My Top 100 Albums: #66 - Janis Joplin, ‘Pearl’
66.
Janis Joplin, ‘Pearl’
Columbia, 1971
One of the earliest and most high-profile members of the infamous “27 Club”, much of Janis Joplin’s character has passed out of the realm of mortals and into pure legend. Eccentric, enigmatic, and a truly generational vocal talent, it is easy to place Janis amongst the saints and spirits: a mythical figure with a supernatural voice. But if there’s one thing that the posthumously-released Pearl proves above all, it’s just how human she was. Whether it’s her heart-wrenching wails on Cry Baby or tremulant, spiteful groans on Me & Bobby McGee, very few vocalists have come close to equalling Janis when it comes to painting human emotion with their voice. Throughout her career, she was experimental and unapologetic, giving everything to her performance in spite of the profound performance anxiety which plagued her and stimulated her struggles with drug addiction. As the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company, her work was often boisterous, carefree and impersonal. Pearl, her magnum opus as a solo artist, is much more intimate and candid, and makes room for her potent vocals to demonstrate their value. Mercedes Benz, a “song of great social and political import”, is the last track that Janis recorded before her untimely death, and is reproduced in its raw, a cappella form on Pearl. This recording is a perfect tribute to Janis’ legacy: her ironic wit, nervous giggles and soulful performance giving a peek behind the curtain at the person behind the stunning voice. The album as a whole demonstrates a cutting-edge creative force just beginning to branch out and show what they are capable of, and makes her tragic death all the more devastating.
Hidden Highlight: Get It While You Can
Move Over
Cry Baby
A Woman Left Lonely
Half Moon
Buried Alive in the Blues
My Baby
Me & Bobby McGee
Mercedes Benz
Trust Me
Get It While You Can