Piece Of My Heart

Janis Joplin with Big Brother & The Holding Co. 1968

Right up front, I have a couple of thoughts about Janis Joplin's recording of "Piece Of My Heart". First and foremost, it deservedly made her a star. The previous single by her band, Big Brother & The Holding Company, called "Down On Me", had made a respectable dent in the national charts, but could hardly be called a breakthrough. But on "Piece Of My Heart", Janis absolutely owned that lyric and left the listener with no doubt that it was her own story. It's every songwriters' dream to have their lyric performed like that.

Not in your collection? Why?

Secondly, regarding the album that the song is featured on, "Cheap Thrills", which is a cornerstone classic of psychedelic blues-rock and pretty much a must-own for anyone who likes rock music at all, even if it's just for the eye-grabbing cover art by Robert Crumb. If you've ever seen any live concert footage of Janis with Big Brother, the second thing you notice, right after the raw electricity of a typical Janis performance, is that Big Brother was an egregiously sloppy band; no secret in the music circles of the time. The fact that "Cheap Thrills" came off as well as it did is something of a miracle, considering that it was mostly comprised of live performances. It's no small wonder that Columbia changed bands for Janis twice; first on the "Kozmic Blues" album, then again for the sessions that gave us her epitaph, "Pearl".

Here's Janis Joplin's larynx-rippin' version of "Piece Of My Heart". Plug in the lava lamp and the black light!

A 1967 UK picture sleeve 45

It's not often remembered that "Piece Of My Heart" isn't a Janis Joplin original, due to the overwhelming popularity of her recording. It's even less recalled that the song was first cut by Aretha Franklin's older sister, Erma, in 1967! If Aretha was the Queen of Soul, then Erma Franklin certainly held high court in the adjacent kingdom of Northern Soul. Erma's recording broke into the Top 10 national R&B charts, which helped garner her a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist in 1968. The song was written by Jerry Ragovoy, who had 2 other songs covered by Janis as well, "Cry Baby" and "Get It While You Can". Ragovoy wrote a whole bunch of great songs; a list of which can be found here.

When her sister Aretha left Columbia Records and signed with Atlantic, both Erma and her late sister, Carolyn, did the background vocals for their sister's first recordings. Some of those songs included "You Make Me Feel Like (A Natural Woman)," "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Baby, I Love You." The harmonies Erma and Carolyn added to their sister's songs (called the "Franklin Sound" by critics and disc jockeys) weren't anything new as they had sung the same way as a group at home and in the church.

There is an important interpretive difference between Erma's balladeering and Janis's scorching rock arrangement. When Franklin faces the breakup bullet, her voice seems to persevere just barely above the pain, but when Joplin takes that same shot, she seems to sing the role of relationship martyr, ready to bear the abusive brunt from a neglectful partner. This distinction might come from approaching the source material from different genres, but interpreting the feel of a performance is always subjective, so it's up to you.

Listen to Erma Franklin's original recording below and see if you don't notice a telling difference between these two pieces of the same broken heart.

By now, everything that Janis Joplin recorded has been completely remastered and digitally spiffed up so it's the best it can be. I would still recommend getting either "Cheap Thrills" or "Pearl" on vinyl though, for those of you with a turntable. The warmth is worth it.

Everything in print from Erma Franklin is available at Amazon, but if you just want this song, then you're better off with an Mp3 download.

Have a great weekend!