Janis – Little Girl Blue

There are icons in the history of contemporary music that refuse to be forgotten. This is, of course, due to the impact or footprint that they left for us to enjoy. There are also people that keep those legacies alive, via a music compilation, documentaries, etc. Amy J. Berg, who was nominated for an Academy Award for previous work (“Deliver Us from Evil”), is one of those people. The precious and captivating “Janis – Little Girl Blue” keeps alive the memory Janis Joplin, one of blues’ most remembered vocalists ( and rock & roll, for that matter).

Berg makes it easy for us, and basically takes us through Joplin’s life in an organized and chronological fashion, beginning in Port Arthur, Texas, where she was born on January 19, 1943. It was there that she began singing the blues, with the Waller Creek Boys. The filmmaker also uses drawings and photos from Janis’ scrapbook, which gives us a glance on her sad and, at times, tormented life. For example, some idiots in some university voted her the “most ugly man,” causing her a lot of grieve. Living in such a close-minded community made her move to San Francisco, where she felt much freedom, and where she began experimenting with drugs. It was there, apparently, that she met Bob Dylan and told him that one day she was going to be famous, to which he supposedly answered, “Yes, we are all going to be famous.” From then on, the film goes into the time that she spent with Big Brother & Holding Company, her famous performance at Monterrey in 1967, the recording of the seminal “Cheap Thrills,” her time as band leader with the Kosmic Blues Band, her interviews with Dick Cavett, her performance at Woodstock, her trip to Rio de Janeiro, and much more. We listen to the testimonies of Laura Joplin (sister), Michael Joplin (brother), Dave Getz, Peter Albin, and Sam Andrew (Big Brother Holding Company band members), Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), Clive Davis (legendary Columbia Records president), Joe McDonald (County Joe and the Fish), Kris Kristofferson (actor, composer, and singer), Snooky Flowers (Kosmic Blues Band), and others. In fact, Kristofferson was co-author of "Me and Bobby McGee," Joplin’s biggest single.

Janis Joplin, who died on October 4, 1970, belongs to that generation in which we lost Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and others, at such a young age – all drugs or booze related. It was a special and powerful generation, represented by rebellious youth that needed rebellious idols. They certainly left a mark and I argue that they made the world temporarily better. “Janis – Little Girl Blue” is a great document to remember one of our top female singers of all time. The DVD also includes the remaining Big Brother members singing acapella, Hollywood walk of fame ceremony, and more. (USA, 2015, color and B&W, 105 plus additional materials)

Reviewed June 30, 2016 – MVD Visual DVD