Cheap Thrills

white girl from texas with that voice rings a bit differently today, but I dug the album (again)

3/3.5

Nice history behind this album. Canned crowd noise. Janis Joplin! A 4? And what a cover. Open, a 5. Way too many hits on here.

Janis is an undeniable talent. But as a whole this album plays like generic, uninspired blues.

Some pretty fantastic playing here -- and Janis is Janis. But it bogs down under its own fuzzy weight in the back half. Still worth a listen.

It was okay. The reason why this album gained its epic status is because Janis Joplin died so young. If she had lived until old age and had the chance to record more songs, this album would be mediocre.

I have never been to familiar with Janice Joplin, I did not know she was in a band. This apparently was the last album with her on vocals. It was ok

Fantastic Psychedelic rock. Rough but powerful voice from Janis Joplin

Janis Joplin might just have the best voice in music. So real. And so much emotion.

7/10

Good listen, Janis Joplin’s vocals are great and Piece of My Heart is a classic. At times I was thinking some of Tom Waits’ higher pitched vocals sound reminiscent of JJ here. This was always going to be up my street with bluesy guitars and those late 60s vibes. Cool album artwork too.

Fine enough album, sounds very dated though

So good

I liked the overall sound of the album, but I’m the outlier on this site, I think Janis Joplin sounds atrocious. She doesn’t sound soulful. She sounds raspy and like she’s constantly trying to sing outside of her vocal range. There are times where she sings using her normal voice and it sounds great. It’s a bummer those spots are few and far between and the rest of the time she is screeching like a banshee.

Excellent guitar throughout. I hate belting, but Janis makes it work.

Psychedelic Rock is just not my thing however I found myself locked into a groove on this one. Joplin is solid and the musicality from the band is on point. Not too shabby!

Unpopular opinion - I'm not the biggest fan of Janis Joplin. Probably would have enjoyed this tracks more without her vocals.

Janis (or JJ as she’s know in my family, little inside joke) is such a power house.

Janis Joplin has a strong voice but the album wasn't for me. I liked some of the extended songs, you don't hear many of them nowadays

I liked this, my guess it's because of Janis Joplin. It gets a 3. If I rated it a 3, this mean this probably a 3.5

Cheap Thrills is a unique, energetic psych/blues album. Honestly, between Janis Joplin's wailing, soulful vocals, hard-edged, noisy guitars, and a rhythm section in conversation with it all, this almost bridges the gap to the hard rock of the '70s. This is very much a darker, grittier take on psychedelia. If Sgt. Pepper is like doing acid at The Philharmonic, cheap thrills is like dropping a tab then walking down the street. This isn't an album that uses psychedelia as escape, in fact it almost seems to use it as a lens to amplify the world as it exists. This is mirrored in the confrontational, unmistakable R. Crumb album art, which honestly helped this album grab onto me. This is one of the more intense, unique rock albums of the late '60s, and it's stuff like this that cemented Janis Joplin as a rock legend in just 4 years, with as many albums.

01) Combination of the Two - 8,5 02) I Need a Man to Love - 8,5 03) Summertime - 10,0 04) Piece Of My Heart - 10,0 05) Turtle Blues - 8,0 06) Oh, Sweet Mary - 8,0 07) Ball and Chain - 8,5 TOTAL: 8,79 (88/100) Current ranking: 84/693

Another example of an album that Van do what it does really well for about half the run time. I was with the psychedelic blues and Joplin's voice at least thru Turtle Blues, but then it starts to devolve into stuff that might play better live it in the background but feels too formless for focused attention. There's solid musicianship here, but Joplin obviously elevates it, or rather, transforms it, into something primal desperate.

Jackie Jormp-Jomp made some electric stuff. "Take another little chunk of my lung, now mister!"

Always a classic. Love Janis, love the psychedelic rock tunes and big bluesy rock riffs. First listened to this about 10 years ago and fell in love with it

Janis Joplin. Nuff said.

A very passionate group. But not my kind of sound

Janis Joplin is a fantastic singer but the mixed quality of production lets this down a bit 4.5*

I dig this album... played a bunch of it on a recent road trip. I'm actually putting it on my discogs wantlist for the cover art. Janis is so good on so many tracks.

