Big Brother & the Holding Company (album)

Last updated
Big Brother & the Holding Company
Big Brother & the Holding Company debut.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 23, 1967 [1]
RecordedDecember 12–14, 1966, Los Angeles
Genre Psychedelic rock
Length23:51
Label
Producer Bob Shad
Janis Joplin
Big Brother and the Holding Company chronology
Big Brother & the Holding Company
(1967)
Cheap Thrills
(1968)

Big Brother & the Holding Company is the debut album by American rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company, with Janis Joplin, their lead singer. Recorded during three days in December 1966 for Mainstream Records, it was released on August 23, 1967, shortly after the band's major success at the Monterey Pop Festival. Columbia Records took over the band's contract and re-released the album, adding two extra tracks, and putting Joplin's name on the cover. Several tracks on the album were released as singles, the most successful being "Down on Me" on its second release, in 1968. [2]

Contents

Recording

The band signed to Bob Shad's local record label Mainstream Records while stranded in Chicago after a promoter ran out of money when their concerts did not attract the expected attendance. [3] [4] Initial recordings took place in Chicago in September 1966, but these were not satisfactory, and the band returned to San Francisco. [5] The band recorded the tracks "Blindman" and "All Is Loneliness" in Los Angeles, and these were released by Mainstream as a single, which did not sell well. [5] After playing at a "happening" at Stanford in early December 1966, the band traveled to Los Angeles to record 10 tracks between 12 and 14 December 1966, produced by Bob Shad. [5]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]

The album was released by Mainstream Records in August 1967, shortly after the band's major success at the Monterey Pop Festival. Two tracks, "Coo Coo" and "The Last Time", were released separately as a single, while the tracks from the previous single, "Blindman" and "All Is Loneliness", were added to the remaining eight tracks. [5] When Columbia took over the band's contract and re-released the album, they included "Coo Coo" and "The Last Time", and put "featuring Janis Joplin" on the cover. The album has been reissued in various formats several times since 1967. [7]

The album was a minor success, peaking at number 60 and almost producing a Top 40 hit with the song "Down on Me". In a retrospective review for Allmusic, Joe Viglione feels the production by Bob Shad is weak, though the material and the performances are respectable. [8]

Track listing

1967 Mainstream Records release
Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bye, Bye Baby" Powell St. John 2:37
2."Easy Rider" James Gurley 2:23
3."Intruder" Janis Joplin 2:27
4."Light Is Faster Than Sound"Peter Albin2:30
5."Call on Me" Sam Andrew 2:32
Side B
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Women Is Losers"Janis Joplin2:03
7."Blindman"Peter Albin, Andrew, David Getz, Gurley, Joplin2:23
8."Down on Me"Traditional; arranged by Janis Joplin2:04
9."Caterpillar"Peter Albin2:18
10."All Is Loneliness" Moondog 2:30
1970 Columbia records release
Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bye, Bye Baby" Powell St. John 2:37
2."Easy Rider" James Gurley 2:23
3."Intruder" Janis Joplin 2:27
4."Light Is Faster Than Sound"Peter Albin2:30
5."Call on Me" Sam Andrew 2:32
6."Coo Coo" (Single)Albin1:56
Side B
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Women Is Losers"Janis Joplin2:03
8."Blindman"Peter Albin, Andrew, David Getz, Gurley, Joplin2:23
9."Down on Me"Traditional; arranged by Janis Joplin2:04
10."Caterpillar"Peter Albin2:18
11."All Is Loneliness" Moondog 2:30
12."The Last Time" (Single)Janis Joplin2:15
1999 Columbia, Legacy release
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Bye, Bye Baby" Powell St. John 2:37
2."Easy Rider" James Gurley 2:23
3."Intruder" Janis Joplin 2:27
4."Light Is Faster Than Sound"Peter Albin2:30
5."Call on Me" Sam Andrew 2:32
6."Women Is Losers"Janis Joplin2:03
7."Blindman"Peter Albin, Andrew, David Getz, Gurley, Joplin2:23
8."Down on Me"Traditional; arranged by Janis Joplin2:04
9."Caterpillar"Peter Albin2:18
10."All Is Loneliness" Moondog 2:30
11."Coo Coo" (Single - Bonus track)Albin1:56
12."The Last Time" (Single - Bonus track)Janis Joplin2:15
13."Call On Me" (Bonus Track - Alternate Take)Sam Andrew2:41
14."Bye, Bye Baby" (Bonus Track - Alternate Take)Powell St. John2:39

