Customer Reviews

Live at Winterland '68

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This CD is what every live CD should be, that artist in concert, raw, unabridged, and true audience inspired highs. This one succeeds on ALL levels. The band, I once thought was okay, I now worhip, due to remastering. What fantastic work, and it's all here, in tremendous sound, for you to enjoy anytime. SUCH a great, electric feeling you get when you get a KILLER version of "Piece of my Heart" that is NEW, delivered gutsy, powerful on all levels as always, but NEW! A SHOCK of delight that this CD is FULL of! For those of us too young to have ever seen her live, this is a MUST HAVE! Her voice is incredible here, another tremendous version of "Ball and Chain", the old blues song, with Ma Bailey, never had anyone sing the HELL out of it like Janis. She was happy, full of the power of God, and in a great mood this night. Who wouldn't want to be with her?

With the release of this album, we're exposed to a crucial moment in Janis Joplin's evolution. Riding the counterculture success of their #60 release on Mainstream Records, Big Brother and the Holding Company were headlining a star show for Bill Graham that was so big it couldn't even be held in the Fillmore Auditorium, it had to be held at the Winterland ice arena (despite Sam Andrew singing "Everybody's dancin' at the Fillmore" in the song "Combination of the Two"). The band got higher billing even than Booker T and the MGs or Iron Butterfly. Anticipating the release of their first major-label record, the band was flying high, trying out new arrangements and new songs, including a little tune Joplin, in her stage banter, credited to Irma Franklin, but which would soon be inescapably her own, "Piece of My Heart."

This album is everything the band wanted to create with Cheap Thrills when they tried to sound like a live concert. Songs like "Down on Me," with which the band opened and closed, grab the listener by the ear and refuse to let go, while the band's take on the Gershwin brothers' old chestnut "Summertime (and the Livin's Easy)" transforms a sweet but dippy show tune into a true mournful operatic cry from the heart.

Unfortunately, you can also here the ultimate seeds of the band's breakup on this album. Joplin was a strong idealist and a lover of the blues for arts' sake, while the boys in the band tend to be glory hounds. They have every right to be, not one musician in the group isn't a strong soloist, and any one of them could have led a band of their own. Indeed, in the liner notes, guitarist Sam Andrew remembers playing this concert and being approached backstage by Steve Cropper of Booker T and the MGs and being invited to jam - a high compliment indeed. However, it was rather an open secret that Joplin was the star of the show by this point. Everyone came to hear her tear her throat out and sell her soul to the music in a way that Hendrix wouldn't fully grasp until he recorded with the Band of Gypsies, and Jim Morrison wouldn't understand until the L.A. Woman album.

On the song "Easy Rider," for example, guitarist James Gurley makes a game attempt to sing lead in duet with Joplin, but in the bridge in the middle of the song, Joplin can be heard chanting "Not a chance, honey, not a f***in' chance." Is she referring to the fact that Gurley's girl "ain't good lookin', but she sure can dance," or is she referring to Gurley thinking the crowd was there to see the band? Three songs - "Easy Rider," "Combination of the Two," and "Light is Faster Than Sound" - have all or part of the lead vocals sung by the boys, but the audible reception of the audience is unmistakably bland.

Most of these songs are available on Big Brother and the Holding Company's two albums, and of those that aren't, there are no real revelations. Indeed, for all its good qualities, this album has its flaws. Long periods while the band tunes up are obvious examples, but there's also the problem that the album is composed of two sets played at different points in the concert, and they don't mesh well. However, the version of "Piece of my Heart" included on this album is, if anything, superior to the single, on which the band tried to recapture the raw sound of a live concert appearance. They might have saved themselves the trouble and released this version. For sheer vocal and instrumental chops, this track by itself more than justifies the cost of the purchase. Other tracks are almost as strong, and for fans of blues-rock, and for fans of Janis, this album is really worthwhile.

The packaging, incidentally, is priceless. The front cover is done in the style of the acid-drenched art of 1968 with a picture of the whole group that still manages to make it plain that Janis is the focus. Inside, a history of the group, and a partial history of Joplin and her career, are interspersed with reminiscences from prominent female musicians, such as Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac, and Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls. Photographs of Janis in concert make the text pop out at the reader and demand immediate attention, and reminiscences from her bandmates let you know what it was like being up on stage with the living legend.

This album isn't without its faults, but the average fan will find it enjoyable, and even neophytes will find it a good introduction to the magic that was Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company.

When I'm in the mood for Janis,I put on Cheap Thrills. Nothing wrong with Kozmic Blues or Pearl, but they are the "cleaned up, dressed for meetin'" Janis. There's something endearing, energizing, and wild about the intense sloppiness of Big Brother that's perfect for Janis' over the top caterwauling. Talk about the combination of the two! I'll be darned - it is better than Cheap Thrills! The band sears with buzzsaw acid-drenched guitars, practically coming off the track, with Janis hanging on for dear life. Time-warped garage band blues with a world class singer. Considering the technology at the time, the sound is great.