What a classic

I’d not heard this before and enjoyed it enough that I think I’ll listen to it again.

Crazy, messy, imperfect, fun.

Janis is great

This is a great time, a few tracks are standouts including the long closer track. Janis Joplin is a super unique vocalist and makes some of these more interesting than they would have been otherwise. There are other tracks where I didn't like her voice so much when she goes into the deeper register. Overall a decent 6/10 record

Sex, Dope and Cheap Thrills was to be the original title, but Columbia records took issue with the album title & it was shortened to Cheap Thrills. The cover art one of the most iconic in rock history was done by underground comix living legend, Mr. Robert Crumb. Rarely has an album cover captured the music within so perfectly. And what of the album? Hard blues acid rock with big bombastic cooking vocals by Janis Joplin (who joined Big Brother the previous year) backed by Big Brother and the Holding Company at their ever loving prime. Essential stuff! Get it before it gets you!

i love her voice so much

I really can only deal with Joplin in small doses and this is already a short album (not counting the reissue) but still too much. I like it even less when the guy is on lead vocals.

This is neat.

Day 52 Not one I’d return to 3/10 Highlight Piece of my heart

Discazo

I love the grit and soul. This album is here to make you feel something.

Janis Joplin, what a talent. This was great. Fire album cover and a great introduction that hooked me in immediately. You got a fair amount of bangers throughout the album that made this a solid listening experience. Psychdelic blues is a near perfect way to describe this. Full of emotion, never lackluster in sound, and deeply adventurous. While I will say Side A's peaks are way higher than Side B's this was still really good. Top 5: Combination Of The Two, Summertime, Piece Of My Heart, Ball and Chain, and Catch Me Daddy no bad songs 3.75-4.00/5

Pretty blues-ey, pretty sexy, great vocals.

Meh!

Eh. Piece of my heart rips but Janis can be very grating.

Pretty underwhelming and indistinguishable from the other noodly albums of this era. Count me among the haters, I don't think I've really gotten the appeal of Janis Joplin's voice.

This album makes me want to see Big Brother and the Holding Company live, not listen to the album again. It's solid late 60's pop/rock, but outside of general bombast, especially Joplin's vocals, doesn't stand out. Speaking of, I appreciate Janis' energy and unique voice, but you know what? Not for me.

Joplin’s voice is unmistakable and iconic. You have to be in the right mood to listen to a whole album of it, but when it hits, it hits. Best Track: Piece of My Heart

The songs are so good, it’s too bad about the production value

Solid, Janis was and always will be an immensely talented lead

Janis Joplin was one of the greats, and this album affirms it. You’re telling me she had this vocal range at 24?? the feeling she communicates, the rawness to it all, but the control — unmatched. We saw a lot of girlies shredding in their silk dresses at all things go this weekend, and I like to think it has a direct lineage to Janis. Vocals on Piece of My Heart go crazy, and the shred intro to silky vocals on Ball and Chain 😮‍💨 This album takes me back to sitting in the back of my dad’s blue Toyota pickup and being “educated” in all the rock greats on long drives. I’m glad Miss Janis was one of them. Changed the game, gone too soon. Also learned in my research she was the one who insisted the album cover stay a cartoon and for that she is, yet again, an icon.

I wish I could give this half ratings, I really want to give this like a 3.5. I love Janis Joplins voice, the instrumentals on this album are crazy. It was interesting to read that some of the sounds on the songs were really creative, like a bottle breaking on the ground that was then being swept up. Janis voice is so raw and full of emotion, piece of my heart is an instant banger for me. Psychedelic rock is not something I’d seek out on my own, but there’s a lot to love here.

It was giving Led Zepplin vibes with all that hooting and hollering in the first track. Apparently the album was not filmed live but recorded in a manner where they made crowd sounds to make it sound like it was. Very interesting tech for an album from this time. I think Janis Joplin has a unique voice, and I do enjoy that style of singing. The production is also pretty cool, the instruments sound good, and again I appreciate the “fake” crowd sounds. I appreciate it for what it is but don’t see myself listening to this again.

