Pick a Day

Janis Joplin is born in Port Arthur, Texas.

Janis Joplin makes her singing debut with Big Brother & the Holding Company at San Francisco's Avalon Ballroom.

Janis Joplin arrives in San Francisco to join Big Brother & the Holding Company as their new lead singer.

As a thank you to the citizens of San Francisco who helped raise bail money for two of their members who were jailed the previous day during a parade, the Hells Angels stage a concert at Golden Gate Park with performances by the Grateful Dead and Big Brother & the Holding Company (lead singer: Janis Joplin). The event is christened "The New Year's Wail."

Questioning the band's commitment, Janis Joplin announces (through her manager, Albert Grossman) that she will be leaving Big Brother & the Holding Company. Her new group, The Kozmic Blues Band, doesn't last long, and she eventually records as a solo artist.

Janis Joplin appears on TV for the first time when she performs on the variety show Hollywood Palace with Big Brother & the Holding Company.

Janis Joplin's manager Albert Grossman approaches Mike Bloomfield and Nick Gravenites about creating her new backup group, which becomes the Kozmic Blues Band.

Janis Joplin makes her solo concert debut in Memphis at an event for the Stax/Volt record label. The Stax house band Booker T. & The MG's also plays.

Janis Joplin lands on the cover of Newsweek with the headline, "Janis Joplin: Rebirth of Blues."More

It's Day 2 of Woodstock, featuring performances by the Grateful Dead, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Janis Joplin and Santana. One memorable moment comes during The Who's set, when the activist Abbie Hoffman interrupts their set and grabs the microphone. After saying a few words about fellow activist John Sinclair, Pete Townshend hits him with his guitar.

Janis Joplin calls out a policeman at her concert in Tampa, Florida, when he uses a bullhorn to yell at audience members who have left their seats. "Don't F--k with those people!," she screams. "What are you so uptight about? Did you buy a $5 ticket?" The cop tells Joplin that she needs to tell the crowd to remain seated, and she replies, "I'm not telling them s--t." After more stage ranting where Joplin threatens to kick his face in, she is arrested after the show, charged with using "vulgar and indecent language." After posting a $504 bail, the charges are later dropped and she pays a $200 fine.

Janis Joplin get tattoos on her wrist and heart, the one on her chest reading "One For The Boys."

At Harvard, Janis Joplin performs what will be her final concert, ending with a version of Gershwin's "Summertime."

Enjoying some libations at a nearby bar before her concert at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York, Janis Joplin writes the song "Mercedes Benz," which she sings that night. Joplin does just one more show before her death.

Janis Joplin records "Me And Bobby McGee" at Sunset Sound Studios in Hollywood. She dies nine days later from a drug overdose at age 27.

Janis Joplin is found dead at the Landmark Hotel in Los Angeles after a heroin overdose. She was just 27.More

Janis Joplin makes her last recordings, singing "Mercedes Benz," which is included on her posthumous Pearl album a capella. She also records a goofy version of "Happy Trails" as a birthday present for John Lennon. Joplin dies three days later.

Janis Joplin's album Pearl is released, three months after her death from a heroin overdose. It goes to #1 and yields her only chart-topping single, "Me And Bobby McGee."

Janis Joplin's album Pearl hits #1 in the US, where it stays for nine weeks. Joplin died of a heroin overdose three months before the album was released.More

Nearly six months after her death, Janis Joplin's "Me And Bobby McGee" hits #1 in the US for the first of two weeks. It is her only Top 10 hit.

The Rose, starring Bette Midler as a rock singer who hits the big time, opens in theaters. The film is based on the life of Janis Joplin, but filmmakers can't secure the rights to use her image or story. Midler gets an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for the role.

The 10th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are held in New York. Inductees include The Allman Brothers Band, Al Green, Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Martha and the Vandellas, Neil Young, and Frank Zappa.

Janis Joplin's psychedelic-painted Porsche sells for $1.76 million at auction.More