70, Calgary: Move Over, Try (Just A Little Bit Harder), Get It While You Can, Ball And Chain
§Cover Photo-David Gahr
Compiled by: Elliott Mazer

 


Links!

Big Brother & The Holding Company
Official Janis Joplin Web site
Fan Janis Joplin Web siteHighly recommended!

 


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