This was pretty much alright. I didn’t think of it in any particular direction. I’m sure that when it came out it was particularly transformative but I just think that there’s music that hits the same vibe but better.

what do you mean that i got janis's solo album the day before yesterday and a big brother and holding co. album today? the ball and chain is not lucky. the piece of my heart is taken. 4/5

Good stuff but I'm taking off a star because the cover art is so edgy and stupid. Combination of the two, summertime, and oh sweet Mary stand out.

It's a good listen with an all time classic

The soundtrack to Hannah Botterman and Ellie Kildunne beating your Canadian ass.

I liked Piece of a My Heart, but the rest was not really for me.

I get it, I don't really love it though. 3.5/5

i think i understand rock more but this wasn’t really for me. i don’t think i listened to this album in a super good headspace though ahha

Classic rock with Janis singing. Not really a fan of them making a studio album sound like a live album but otherwise worth a listen

Oh, Sweet Mary, Summertime, Ball and Chain

Janis upgraded recording and songwriting when she left. Not sure I understand the appeal of this album.

Rolling Stone list 372 ‘Piece of my heart’ is great as is the Robert Crumb designed album cover and of course Janis Joplin’s pipes. BUt the album as a whole and most of the songs are not really my jam. Disappointed by the gover of the Gershwin classic ‘Summertime’.

Not a big Janis Joplin fan so, nyet.

holy shit they're cooking

This was great

Great voice, great musicians, great songs and a great album!

Love this album,

Album released in 1968. Band mostly formed in San Francisco, with the addition of Janis Joplin who came to North California from Texas. The other members of the band were Peter Albin, a guitarist with a background in folk and blues, Sam Andrew, another guitarist with a background in rock, classical and jazz and another guitarist called James Gurley. The band were not initially blown away by Janis Joplins vocals when she first joined but decided to take her on anyway, and clearly it obviously went well. In terms of the album, I don’t know I think I need to give it way more of a listen. Obviously I can appreciate musically they are very talented but maybe not quite for me? I did like Oh, sweet Mary and ball and chain on the first listen though.

Janis to the rescue for this one. Who knew she fronted for this group? Love the album cover art. Awesome guitar jam session on track 1 (Combination of the 2), and Piece of My Heart, Summertime, Listened before? N Saved tracks? Y Favorite tracks? Combination of the 2, Piece of My Heart, Summertime, Magic of Love ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Liked it better than some. Saved several tracks.

“Four gentlemen and one great, great broad.” Everything about this album is so of its time, including the intro and art work, but at least no one was pretending that Janis Joplin wasn’t the star attraction.

Probably the closest we have so far, to a time machine back to 1968

Classic. Bit dated now, but a classic.

не совсем мое. однако piece of my heart была хороша

🍆 = no

Very good

Enjoyed it

Janis Joplin is an icon, couple of pearls but otherwise not on the side of 60s rock I'm too big of a fan of

Not exactly easy listening. The sort of rough and ready racket you'd enjoy on a fringe stage at a festival.

Classic

Good

Reeks of minstrelsy

Syg nok stemme hende Janis. Piece of My Heart er det åbenlyse højdepunkt men jeg kunne rigtig godt lide det hele

Bliver virkelig løftet over lignende plader fordi hendes stemme er fuldstændig vanvittig, men bandet er også fedt!

Why would you add live sound recordings to a studio album? Her voice is cool pretty cool. OK album.

Weird a few ok songs, sounded like it was created on a electric keyboard I had when I was a kid

Janis Joplin är otroligt häftig och musiken väldigt bra. Lite tråkig och inte riktigt min smak men coolt album.

Powerful performances here from the band. Janis’s voice is on full display. Adding the live elements are an interesting production choice, especially for the time period, but adds so much to the album since Janis’s voice really works best with a bar band/jam band vibe.

Classic album with Piece of my Heart being a song I was raised with. I can't imagine what music Janice would have created if she had lived longer, but thank goodness she recorded what she did. Her voice is so unique and easily identifiable. Tragic end to a talented musician. As for the album, I loved it. Great album through and through.

Hard to get through for me. Not bad, just not my taste. Starting off with 6 minutes of scatting is rough.

