"Janis Joplin Was Such A Pig..."

If you want it to have the ring of truth, you do. My point is that everyone here is defending her because they like her music, not because they actually know anything about her. You can defend her music -- that's fine. But talking about her life and how she felt about things, how she felt about men, etc., is just bullshit when you've never even seen her outside of TV interviews and concerts. Lots of people have their ideas about What Janis Was Like, but in the end, no one but her very close friends know. Maybe she was a lesbian. Maybe not. Probably no one knows for sure, and if anyone does, they're certainly not posting on this forum.

 

Actually, I defended Janis because I do like her music. She was an amazing talent. Nobody can sing like she did. She truly was one of a kind. Also, she wrote some of her own songs, so that's another side of her talent I respect. In addition, the rude dude in the bar was such a total hypocrite: He slept around, yet he was calling Janis a pig? Isn't that a double standard? And on top of that, I didn't believe his story. I doubt he ever met her, well alone slept with her. So he was a liar and a hypocrite.

--QP

 

Well i'm sure people have their reasons for sticking up for her. I mean it's easy to see in her interviews that she was a good person and had a good soul. Good people get the benefit of the doubt. Anyone that's not known for doing or causing harm doesn't deserve to be talked about. Well thats my belief anyway. I do see where your coming from though.

 

It's kind of hard to find, but there's a really cool documentary called: Janis (The Way She Was). It was released around 1975, and has lots of great interviews, concert footage, and does a nice job of showing how she wasn't into the whole star trip thing. She wanted to be taken seriously as a singer. Anyway, I managed to find a copy on video (back in 1995), and it's the closest I think we'll ever come to getting an idea of what she was like as a person. For example, the segment where she goes back home for her 10th annual high school reunion (summer of 1970)--is painful to watch. Her hometown did not welcome her back with open arms, and she almost breaks down while being interviewed. She wasn't even asked to perform. Port Arthur, Texas seemed to resent her for even bothering to show up. When you would think they'd be proud that one of their own had become such an international success. That had to hurt. I mean, we all want love and approval. But she was treated like a freak in her own hometown--right to the very end.

--QP

 

Yeah that's so trippy because the last interview I watched was the one where she was on the Dick Cavette show and she was saying how she was going back to her high school reunion. He even jokes with her saying what if they change the place of the reunion since she was going. That's really shitty though and it makes me sad to see how people can be so close-minded for no reason at all. Anything or anyone unique is an outcast. Thanks for that info though brother i'll have to check that out for sure!

 

The fact remains that the guy was an ass. I can understand the knee-jerk reaction to comments like that towards anyone.

I know about as much about 'that guy' as I do about Janis Joplin but you get a feel about people from their music (Janis) and their words (shallow asshole at bar). That's as much as most of us have to go on.

 

I think that interview is included in the documentary. Then it's followed by Janis attending her high school reunion. Anyway, hope you find and enjoy it. I'll be glad when it becomes available on DVD.

--QP

 

I agree with you: Janis always strived to be real in her music and life. And I think that's why so many people feel a strong connection to her.

--QP

 

Never met her...saw her perform...got an instant chubby every time.

Not only was she a very talented performer, she exuded an irresistible sexuality.
I deeply regret never having made love with her and will always be envious of Pigpen.
(Ron McKernan of Grateful Dead fame and Janis' lover...and drinking buddy)

Zen

 

Ever seen the dvd of Janis at the Monterey Pop - This is Mama Cass watching - I was sitting there with my jaw dropped around my knees. My God - how did she do that!!!????

 

Yes, I love this view too

 

Mr Do-right--did you happen to see Janis at the Hell's Angels party when they rented that big hall in SF? "67,I think.

 

No - tell me about it.
Again - I don't know of any other performer that could blow you away like Janis could - my God - what a talent!!

 

I know.It was downtown SF,I think.There is a building that has an outdoor porch,kind of ,on the second story and has archways that open to the street below.Since the Angels were putting the gig on,there was a whole line of policemen across the street in full riot gear,standing in front of a line of motorcycles(the angel's ,I guess--don't remember)tapping their clubs on their free hands to look like they were READY and bad-ass.The Angels had advertised free beer and it was.I saw them smackin' the shit out of some guys with a keg pump that were getting rowdy and trying to get in front of others to get beer.As you know,it doesn't pay to attract their attention,to put it mildly.Janis,The Young Rascals(Good Lovin')and someone else were playing and of course the show was great.The closest I ever got to Janis was that night when we passed each other and exchanged smiles and hellos.That night, the friend I went with,who'd never smoked a cigarette in his life,saw me light one up,thought it was marijuana and asked me for a hit.He immediately got dizzy and said "wow,man that was fuckin' great---what is it"?He about flipped when I told him it was a cig!We ended up with a couple 'a hippie girls over in Berkely at his place. I lived in Santa Cruz at the time and was pre-hippie.Next night,I wanted to try my new skill saw out so I cut his favorite stuffed chair in two with stuffing and upholstery flying about.(alcohol involved ,of course!) About one hit of windowpane cured me up of acting like that any more and the rest is history.All and all a nice weekend and she looked beautifull that night.

 

Janis is my dream wife.... Atleast I married her and had 3 kids with her, supported by my $100K salary in the Life boardgame.

That dude can go eff himself.

 

Yeah, didn't Janis sing "Ball and Chain" (w/Big Brother)? My jaw dropped, and I was only seeing the performance on DVD!? I envy all the lucky folks that got to see her perform live. :cheers2:

--QP

 

That's awesome! She and Big Brother dedicated Cheap Thrills to the Hell's Angels. I still have an original album I found at a garage sale in 1977: It was in a bin of used records for fifty cents each. The R. Crumb artwork is really cool...

--QP

 

50 cents--good deal!I still have my Janis albums packed up somewhere.

 

I beg youre pardon Zorba, but I knew Janis. We met in 66 on Haight St. in a door way next to Love's. Dont care what you believe, it changes nothing. I wrote of the occation in the forums in the Janis thread a couple of yrs ago.

We talked of Texas,(I'm a texan too) Men and life itself. We shared a bottle of wine in a brown paper bag. She and BB&THC were a frequent in The Haight..Later, BB&THC was our communes signature band and visited quiet often.

Do you think that Janis was unreachable, she was street ppl.. She also had digs at Olema where her and Sonny Barger would shack up. Janis was not stuck on herself, to where she didnot relate to her fans. She was Part Of The Scene. She was friendly and outgoing with reg peeps. She stsyed fuckedup most of the time, but who didnt back then.

I just wanted to clear that up.. that Janis was known by a lot of ppl around the city. The Haight, was a nine block neighborhood. We all shopped the same stores and did our laundry at the same washateria, we walked down the same streets and all sat on Hippie Hill in Golden Gate Park together.

Why would you think that any of the bands would be out of reach to their own brothers and sisters. We were all there for the same reason.. FREEDOM, we were all connected in the Web we called The Haight.

There are still some Elders around that were there and did experience the full throtle of what was happening in The Haight and who was happening with it.

Take a trip over to Back To The Garden to the Good Earth forum and read what the ppl who were there have to say. Get it from the horses mouth. We dont have to make things up, the truth was wierd enough no need to dress it up.

Well that's how it TIS'

Blessings
sh

 

I wish I had been there - but like you - I watched it on dvd. I can't even imagine what it was like in person. It was Ball & Chain - Man - I just got chill bumps - how cool.