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On The Road With Janis Joplin (2014)

by John Byrne Cooke(Favorite Author)

4.09 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

042527411X (ISBN13: 9780425274118)

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Berkley Hardcover

review 1: John Cooke has written an interesting account of his brief stint as the infamous Joplin's road manager and friend. It's a fascinating trip back into the peace-loving, free spirit, musical times of the mid Sixties and Seventies. Cooke shares his vast knowledge of music history with style and class and does Joplin justice by portraying her as an intelligent but flawed musician. Cooke describes Janis as a powerhouse with a smart mind and quick wit but also extremely insecure and perhaps some of her insecurities led to her addictions that would sadly claim her far too soon.Cooke's book brings up a lot of WHAT IF's. What if Big Brother and the Holding Company had never played at the Monterey Pop Festival? What if Cooke hadn't been there holding a camera, filming Janis' break ou... moret moment? Cooke refers early to a ripple effect and a Destiny with a set course. It's not hard to wonder: What IF Janis Joplin had survived? No doubt she would have had much more bluegrass rock to share, in that soulful style that Joplin fans grew to love. And maybe, just maybe, Janis could've shared more than a few pieces of her heart.Special thanks to Penguin's First to Read program for a digital copy in exchange for a review.
review 2: If you love Janis Joplin, you will love this wonderful biography of her time on tour by her road manager and friend John Byrne Cooke. Mr. Cooke has lots of stories to tell and he tells them truthfully with love. We know Janis wasn't a perfect person, she had issues with alcohol and drugs and sex. She had a need to please that drove her to go beyond herself and reach heights in music which have never been seen again. We learn about her quitting Big Brother and her trip to visit her family in Texas along with her mentor Kenneth Threadgill at the time of her 10th high school reunion. It was a difficult trip because she had a hard time at school and all these people that bullied and ignored her now wanted to be her friend. We see the problems with trying to re-live your youth when she walks into a bar to listen to the locals sing and is bullied into coming on stage, instead she leaves. It's hard to be famous and always on. It's a heartbreaking story in that just as Janis had gotten off heroin Jimi Hendrix died. She again lapsed into the escape of heroin as she had done previously whenever a friend had overdosed. Two weeks later she was dead. This is a real insider's story and a must read for anyone who loved Janis's music. I received this book as part of the Penguin First to read books. less

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