Some amazing songs, some amazing vocals, but also some very forgettable ones

🤌🏻

WHY AM I GETTING SO MUCH SO GOOD ALBUMS WHAT IS HAPPENING

I don’t want to come off as mean, but damn why does Janis sound so much like Marge Simpson? Piece of My Heart is of course all-time, but the rest is ok-level psych playing and Janis going in all sorts of mostly unappealing vocal directions.

Decent

This sounded like something i'd marginally enjoy while shopping for records I actually wanted to hear

Less guitar, more Joplin pls

Very enjoyable but due to the recording capabilities in that day and age, there were voices from the crowd that were audible throughout several cuts. Not a deal breaker but it dampened an otherwise great performance by the first female rock star: Janis Joplin. I'll probably revisit this one and keep an eye out for it when next I go crate digging!

Janis Joplin alone elevates this album with her voice. I enjoyed the old-timey blues track"Turtle Blues". "Piece of my Heart" was a nice surprise to pop up amidst the other tracks, this is a song that I can remember when I heard it first and how it made me feel then still resonates today when I heard it. Overall the album was less than perfect if only because the sound was somewhat raw and at time sounded a touch amateurish.

I'll pass.

Janis's voice was killer! Like its own instrument.

Their last album with Janice and you can hear her outgrowing the band. It's an interesting album, but nothing brain melting.

JANIS FUCKING JOPLIN.

Janis Joplin's voice is very dominant in every song. The album flows pretty well together. None of the songs really stood out to me all that much. I wasn't focusing on the lyrics much for this first listen. 6/10

Best Song: Piece of my Heart I think technically I can say that this is a first time for me. However, I have heard every song on here dozens of songs, just not in this form. Greatest hits albums can be both a blessing and a curse. This is quintessential 60's music with one of the greatest singers ever. 5/5.

Better than Coldplay

First time listening it in full. Expectations were big and it didn't dissapoint me. Janis is good. Loved this album.

A classic rock album. Time and mimicry may have stripped it of some of its originality, but it was a very fun listen nonetheless. Joplin does an amazing job on the vocals

Solid album. Interesting and rockin. Janis is great.

Janis rocks this raw and powerful blues rock anthem to the 60s. Love her or hate her, you've gotta respect her power. Crumb's cover has not aged well, imo.

Cheap Thrills sounds like a band barely holding it together and that’s the magic. Joplin pours out every ounce of herself, and the imperfections are what make it unforgettable.

Ikke lige mig. Meget 60'er psychodelisk med lange soloer og mærkelig broer.

Very nice instrumentals, loved the long guitar solos and the groovy rythm.

Klassista hyvää rokkenrollia. Nautin! En tienny alkuun et tältä levyltä löyty piece of my heart, se oli kova. 4/5 -A

Hard not to give anything with Janis Joplin a 5, her voice is so iconic of the late 60s and of a whole cultural phenomenon. Never been a voice like it since.

I was today years old when I learned that Janis Joplin fronted a group before going solo. This version of the album wasn't on Deezer, so I had to listen on YouTube instead. I don't like actual live albums so not sure that adding effects to make it sound like one was necessary. I would probably dislike this album if not for Janis. Such a unique and powerful voice. Listened before? N Saved to library? N Favorite track(s): Summertime, Piece of My Heart My ratings are kind of based on general vibes and how many tracks I save to my Deezer profile -- ⭐⭐⭐: Liked it. Saved some tracks.

Some really cool guitar parts but the singing can be too repetitive The live tracks were way cool than anticipated

Well I never knew Janis Joplin was in a band... The album is ok, you can see why Joplin's voice was a powerhouse, however I struggle to understand the choice of fabricating a live album in a studio...it feels live but it is weird. I enjoyed most of the songs but the long jamming really annoyed me at times, I see, yeah it was "supposed" to be a live album, but the length and the jamming really let me down. Maybe I just should see with the late 60's mindset, but honestly, I dont care. 3/5

This was a great chaotic 60ss rock, an all-around rocker.

Cool to learn Janis Joplin had a band before going solo.

