Janis Joplin 50 Years -- October 4, 2020

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Janis Joplin died 50 years ago today, on 04-October-1970.  I remember the story on the news.  I always looked forward to hearing her music on the radio. 

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I remember seeing the cover of Big Brother and the Holding Company's Cheap Thrills. It may have been my first exposure to R Crumb. 

Years later I read an article that said she had auditioned for San Francisco traditional jazz band leader Turk Murphy.  He liked her voice but he didn't want to hire a "beatnik."  It would have been interesting.  This is not the original article, but it has some nice details about Janis singing some songs with Dick Oxtot.  Oxtot recommended her to Turk Murphy: http://jazzhotbigstep.com/428723.html

Janis Joplin 75 -- January 19, 2018

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Janis Joplin would have been 75 years old today.  She was born on 19-January-1943.  I remember when she died in 1970.  I always looked forward to hearing her music on the radio.

Years later I read an article that said she had auditioned for San Francisco traditional jazz band leader Turk Murphy.  He liked her voice but he didn't want to hire a "beatnik."  It would have been interesting.  This is not the original article, but it has some nice details about Janis singing some songs with Dick Oxtot.  Oxtot recommended her to Turk Murphy: http://jazzhotbigstep.com/428723.html

Monterey Pop, 50 Years -- June 16, 2017

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50 years ago today, on 16-June-1967, the three day Monterey International Pop Music Festival began.  It featured nationally-known acts like Jimi Hendrix, Otis Redding, the Who and Simon and Garfunkel, but was mainly staged to introduce San Francisco bands to the world.  Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company, the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead made an impression.  Documentarian DA Pennebaker filmed the event. Monterey Pop was released the next year.