Personnel

Big Brother and the Holding Company

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janis Joplin</span> American singer (1943–1970)

Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals, as well as her "electric" stage presence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Brother and the Holding Company</span> American rock band

Big Brother and the Holding Company is an American rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1965 as part of the same psychedelic music scene that produced the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Jefferson Airplane. After some initial personnel changes, the band became well known with the lineup of vocalist Janis Joplin, guitarists Sam Andrew and James Gurley, bassist Peter Albin, and drummer Dave Getz. Their second album Cheap Thrills, released in 1968, is considered one of the masterpieces of the psychedelic sound of San Francisco; it reached number one on the Billboard charts, and was ranked number 338 in Rolling Stone's the 500 greatest albums of all time. The album is also listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

<i>Pearl</i> (Janis Joplin album) 1971 studio album by Janis Joplin and the Full Tilt Boogie Band

Pearl is the second and final solo studio album by American singer Janis Joplin, released on January 11, 1971 by Columbia Records, three months after her death on October 4, 1970. It was the final album with her direct participation, and the only Joplin album recorded with the Full Tilt Boogie Band, her final touring unit. It peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, holding that spot for nine weeks. It has been certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album is ranked number 259 on Rolling Stone magazine's 2020 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

Thor's Hammer, or Hljómar, was an Icelandic rock band primarily active in the 1960s. Outside of Iceland, they are known among music collectors for their rare releases on Parlophone, sung in English and recorded in London for export. The most famous of these is the 1966 EP Umbarumbamba, regarded as one of the rarest released records in the world and known to fetch prices into the thousands of dollars when a copy surfaces. Their style can be described as garage rock, fuzz rock, and freakbeat, with noticeable influences from both The Who and The Beatles.

<i>Cheap Thrills</i> (Big Brother and the Holding Company album) 1968 studio album by Big Brother and the Holding Company

Cheap Thrills is the second studio album by American rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company, released on August 12, 1968, by Columbia Records. Cheap Thrills was the band's final album with lead singer Janis Joplin before she left to begin a solo career. For Cheap Thrills, the band and producer John Simon incorporated recordings of crowd noises to give the impression of a live album, for which it was subsequently mistaken by many listeners. Only "Ball and Chain" was actually recorded in concert at the Winterland Ballroom.

James Martin Gurley was an American musician. He is best known as the principal lead guitarist of Big Brother and the Holding Company, a psychedelic/acid rock band from San Francisco which was fronted by singer Janis Joplin from 1966 to 1968.

Sam Houston Andrew III was an American rock musician, singer, songwriter, composer, artist and founding member and guitarist of Big Brother and the Holding Company. During his career as musician and composer, Andrew had three platinum albums and two hit singles. His songs have been used in numerous major motion picture soundtracks and documentaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piece of My Heart</span> 1967 single by Erma Franklin

"Piece of My Heart" is a romantic soul song written by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns, originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967. Franklin's single peaked in December 1967 at number 10 on the Billboard Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart in the United States.

Mainstream Records is an American record company and independent record label founded by producer Bob Shad in 1964.

<i>I Got Dem Ol Kozmic Blues Again Mama!</i> 1969 studio album by Janis Joplin

I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama! is the debut solo and third studio album overall by American singer-songwriter Janis Joplin, released on September 11, 1969. It was the first album which Joplin recorded after leaving her former band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, and the only solo album released during her lifetime.

<i>How Hard It Is</i> 1971 studio album by Big Brother and the Holding Company

How Hard It Is is the fourth and final studio album by Big Brother and the Holding Company, released in August 1971. The track "Buried Alive in the Blues" was originally written by guest singer Nick Gravenites for Janis Joplin who died before she could record her vocal. It was included as an instrumental by the Full Tilt Boogie Band on her final album Pearl released the year before.

Robert "Bob" Shad was an American record producer and record label owner. He produced the first album by Big Brother and the Holding Company. Among his labels were Time Records, Brent Records, and Mainstream Records.

<i>Janis</i> (1993 album) 1993 compilation album by Janis Joplin

Janis is a compilation album by Janis Joplin, released in 1993. The album features a broad overview of her career from her first recording in December 1962, to the last songs she recorded during the sessions for Pearl just a few days before her death in October 1970.