This was fun, I guess. I didn’t see anything wrong with it, which means there were quite a lot of things right with it. Not my genre or vibe as much as it should be

I got a new toy to listen to my albums when in my home office, and this album was a great one for testing it out. A fantastic live album that made me feel like I was in a grassy field surrounded by 1000s of muddy hippies. Peace and Love.

TAKE ANOTHER LITTLE PIECE OF MY HEART

WHAT A VOICE!

Janis's vocals lowkey carried

Generic and bad

Love it, Janis's voice so unique and absolutely incredible.

Nice

I'm not a fan of Joplin's vocal style. Sometimes she's ok, but at other times, she sounds like she's making the most of her voice that's been negatively affected by smoking too much.

Stunning voice, great blues licks. Would have been so good to see live.

piece of my heart is a banger though

Love a bit of Janis, and the bluesy feel of the album really works well.

Janis has a unique, gritty voice. Sometimes too grating/harsh but very passionate. I like the bluesy elements of this album.

There’s no doubt that Joplin had a great voice and there’s some great musicianship on here. Indeed it’s difficult to remember what groundbreaking sounds were being made in the 60’s, on that alone the album deserves its place on the list

love it in theory, in practice it's just never quite hit me right I suppose

Another trashy Janice Joplin blues record with the same tired progressions and riffs your parents have nodded off too drunk in the nasty den. For the time, the performances are fine, but this sound is depressing and stale

Awesome

Good singer, of course. Band tears into solos at points. I don’t like Another Piece of my Heart, never have.

Janis Joplin just adds gravitas to this. This is the kind of album that I'd have dropped everything and headed to San Francisco to be part of the scene. It just feels like a time capsule, and it pulls you back.

Aight

quite ok

Janice Joplin is a powerhouse. Her performance is quite something, ripping you out of your seat with her rock’n vocals. Never heard anyone else with such an impressive sound. Sounds like she went through so much. Impressive.

Last night I wrote “Janis Joplin is big brother???” And this whole website crashed…. Makes you think

this is like the only janis joplin thing where i kinda start to understand what people like about her but generally speaking she does nothing for me

Solid album, didn’t know it was gonna be live. Janis Joplin’s singing really carries this band, if not for her this would be just okay blues rock. The lead guitar on Ball and Chain was great.

Solid album. That singer is really good, wonder what happened to her.

Joplin's voice is always powerful; very solid for a live album, although some of it was just okay.

Yes

A fantastic blues-rock album. I used to prefer her solo albums, but Cheap Thrills may have become my favorite one thanks to its raw and unapologetic vibe. An instant classic ! I see people talk about « psychedelic blues », but there’s nothing really psychedelic here (except maybe the amount of LSD and psilocybin the band was probably taking at the time) – it’s just excellent blues with a Summer of Love twist. The band itself is all right, although not on par with Janis Joplin’s performance. Janis could sing the phonebook and it would still sound sexy and powerful. She carries the whole album on her shoulders with an insane energy that hasn’t aged one bit. 9/10

It is an immersive journey into the late 60's San Francisco scene...Janis gives it all...for the best. Legendary artwork (Crumb)

Janis Joplin has always freaked me out because she’s just too much: too soul, too rock, too in-your-face, too not-beautiful, too stoned. But this album is simply incredible. The chemistry with the band is fantastic. It’s raw, it’s intense, and they totally own it. A string of classics mixed with a few wild trips that probably only make sense on certain substances. A gem so dense it’s hard to take in all at once.

so far good vibes! never heard of it but has a good older rock sound

The songs which are not on greatest hits albums are much more entertaining for me. There are good old freak-out hippy guitars and so on. As a band, they were great.

Very much enjoyed! Some starts were a little drawn out for me, but the guitar riffs at the end always hit on the nail.

This is a musical time capsule. All the dirty psych rock of the 60s embodied in a single album. The (artificial) crowd noise really lifts this album out of the studio, and it makes you feel like you're out in the field tripping balls with the rest of them. Like you're a part of something bigger. Joplin's vocals are obviously at their height here, in all their wild, weird, impassioned force. It does get a bit exhausting after a while-- e.g. I'm not sure if I like the cover of "Summertime" or if I'm just a bit annoyed. Either way, I respect it. But what I did not expect was the insane guitar tone through the album. So many delicious fuzzy riffs and dimed amps. It's not the best from a technical sense, but the emotional force is there (case in point: "Ball and Chain"). R. Crumb album artwork: 5/5 stars.

