Janis Joplin

Born January 19, 1943, in Port Arthur, Texas, Joplin grew up listening to blues legends including Bessie Smith, Leadbelly, Big Mama Thornton, and Odetta. She moved to San Francisco in 1963, eventually settling in Haight-Ashbury, where she recorded a session with Jorma Kaukonen.

In 1966, at the invitation of Chet Helms, Joplin joined Big Brother & The Holding Company as lead singer. The group signed with Mainstream Records and later with manager Albert Grossman in November 1967. Their 1968 release became a landmark album following her acclaimed performances at the Monterey Pop Festival, New York's Anderson Theater, and appearances with Jimi Hendrix and on the Dick Cavett Show.

After leaving the band in December 1968, Joplin formed the Kozmic Blues Band, releasing an album in September 1969. She subsequently assembled the Full Tilt Boogie Band, which began touring in May 1970. Working with producer Paul A. Rothchild, she recorded new material at Sunset Recording Studios] in Los Angeles in September 1970, including the iconic "Mercedes Benz."

Joplin died on October 4, 1970, in Los Angeles from a heroin overdose. Her unfinished recordings were posthumously compiled into an album released in 1971, which became the best-selling record of her career. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.