‘I’m sure you’ve heard that I’m a new breed swinger now, the idol of my generation, a rock’n’roll singer. Yes fans, yes, it’s true.’ — Janis Joplin
Sixty years ago, in 1966, Janis Joplin returned to San Francisco and joined Big Brother and the Holding Company, beginning an extraordinary period that would transform her life and help define a new era in rock music.
Her first performance with the band took place at the Avalon Ballroom on June 10. Over the months that followed, Janis became immersed in San Francisco's rapidly evolving counterculture, performing at the Fillmore, sharing bills with the Grateful Dead and other pioneers of the emerging psychedelic scene, and appearing at the Love Pageant Rally in Golden Gate Park. By the end of 1966, Big Brother had also entered the studio to record their first album.
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of this pivotal year, Genesis Publications presents the final copies of Janis Joplin: Days & Summers as special Anniversary boxed sets. Each Anniversary boxed set includes an exclusive Grace Slick–signed giclée portrait, originally created for the fully subscribed Deluxe copies. Once these final copies are allocated, the edition will be permanently sold out.
‘Fans can take a deep dive into her personal archives with the scrapbook Janis Joplin: Days & Summers.’ — Rolling Stone
‘Genesis Publications creates a 5-star Janis Joplin scrapbook.’ – Goldmine
More than half of the Anniversary Copies are now sold.
‘We’ve had Janis’s scrapbook for a long time. It was really important to her. Scrapbooks may sound quaint and old-fashioned today, but by sitting down, cutting these things out, sticking them in place and annotating them, Janis has given us a unique record of the period.’ — Michael Joplin
In her handmade scrapbook, Janis Joplin created a personal record of her meteoric rise to fame and the flowering of Sixties counterculture in which she was to play a lead role. From the singer's earliest intimate blues gigs in local coffee houses, to her first appearances with Big Brother and the Holding Company, to the band's breakthrough performance at Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967, Janis's story is remarkable. Throughout it all, she collected posters, souvenirs, press clippings, photographs and records, and annotated them with her comments.
In Days & Summers, Janis's scrapbook is revealed for the first time. Featured alongside are previously unpublished items from her personal archive, including letters she wrote home to her family and a preceding scrapbook from her senior high school years, 1956-59. Collectively, they offer a brand new perspective on the Port Arthur girl that transformed into a rock goddess, setting the world on fire with her talent.
‘A deeply personal, kaleidoscopic, hippie-vivid portrait of a woman finding her way in the world.’ — The Telegraph
‘Her voice was so powerful it would cut through a rock... Right away we knew she was the one. We said to her, “We’re working next weekend, hope you're ready.”’ — Peter Albin, Big Brother and the Holding Company
Written by the people who really knew Janis and those inspired by her, the book's in-depth text provides a fascinating, new account of the singer's extraordinary life. With an introduction by Grace Slick and an afterword by Kris Kristofferson, the book's list of nearly 40 contributors includes Big Brother bandmates Peter Albin and Dave Getz, Jefferson Airplane members Jack Casady and Jorma Kaukonen, musicians Mick Fleetwood, Chrissie Hynde, Tom Jones, Taj Mahal, Michelle Philips and Jimmy Page, talk show host Dick Cavett, as well as siblings Laura and Michael Joplin.
Other figures interviewed exclusively for the project include Woodstock Festival organiser Michael Lang, American artist Stanley Mouse, writers Ben Fong-Torres, Richard Goldstein and David Dalton, plus legendary rock photographers Henry Diltz, Bob Gruen and Elliott Landy.
‘Features contributions from a who's who of the West Coast rock’n’roll establishment... Among all these voices, Laura and Michael Joplin’s recollections offer a personal and familial insight.’ — GQ
‘An amazingly talented human tornado who just whirled her way into our consciousness.’ — Grace Slick
Janis Joplin was an American singer, songwriter and arranger, from Port Arthur, Texas, who moved to San Francisco in 1966 to join local band Big Brother and the Holding Company and pursue her dream of becoming a musician. She died aged 27 on October 4, 1970. She is one of the most influential icons from the Sixties and considered one of the best female blues singers ever.