6.6

I wasn't expecting much, and I think I was rewarded for it. I loved this record from the very first track all the way to the end. Favourite Track(s): Summertime, Flower In the Sun, Catch Me Daddy Least Favourite Track(s): Roadblock

Já vi este disco à venda várias vezes em lojas diversas, e sempre por muito pouco que não o levo simplesmente por conta de sua linda capa. Eu nem sabia que era da banda da Janis Joplin, porque surpreendentemente, sei pouco sobre ela e sua carreira. Digo que isso é surpreendente devido à minha grande afeição com a década de 1960. O movimento da contracultura estadunidense dessa época foi até mesmo tema do TCC da minha graduação! Não sei exatamente o que me manteve longe de Joplin por tanto tempo. Um dos grandes mistérios da vida. Tantos artistas e bandas boas, é difícil achar tempo para minhas exaustivas manias. Mas aqui estou, acabei de terminar de ouvir este álbum, e infelizmente, não me vejo me aprofundando muito mais na carreira da cantora. Sendo bem econômico com as palavras, eu não gosto da voz dela. É simples assim. Eu gostei da banda, gostei das canções, dos instrumentais, e a estética faux-live do disco é bem criativa e cativante. Mas a voz dela simplesmente não me desce. Entendo o valor de Janis Joplin como um ícone importantíssimo, suas letras feministas e progressivas, tudo mais. Vejo valor nisso. Mas de pouco adianta quando a voz dela simplesmente não agrada meus ouvidos! Eu prefiro muito mais ler suas composições do que ouvi-las. Ou talvez, ouvir a versão instrumental deste disco, pois as faixas são até que boas. Só queria que fosse qualquer outra pessoa do mundo nos vocais! A capa continua sendo linda, todavia. 2.5/5

Que voz que tiene la hija de puta de había joplin loco, una fuerza en las cuerdas vocales. Rock muy clásico y de los viejos, me gustó.

Buena voz, pero es un estilo que nunca me cierra del todo

Totally fine, if somewhat generic rock? obviously Another piece of my heart is a standout track and some of the others were very good. But I'm not going to go out of my way to get back to it. On the higher end of a 3, but till not cracking the higher rankings.

Haha, my mom used to roll her eyes every time Janis Joplin came up on tv or in conversation. She just never understood the appeal, I guess. My mom’s a lovely woman, but her taste in music has always been questionable (to be fair, while she'd roll her eyes, she also wouldn't change the station on me, which was nice. She suffered through a fair amount of music I know she wasn't necessarily into because she recognized that I was). Anyway, Janis Joplin is a legend. So much passion, so much grit. Cheap Thrills is largely a really fun record. I love the guitars, and when the band opens up, it's easy to imagine that Big Brother and the Holding Company would be an entertaining and energetic show. But Janis easily takes center stage. 4/5

This was a solid album, nothing that I feel needs to be heard before you die. Janis is Janis, an amazing vocalist that can drive my ears crazy after a few songs. The music was solid. The R Crumb cover is pretty sweet sans the overtly racist depiction of a black woman. I didn't know anything about BB&HC before today - so I am glad to have heard of them and this album, but wouldn't call it a must listen. 6.2/10 146/1001

Great album cover!

8,5/10

I can understand why Janis left the band now. Very generic blues rock, riffs that don’t go anywhere, that weird live gimmick of just adding crowd sounds to studio tracks. Something about this stinks to me.

In the discussion for best live album of its era AND best collection of guitar solos on a record. Yeah the audio’s kinda shit, who fucking cares. shreds top to bottom with some of the most ripping electric guitar you’ll ever hear. Summertime is one of my top tracks ever. Janis obv incredible. Listened to: walking through BBG. Favorite tracks: Summertime, Piece of My Heart, Ball and Chain

Fun. Very 60s but very progressive. Good vocals.

Overall - 8/10 Nice intro to psychedelic and blues Skipped a few in between Also Janis Joplin!

