Janis Joplin - Janis (1993) CD-Rip

A host of contradictions--the insufficiency of her collaborators, the spectacular potential of her voice, the inconsistency of her efforts--have left Joplin's historical legacy a tangled mess. The new 3 CD box set, Janis, captures that mess in all its glory but does little to untangle it. Typical of compiler Bob Irwin's decisions was his choice to replace the familiar version of George Gershwin's "Summertime" from the "Cheap Thrills" album by a weaker but unreleased alternate take. There are too many examples of strangled singing by Joplin's male partners in Big Brother and not enough examples of her incendiary live performances. The album begins with Joplin's first-ever recording, a vocal-and-autoharp version of "What Good Can Drinkin' Do" taped in a friend's living room in Austin in '62. That's followed by two unreleased blues recorded with guitarist Jorma Kaukonen in a San Francisco living room in '65 and eight songs from the controversial (and hard-to-find) 1966 debut album, "Big Brother & the Holding Company." "Cheap Thrills" is represented by five cuts, four outtakes and one live version; "I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama!" is represented by seven cuts, one outtake and two live versions; and "Pearl" by eight cuts and three outtakes. Other rarities include a longer spoken introduction to "Mercedes Benz" and two live performances on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

Tracklist
CD 1
1. What Good Can Drinkin' Do (Live) (2:44)
2. Trouble In Mind (3:03)
3. Hesitation Blues (4:05)
4. Easy Rider (2:24)
5. Coo Coo (2:05)
6. Down On Me (2:06)
7. The Last Time (2:17)
8. All Is Loneliness (2:19)
9. Call On Me (3:37)
10. Women Is Losers (Live) (5:08)
11. Intruder (2:32)
12. Light Is Faster Than Sound (2:32)
13. Bye, Bye Baby (2:39)
14. Farewell Song (4:24)
15. Flower In The Sun (Live) (3:13)
16. Misery 'n (4:09)
17. Road Block (Live) (6:12)
18. Ball And Chain (Live) (8:07)

CD 2
1. Combination Of The Two (5:51)
2. I Need A Man To Love (4:52)
3. Piece Of My Heart (4:28)
4. Turtle Blues (4:30)
5. Oh, Sweet Mary (4:16)
6. Catch Me Daddy (4:56)
7. Summertime (4:07)
8. Kozmic Blues (4:24)
9. Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) (Live) (3:58)
10. One Good Man (4:11)
11. Dear Landlord (2:33)
12. To Love Somebody (5:19)
13. As Good As You've Been In This World (5:27)
14. Little Girl Blue (3:51)
15. Work Me, Lord (6:38)
16. Raise Your Hand (Live) (2:18)
17. May Be (Live) (4:06)

CD 3
1. Me And Bobby McGee (Demo Version) (4:48)
2. One Night Stand (Alternate Take) (3:10)
3. Tell Mama (Live) (5:48)
4. Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) (Live) (8:16)
5. Cry Baby (4:59)
6. Move Over (3:42)
7. A Woman Left Lonely (3:29)
8. Half Moon (3:53)
9. Happy Birthday, John (Happy Trails) (1:10)
10. My Baby (3:45)
11. Mercedes Benz (2:14)
12. Trust Me (3:17)
13. Get It While You Can (3:25)
14. Me And Bobby McGee (Demo Version) (4:29)