‘There was just nothing else like her — total rebelliousness, abandon, musical excellence, and connection with everyone in the audience. Pure magic. Everybody just loved her. She gave us a voice that was anti-establishment, and I've lived by it ever since.’ — Chrissie Hynde
Each book in the Days & Summers edition is estate-stamped with Janis Joplin's signature, and hand-signed by the following contributors:
Laura Joplin: Janis Joplin's sister
Michael Joplin: Janis Joplin's brother
Peter Albin: American musician, guitarist and bassist. Founding member of Big Brother and the Holding Company
Dave Getz: American musician, teacher and visual artist. Drummer in Big Brother and the Holding Company
Jorma Kaukonen: American blues, folk, and rock guitarist. Founding member of Jefferson Airplane
‘We try to describe Janis, but, like being in love, it's difficult telling someone else how stunning the impact is. You know when you feel it, and Janis was probably the best at translating those all-consuming emotions.’ – Grace Slick
Created to mark the 60th anniversary of Janis Joplin's transformative year of 1966 – when she returned to San Francisco, joined Big Brother and the Holding Company and emerged as one of the defining voices of the city's new music scene – each 60th Anniversary Copy includes an exclusive signed portrait of Janis by Grace Slick.
Originally produced for the fully subscribed Deluxe copies of Days & Summers, the portrait has remained unavailable for several years and has never been offered separately.
Grace Slick and Janis Joplin were two of the defining voices to emerge from San Francisco's extraordinary musical community. Reunited here with Janis's personal scrapbook, the signed portrait forms part of the final release of the edition and accompanies the last copies of Days & Summers that will ever be offered.
Each print is individually hand-signed by Grace Slick and supplied alongside the signed Collector edition of Janis Joplin: Days & Summers.
• Signed by: Grace Slick
• Print size: 25.4cm x 20.3cm (10" x 8")
• Method: Archival giclée
• Paper: Hahnemühle German Etching (100% cotton rag, 310gsm)
• Edition: Limited to the final 60 Anniversary Copies
In the summer of 1966, Janis Joplin joined Big Brother and the Holding Company in San Francisco, lending her voice to the extraordinary community of musicians, artists and writers emerging around Haight-Ashbury.
It was the beginning of a remarkable ascent. Janis and Big Brother shared stages with the Grateful Dead and other leading San Francisco bands, performed at the Love Pageant Rally in Golden Gate Park, and began recording the material for their first album. Within a year, their appearance at Monterey Pop would propel Janis towards international fame.
Sixty years on, Genesis presents the final 60th Anniversary Copies of Days & Summers – Janis's own intimate record of these transformative years.
Each 60th Anniversary Copy includes:
• A numbered and signed copy of Janis Joplin: Days & Summers
• Signatures from Laura Joplin, Michael Joplin, Peter Albin, Dave Getz and Jorma Kaukonen
• Janis Joplin Estate signature stamp
• A rare 7-inch vinyl single featuring two historic recordings from The Typewriter Tape, recorded by Janis Joplin and Jorma Kaukonen in 1964
• An exclusive giclée portrait of Janis Joplin by Grace Slick, hand-signed by the artist and suitable for framing
The large-format book (325mm x 305mm) reproduces Janis's personal scrapbook in extraordinary detail, alongside previously unpublished letters, photographs, memorabilia and contributions from nearly forty musicians, writers, photographers and friends.
Presented as the final 60th Anniversary Copies of the edition, this release marks the conclusion of Janis Joplin: Days & Summers.
More than half of the 60 Anniversary Copies are now sold. These are the final copies in the edition and, once allocated, Janis Joplin: Days & Summers will be permanently sold out.
In order to make investing in one of our limited edition books or prints easier, we offer an interest-free option to spread the cost.
For purchases over £150, the payments are spread over three months. For example, for a purchase of £360, £122.40 would be paid today, followed by two instalments of £118.80.
Genesis will dispatch your item once the last instalment is paid.
Join us as we take you inside the Janis Joplin vault in an exclusive video made for Genesis subscribers.
Select from the following copies:
As the first-ever female rock star who dazzled listeners with her powerful voice and fierce uninhibited style, few musicians have attained the same iconic status as Janis Joplin. Now, Janis’s personal scrapbook is revealed for the first time, compiled between 1966-1968, as the singer found her star rising.
Since 1974 Genesis has created signed limited edition books on behalf of authors and artists ranging from the Beatles to Buckingham Palace.
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