Immediately liking the energy of this as I listen to it. Haven't listened to any of this album, I don't think so, but rock is more my vibe. Favourites: Summertime, Ball and Chain

Nix, hon var inte särskilt bra och nix, jag gillar inte hennes röst. Det kryper i kroppen när hon sjunger.

Entertaining enough 60s blues rock but not something I'd go out of my way to listen to.

Take me to CHURCH Janis! I'll repeat my previous statements on Ms. Joplin; she had the single greatest voice in rock n roll history, and this album really is nothing without her massive presence. Nothing against the band here, they're wonderful, but this album doesn't feel like much of a team effort.

I fear the thrills here are as advertised.

Tosi hauskaa miksausta näissä biiseissä. Raakaa rock rock

9/10

Janis can WAIL, and I didn’t know she fronted a band until now. It’s a little jammier than I usually like, but it’s absolutely still groovy. Her covers of Summertime and Ball and Chain simply do not stand up unfortunately. Not a fan of Crumb or his work, but this is about the music so I’ll leave it at that. Overall a solid psychedelic rock album!

Janis Joplin is right there with Joe Cocker for singers that I don’t see the attraction of. This album really didn’t do anything for me.

Este disco está enfrascado en ese momento donde la escena musical de San Francisco se convirtió en una de las más importantes a nivel mundial. Blues y psicodelia se entremezclan con la poderosa voz de Janis Joplin para conseguir el único éxito de Big Brother & The Holding Company. 3'5/5

The guitar is so poor I couldn't take it. Enjoyed Joplin tho, felt she deserved a better sideman

Really enjoyed this. Completely new to me but love how real it sounds

3.5/5

meh

Cheap Thrills is a much more confident and consistent album that shows the band really starting to find their sound and develop in a direction that starts to pay off much more than their messy self titled debut album. This album is a slow burn that still does dip up and down in terms of quality, but whenever it hits one of its' "peaks" it really puts in the effort. Janis Joplin is so impressive with her both aggressive and rugged vocals and also softer and more "traditional" styles and how she is able to flip between them so seamlessly. While I do think this album lacks in the writing and flow departments I do think the instrumentation and swagger really does go a long way. Not one of my favorite Blues Rock or Rock albums in the world, but I can get why someone would be pretty gaga about Big Brother & The Holding Company's sophomore project. Nuff said.

Embarassing.

"Producer John Simon incorporated recordings of crowd noises to give the impression of a live album. . .Only "Ball and Chain" was actually recorded live in concert." Thanks. I hate it. Just that decision though. The album itself is really good. The guitar and bass playing is great. And it's obvious why Joplin gained fame as a solo artist before her tragic passing.

Decent but gotta be in the mood for it

Pretty much all the songs sound the same, but good for the background

Not bad. Didn’t realize that Janis Joplin was in a band. Some familiar songs here that I had no idea it was this group.

🎵 A synonym’s just another word for the word you wanna use… 🎵 Fun psych blues rock.

A bit rough around the edges and I don’t care for the faux live elements but Janis Joplin shines, particularly on Piece of My Heart

janis joplin has such a unique voice

Awesome sounds. A band so in tune with each other creating a raw emotive soundscape. I'm not a fan of the - pretend it's live - gimik.

Piece of My Heart is great - Janis’ voice is great on this album, but it’s a little weird that it’s “live”

sorry sia this is the real cheap thrills

Fuzzy and fun

Early Janis Joplin album, with a pretty great acid rock style backing band. The standout track for me isn't "Little Piece of my Heart" but rather "Ball and Chain" which just taxes Joplin's voice to the max, and delivers a very raw and emotional performance.

Gotta say I enjoyed this one. I didn't know Janis Joplin was in this band before her solo career. I enjoy her vocals.

Oldies but great stuff🎤🎤🎼🎼🎼

I liked this album, even though it's not really my style. The style of music in this album kind of reminds me of another band, but I can't remember the name of them at the moment. I believe they were from the 1970s. But there were some catchy rhythms and such, and some songs had some interesting lyrics. I think my favorite song would be "Combination of the Two."