This is a truly remarkable album. Over 75 minutes of previously unreleased Janis with Big Brother and the Holding Company in a live concert at Winterland in 1968. It is a fantastic concert, full of raw energy and wonderful performances, not just from Janis but from the band too. I cannot understand how some people said that the band was amateurish. I think they are terrific and a perfect back up to Janis. The 24 page booklet that comes with this album is great in itself. Packed with never-before-seen pics, thoughts from some of todays top female rock stars, and informative essays, plus a reproduction of a letter that Janis sent to her mother just a few days before this concert was staged. This album is a must have for any fan of Janis Joplin.

Better late than never. This is the live album that should have been released decades ago. It SIZZLES with the excitement and talent of both the band and Janis. Their edge is just as edgy today, their blues as blusey as yesteryear, and their MOJO as mojo-y as any rock fan could want. BBHC were ahead of their time, a band that never deserved the charges of amateurism that has haunted their legacy, as proven by this live recording captured at the peak of their touring prowess. Let's face it. The jerks at Columbia who thought there was not much to cull from the BBHC live performances for the original Cheap Thrills album were obviously not paying attention. The only number from Winterland that made it on to Cheap Thrills was "Ball and Chain," a truly mindblowing track, yes, but wait, there's more. The Winterland "I Need a Man to Love Me" indeed outshines the track that made it onto Cheap Thrills, and there are other cuts as well that sadly had been sitting in the vaults all these years before seeing the light of day on this fantastic release.

And if the music weren't enough (Be sure to check out Sam Andrew's hot solo on "I Need a Man to Love Me" and Peter Albin's cool, rockin' bassline on "Piece of My Heart," not to mention James Gurley's awe-inspiring, monumental solo work on "Ball and Chain"), this CD is chalk full of way cool liner notes, memories about Janis from those she inspired such as Stevie Nicks and Debbie Harry, plus awesome photos that capture how hip this band really was. Check out the many facets of Janis among the marvelous photos featured. Plus some fascinating history about some of the famous concert posters available for purchase. And you really gotta love the cover art, dripping with cartoonish Kozmic psychedelia.

Be sure to tune into some of Janis's "between-numbers" patter, like: "Ga-rooovy!" "Did you hear that, man?" "Play it, boys!"

Play it, boys, indeed. Live at Winterland far surpasses "Joplin in Concert," in my opinion. It's just a great live album.

I was just about old enough (14) in 1968 to appreciate Big Brother when they released the Cheap Thrills LP. After many years I decided to replace it in CD. However reading the reviews here swayed me into buying this live recording instead. Good move. Ordinarily I don't care much for recordings of concert performances. This is different. This is great. BUY THIS CD. If not satisfied I will refund your money (just kidding).
No person even remotely interested in Joplin/acid rock/the60's or whatever will fail to find something of value here. Joplin purists may prefer some of her later work, maybe not. But if you are looking for "chemistry" this is where to find it. Big Brother might not have gone too far on their own, but they sure are great with her in front. And really, without this band at this time in this place who's to say what turns Janis Joplin's career would have taken?
Ten bucks for a piece of history. You can't go wrong.

I was a young teen in 1968. Even back then, Janis Joplin was an acquired taste, so imagine my surprise when I learned that she could send my old-fashioned dad into paroxyms of ecstasy! I once actually saw him rise out of his chair and sway back and forth in front of the TV as a feathered and boa-ed Joplin poured her heart out for a live audience. He was mesmerized, thrilled, smiling like a child. It was a moment I'll never forget, cuz my father normally listened to Perry Como, Peggy Lee and Bert Kaempfert on the "Music Of Your Life" station.

That's the sort of magic effect Joplin's rare talent had on listeners. She always sang full throttle, gave her audiences everything within her, and we responded in kind. This LIVE AT WINTERLAND '68 album is a fine example of Janis in top form, performing with a band that paled by comparison to her brilliance. Big Brother & the Holding Co. do their best, though. The miking and mix are excellent throughout-- recordings sound very clear. Includes 24 pages of liner notes.

"One of a kind" is an overused phrase, yet it's a certainty that there will NEVER be another Janis Joplin. We were blessed to have her, if only for a moment.

TOTAL RUNNING TIME -- 75:53

Live at Winterland is absolutely stunning. On Cheap Thrills, the tune "Combination of the Two" gave just a taste of what this truly incendiary band could do, but this album is their real showcase. It shows that the true core of Big Brother's great sound was the two guitars, not Joplin's voice.

I know Janis and the Holding Company since I was a teenager in the late 60's. I know by heart all the original LPs note by note but it used to look outdated in the late years.
Then I discovered this CD and I got surprised. The sound is very good, the performance is superb. All tracks are solid and brought me the best of that old times, when we all could focus on the music and other good things of life.
This is a CD that could put the new generations in contact with the energy and compromising of the Haigh Ashbury San Francisco Bay Area 60's music.
There is nothing more to write about Janis but, in my opinion, the Big Brother and the Holding Company is one of the best representatives of the San Francisco 60's sound, together with Jefferson Airplane, of course.
Don't be afraid, if you like good music and sincere interpretations listen to this superb music. Your brain could appreciate very much...

Anyone who wants the best Big Brother & Janis Joplin recording,this is it!
Her greatest hits album is so commercialized and sanitized ,it's just insipid plastic product.Boni principii,malus finis.Her Woodstock performance did not arouse the invitation of Minerva.-Winterland '68 is still the best live concert CD ,i've heard yet.She is the greatest female singer of her generation,if not always.Viva voce,vivat regina!