Tiffany Shade was an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio. They broke up in 1968. They recorded and released one self-titled LP in December, 1967 and two singles from the same album on the Mainstream label in early 1968 prior to their demise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathi McDonald</span> American blues and rock singer and songwriter (1948-2012)

Kathryn Marie "Kathi" McDonald was an American blues and rock singer and songwriter. As a teenager she sang with different bands around the Pacific Northwest before she was discovered by Ike Turner. She sang as an Ikette with Ike & Tina Turner and eventually replaced Janis Joplin as the front woman of Big Brother and Holding Company. McDonald became a background vocalist for various artists, including Leon Russell, Joe Cocker, The Rolling Stones, Freddie King, and Long John Baldry. She also recorded as a solo artist and fronted her own band Kathi McDonald & Friends.

<i>18 Essential Songs</i> 1995 compilation album by Janis Joplin

18 Essential Songs is a collection of songs recorded throughout Janis Joplin's career released in 1995 by Columbia Records. It included songs from her solo career as well as with Big Brother & the Holding Company. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified it as gold on April 12, 1999.

<i>Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968</i> 2012 live album by Big Brother and the Holding Company featuring Janis Joplin

Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968 is a live album by Big Brother and the Holding Company featuring Janis Joplin. The album was recorded by Owsley Stanley in 1968, and released on 12 March 2012 through Columbia and Legacy, on the one-year anniversary of his death in an automobile accident. He had been supervising the development and release of this album right up to the time of his death on March 12, 2011. The album is dedicated to him, and set to the specifications Stanley set prior to his death.

<i>The Lost Tapes</i> (Big Brother and the Holding Company album) 2008 compilation album by Big Brother and the Holding Company

The Lost Tapes is a two-disc compilation album by the San Francisco psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company with Janis Joplin as lead singer. The material on the first disc consists of a show at The Matrix on January 31, 1967 that is previously unreleased. The second disc consists primarily of a show at The California Hall on July 28, 1966 that had first seen release in 1984 as Cheaper Thrills, with the final track "Hall Of The Mountain King" taken from a KQED TV broadcast on April 25, 1967.

<i>Cheaper Thrills</i> 1984 live album by Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company

Cheaper Thrills is a live album by Big Brother and the Holding Company with Janis Joplin as their lead singer. Recorded live at one of their earliest concerts in San Francisco at California Hall on July 28, 1966, it includes the band's rendition of the song "Let the Good Times Roll," which was ten years old at the time. The recording of this concert became officially available to the public for the first time in 1984. The LP was originally released by Rhino Records as RNLP 121. Big Brother drummer David Getz produced and contributed liner notes to the back cover with his personal reminiscences of the circumstances leading to the formation and success of the band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bohemian Vendetta</span> American rock band

Bohemian Vendetta was an American garage rock and psychedelic band from Long Island, New York, who were active from 1966 to 1968. In addition to recording two officially released singles and several previously unissued demos, they cut a self-titled album, Bohemian Vendetta, released by Mainstream Records in 1968.

References

  1. "Janis Joplin". RockHall.com. Janis Joplin Highlights. Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  2. Ben Graham (26 June 2015). A Gathering of Promises: The Battle for Texas's Psychedelic Music. John Hunt Publishing. p. 107. ISBN   9781782790938.
  3. Friedman, Myra (27 Apr 2011). Buried Alive: The Biography of Janis Joplin. Crown/Archetype. p. 79. ISBN   9780307790521.
  4. Moskowitz, David V. (10 Nov 2015). The 100 Greatest Bands of All Time: A Guide to the Legends Who Rocked the World. ABC-CLIO. p. 66. ISBN   9781440803406.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Chris Salewicz (28 Mar 2013). 27: Janis Joplin. Hachette UK. p. 17. ISBN   9781780875415.
  6. Viglione, Joe. "Big Brother & the Holding Company Featuring Janis Joplin - Big Brother & the Holding Company Featuring Janis Joplin". AllMusic . Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  7. "Big Brother & The Holding Company – Big Brother & The Holding Company". discogs.com. Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
  8. Joe Viglione. "Big Brother & the Holding Company Featuring Janis Joplin". allmusic.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-09. Retrieved 2015-08-30.