Though her family was middle-class, as a teenager she showed signs of the unconventional woman she would become. Joplin was born January 19, 1943, in Port Arthur, Texas. ” Renowned for her performance at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, and later for her solo appearance at the Woodstock festival in 1969, Joplin nevertheless failed to achieve a chart-topping single until her rendition of country composer Kris Kristofferson ’s “Me and Bobby McGee ” was released posthumously in 1971. Compared to music greats like blues artist Bessie Smith and soul singer Aretha Franklin, most critics agree that she was the main reason for the group ’s success with songs like “Piece of My Heart ” and “Summertime. Janis Joplin, one of the most influential women singers of the late 1960s, first came to the attention of rock fans as the vocalist for the San Francisco, California-based band, Big Brother and the Holding Company.
