The Lost Tapes

One of the major bands in the San Francisco rock scene of the mid- to late '60s, Big Brother & the Holding Company are best remembered as the group that introduced Janis Joplin to the world. However, the band existed before Joplin joined and moved forward after she departed, continuing to deliver their powerful fusion of hard rock, blues, and psychedelia. Formed in 1965, Big Brother had begun making a name for themselves on the burgeoning SF music scene when, in search of a powerful lead vocalist, they were introduced to a blues singer who had recently relocated to Northern California from Texas. With Janis Joplin at the microphone, Big Brother & the Holding Company's profile soared, and after a misbegotten debut album for Mainstream Records, they scored a smash with their second LP, 1968's Cheap Thrills, which went to number one on the album charts and spawned the hit single "Piece of my Heart." Cheap Thrills made Big Brother stars, but Joplin left the group only a few months after it came out, and a revamped version returned with Be a Brother in 1970. The group folded in 1972, but in 1987, the original line-up returned to the stage, and cut a studio album, Do What You Love, in 1998 that demonstrated they maintained the sound and style of their early work while adding a few modern touches.