Janis Joplin's second masterpiece (after Cheap Thrills), Pearl was designed as a showcase for her powerhouse vocals, stripping down the arrangements that had often previously cluttered her music or threatened to drown her out. Thanks also to a more consistent set of songs, the results are magnificent -- given room to breathe, Joplin's trademark rasp conveys an aching, desperate passion on funked-up, bluesy rockers, ballads both dramatic and tender, and her signature song, the posthumous number one hit "Me and Bobby McGee." The unfinished "Buried Alive in the Blues" features no Joplin vocals -- she was scheduled to record them on the day after she was found dead. Its incompleteness mirrors Joplin's career; Pearl's power leaves the listener to wonder what else Joplin could have accomplished, but few artists could ask for a better final statement. [The 1999 CD reissue adds four previously unreleased live July 1970 recordings: "Tell Mama," "Little Girl Blue," "Try," and "Cry Baby."] ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
Sandra Crouch (Tambourine), Janis Joplin (Guitar), Janis Joplin (Vocals), Janis Joplin (Choir, Chorus), Janis Joplin (Main Performer), Bobby Womack (Guitar (Acoustic)), Bobby Womack (Guitar), Pearl (Guitar (Acoustic)), Pearl (Vocals (Background)), Pearl (Choir, Chorus), Bobbye Hall (Percussion), Bobbye Hall (Bongos), Bobbye Hall (Conga), John Cooke (Vocals (Background)), John Cooke (Choir, Chorus), Phil Badella (Vocals), Phil Badella (Vocals (Background)), Phil Badella (Choir, Chorus), Richard Bell (Piano), Richard Bell (Vocals (Background)), Richard Bell (Choir, Chorus), Brad Campbell (Bass), Brad Campbell (Vocals (Background)), Brad Campbell (Choir, Chorus), John Cook (Vocals), Glen Kolotkin (Engineer), Phil Macy (Engineer), Vince Mitchell (Vocals), Vince Mitchell (Vocals (Background)), Vince Mitchell (Choir, Chorus), Ken Pearson (Organ), Ken Pearson (Vocals (Background)), Ken Pearson (Choir, Chorus), Clark Pierson (Drums), Clark Pierson (Vocals (Background)), Clark Pierson (Choir, Chorus), Paul Rothchild (Producer), John Till (Guitar), John Till (Vocals (Background)), John Till (Choir, Chorus), Bob Irwin (Reissue Producer), David Gahr (Photography), Vic Anesini (Mastering), Tom Wilkes (Design), Tom Wilkes (Photography), Barry Feinstein (Design), Barry Feinstein (Photography), Baron Wolman (Photography), Joe Lizzi (Mixing), Jen Wyler (Mixing), Nicholas Bennett (Packaging Manager), John Dooke (Vocals (Background)), Ken Pierson (Organ), Mark Feldman (Project Director)
Pearl is an album by Janis Joplin, released on February 1, 1971—four months after her death from a heroinoverdose. It is her fourth album and the first album she recorded with Full Tilt Boogie.
The album has a more polished feel than the albums she recorded with Big Brother and the Holding Company and the Kozmic Blues Band due to the expertise of producer Paul A. Rothchild and her new backing musicians. Rothchild was best known as the producer of The Doors, and worked well with Joplin. Together they were able to craft an album that showcased her extraordinary vocal talents. The Full Tilt Boogie were the musicians who accompanied her on the famous Festival Express in the summer of 1970, and many of the songs on this album were introduced on the concert stage in Canada.
Pearl features the hits "Me and Bobby McGee," (commercially released with "Half Moon", another album cut, on the flipside) written by Kris Kristofferson (her lover at the time) and Fred Foster, and "Move Over," which she penned herself. Joplin sings on all of the tracks except for "Buried Alive in the Blues", which remained an instrumental because Janis died before being able to add her vocals. The recording sessions, which began in early September, ended with Joplin's untimely death on October 4, 1970. The iconic album cover shows Joplin reclining on her Victorian loveseat with a drink in her hand, conveying that this is Janis Joplin as she really is.[1]
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