New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Legacy Recordings) Columbia/Legacy Recordings celebrates Janis Joplin with the release of two essential new titles in the catalog of the American blues-rock-country-soul singer: Janis Joplin - The
Pearl Sessions, a two-disc set premiering newly discovered studio recordings produced by Paul Rothchild (available Tuesday, April 17) and Big
Brother and the Holding Company Featuring Janis Joplin - Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968, an electrifying full-length concert recorded and produced for release by the legendary soundman Owsley ("Bear") Stanley (available Tuesday, March 13).
The
Pearl Sessions is an historic expansion of Joplin's final studio album, providing fascinating new insight into Janis' creative process through a range of rare and previously unreleased material.
Newly available bonus material on The
Pearl Sessions includes the original master mono mixes of the album's singles ("Cry Baby," "Me and
Bobby McGee," "Half Moon," "Get It While You Can," "Move Over," "A Woman Left Lonely") and a full-length second disc showcasing Joplin live in the studio performing never-before-heard takes of
Pearl classics. From behind-the-scenes banter to full finished takes, The
Pearl Sessions shows the complexity of Joplin's genius, the tough and vulnerable aspects of her personality, her lightning sense of humor, and her razor-sharp attention to the details of her craft. Offering fresh perspectives on the more familiar "official" versions of the songs, alternate takes of "Get It While You Can," the Janis Joplin-composed "Move Over," and others open up unexpected new dimensions in the material and in the sublime nuances of Joplin's delivery.
The
Pearl Sessions offers an unprecedented opportunity to be in the room with Janis, her producer, Paul Rothchild, and the members of the Full Tilt
Boogie Band (guitarist John Till, pianist Richard Bell, bassist Brad Campbell, drummer Clark Pierson, organist Ken Pearson) as they create one of the enduring masterpieces of rock 'n' roll.
Originally released on January 11, 1971 (three months after her passing on October 4, 1970), Pearldebuted Joplin's final finished studio recordings. The only album Joplin ever recorded with the Full Tilt
Boogie Band, the touring ensemble that had backed her on the Festival Express (a mythic 1970 concert tour by railroad across Canada with the Grateful Dead, the Band and others), Pearlincluded canonical studio recordings of songs that had been introduced to audiences on tour. A live version of "Tell Me Mama" (a song not included on the original Pearl), recorded during the legendary Toronto Festival Express date, is included as a bonus track on The
Pearl Sessions. Also included as a bonus is Janis' scorching live version of "Half Moon," recorded for her appearance on "The Dick Cavett Show" on August 3, 1970.
Peaking at #1 on the Billboard 200, a position it held for nine weeks,
Pearl included some of Janis's most familiar and best-loved performances including her cover of Kris Kristofferson's "Me and
Bobby McGee" and her off-the-cuff a cappella "Mercedes Benz." A never released alternate take and the original "Me and
Bobby McGee" demo are both included on The
Pearl Sessions.
When putting together material for a 40th anniversary edition of Pearl, researchers discovered a treasure-trove of previously uncatalogued audio tapes from the album's sessions, produced by Paul Rothchild. An industry legend, perhaps best-known for producing the first five
Doors albums, Rothchild further solidified his position in music history with his work on Pearl.
The
Pearl Sessions brings together the original mono versions of the album's 45s and the original LP tracks alongside a revelatory cavalcade of newly-discovered alternate versions, outtakes and vocal takes that put you in the studio with Janis Joplin.
A limited edition double 10" high fidelity vinyl gatefold release, Highlights from The
Pearl Sessions will be available exclusively for Record Store Day (April 21, 2012). A companion to the newly curated two CD edition of Joplin's farewell masterpiece, Pearl, this vinyl release presents previously unreleased and seldom heard takes and early versions of classic songs, culled from the recently discovered tapes used to create The
Pearl Sessions.
A limited edition 12" vinyl edition of
Pearl will also be available on Tuesday, April 17. A breakout from the Classic LP Collection box, the album is pressed at RTI on 180-gram audiophile vinyl.
Janis Joplin - The
Pearl Sessions
The
Pearl Album - produced by Paul Rothchild
Move Over
Cry Baby
A Woman Left Lonely
Half Moon
Buried Alive In The Blues
My Baby
Me and
Bobby McGee
Mercedes Benz
Trust Me
Get It While You Can
Bonus Tracks - the Mono Single Masters - produced by Paul Rothchild
Me and
Bobby McGee
Half Moon
Cry Baby
Get It While You Can
Move Over
A Woman Left Lonely
The
Pearl Sessions & more...
Overheard in the Studio...
Get It While You Can (take 3) - previously unissued
Overheard in the Studio...
Get It While You Can (take 5) - previously unissued
Overheard in the Studio...
Move Over (take 6) - previously unissued
Move Over (take 13) - previously unissued
Move Over (take 17) - previously unissued
Me and
Bobby McGee (demo version)
Me and
Bobby McGee (take 5 - alternate) - previously unissued
Cry Baby (alternate version)
A Woman Left Lonely (alternate vocal)
Overheard in the Studio...
My Baby (alternate take) - previously unissued
Overheard in the Studio...
Get It While You Can (take 3) - previously unissued
My Baby (alternate take)
Pearl (instrumental) - Full Tilt
Boogie Band
Bonus Tracks
Tell Mama (Live) - June 28, 1970 - Toronto
Half Moon (Live) - August 3, 1970 - from "The Dick Cavett Show"
Janis Joplin - Highlights from The
Pearl Sessions
10" vinyl
Get It While You Can (take 3)
Move Over (take 6)
Me And
Bobby McGee (demo version) *
Cry Baby (alternate version) *
A Woman Left Lonely (alternate vocal)
My Baby (alternate take)
Move Over (take 13)
Me And
Bobby McGee (take 5 - alternate)
Get It While You Can (take 5)
My Baby (alternate take) *
Get It While You Can (take 3)
Pearl (instrumental) *
All tracks previously unissued except *
Original Recordings Produced by Paul Rothchild
The release of The
Pearl Sessions marks a renewed focus on Janis Joplin and the continuing influence of her music. Columbia/Legacy Recording will release Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968, a previously unavailable live concert recording of Big
Brother and the Holding Company featuring Janis Joplin,recorded June 23, 1968 by legendary soundman Owsley Stanley, a/k/a "Bear," who supervised the mastering of this release before his fatal car accident in his adopted homeland of Australia on March 12, 2011.
Dedicated to Bear, the album will be released on March 13, 2012, marking the one-year anniversary of his passing.
A special collector's edition of Live at the Carousel Ballroom will be available in a special two 12" vinyl LP gatefold collector's edition on Tuesday, March 27.
"This evening was special," remembers
Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart who was in the Carousel Ballroom that night in June '68. "The Bear loved Janis. Her ability to sing multiple tones simultaneously and then morph them into heart wrenching chords was singular. Her primal cry, filled with tenderness and hurt, was delivered at 140 decibels as the band pushed here into the slipstream. There could be no one more qualified to bring Big
Brother and the Holding Company to life than Owsley. Together they captured the magic. The Bear sure had it right this night."
Tracklisting:
1. Combination Of The Two
2. I Need A Man To Love
3. Flower In The Sun
4. Light Is Faster Than Sound
5. Summertime
6.
Catch Me Daddy
7. It's A Deal
8. Call On Me
9. I'm Mad (Mad Man Blues)
10. Piece Of My Heart
11. Coo Coo
12. Ball & Chain
13. Down On Me
Bonus Track:
14. Call On Me (Saturday Show-June 22, 1968)
