Janis Joplin was an artist gifted with an extremely captivating and beautiful husky voice; an emotional and driven sound which glows when placed over the top of a psychedelic rock beat or a blues guitar riff. Go and listen to 'Kozmic Blues' or 'Work Me Lord' to get a true understanding of how enchanting her voice really is. Though it was the singer's live performances that made her stand out from the average musician and develop such a devoted fan base. Her slot at the original Woodstock concert in 1969 was one of the most talked about at the event and gained 'Pearl', a nickname used by friends, her legendary status. She shortly followed Woodstock with very well received shows at Madison Square Garden and on the Festival Express Tour. Unfortunately, Joplin had a very strong addiction to heroin. If you watch any of the footage from her Woodstock performance, you will see that she is clearly under the influence. Perhaps drugs added to the energy of her performance, perhaps they did not; either way they were the eventual reason for her short life span. Joplin was highly respected both by fans and the music community, with a whole host of tribute songs being released in her honour; notable mentions being The Mamas & The Papas track 'Pearl' and Leonard Cohen's 'Chelsea Hotel #2'.
A wrestling enthusiast, currently educating the youth of Taiwan English; there are now a bunch of Asian kids running around with Yorkshire accents. Read about that trip and others at dragonstravel.com.