Oh, Janis Joplin here. It's always nice to hear such a great artist. Maybe Not a perfect album for me, but OK

I’ve never been much of a fan of Janis and/or BB&THC. I respect her vocal talent and the emotion she puts into everything, but I just don’t really enjoy listening to it for a song much less an album. This go through didn’t change my opinion. And I don’t think musically they’re anywhere near as talented as her vocals.

2 Stars (5/15)

me gustó, bien potente, sesentero, lo sentí bien psicodélico progresivo y tremendas vos la de la muchacha

This nice enough, but it's very primitive, both in terms of the composition and the recording quality. I can't tell whether it's actually a live album, it sounds like a couple tracks are live and a couple are studio. But even the studio recordings are pretty rough. Janis sings with a lot of energy and passion, and I know a lot of people like her, but my feeling is she's a great frontwoman and a just-OK singer. I love "Piece of My Heart", that's the standout. But even there, it's a little garage-rock. Mostly they're getting by on pure enthusiasm, which is fine, but not my style.

Brilliant album.

Psychedelic blues is a strange animal - not strange as in intriguing, but misbegotten. Music trying to float and crawl at the same time. Often, it doesn’t even stand up. Yesterday’s spin through Cream’s dreary brand of blues-tinged psychedelia wasn’t encouraging. Today, Cheap Thrills by Big Brother and the Holding Company didn’t do much better. It might have inspired a deeper reflection on the difference between British and American psychedelia, or between their respective blues traditions. But I was left thinking the problem might be the genre itself - or at least the idea that blues and psychedelia were ever meant to live under the same roof. Blues, after all, is earthbound. It’s bodily, physical, about things you can name and feel: loss, love, hard times - the kind of heartbreak you don’t need a philosophy degree to understand. It doesn’t drift. It sinks. Psychedelia, on the other hand, tends to float above all that. It's about altered states. It’s expansive, dematerialised, metaphysical. It aims at openness, transcendence - breaking down boundaries of time, ego, identity. It doesn’t have to be whimsical, but it should be free. Spacious. Blowing open The Doors of Perception, man. Like The Doors sometimes managed to do - but not, for instance, on “Roadhouse Blues.” If psychedelia is light, blues is heavy. It’s about roots, not escape. By definition, it’s a bad trip. And what happens when you try to glue them together? You get something like Cheap Thrills: heavy where it should soar, blurry where it should punch. Sure, there’s a little overlap. Blues’ 12-bar loops could, in theory, go on forever. Psychedelia’s drones do too, but their repetition seeks trance, not tension. Blues uses dissonant 7ths to stay spicy; psychedelia uses modal drift to dissolve form altogether. Blues is tradition-bound. Psychedelia is experimental by nature. Jimi Hendrix came out of the blues tradition and could trade licks with anyone. But he wasn’t heavy - not in this sense. He didn’t just play the blues louder or weirder. He cracked it open. Burst it into star matter. When he sang, it wasn’t about juke joints or betrayal - it was about UFOs and castles made of sand. He went to London too, which helped. Blues rock, after all, is an American problem. Even the Rolling Stones – ever the carriers of American disease - knew better than to drag blues into their psychedelic detours. When they did psychedelia, which they did badly, they at least had the sense to leave the blues behind. Not all Americans, of course. Jefferson Airplane understood that psychedelia requires space - air, irony, something like play. They didn’t have to revert to childhood, like early Pink Floyd singles, but they acknowledged childhood. Indeed, it is mother who gives you the pills that make you small. Cheap Thrills, though, is weighed down with heaviness. Bad covers of “Summertime” and “Ball and Chain.” A sleeve cluttered with over-busy cartoon art. “Turtle Blues” could be any number of other generic blues bar jams and, if the turtle is meant as a whimsical touch, it also signifies plod - something slow and hoary, rather than the horny that Joplin sings. “Oh, Sweet Mary” hints at taking off somewhere, but any lift - Jefferson Airplane style - is immediately grounded by Joplin’s backing vocals, which dominate the mix as though they miked the studio air conditioner. Of course, it’s rare for Joplin to take a back seat. She is the centre of all of this. Her voice is impossible to ignore - and sometimes, impossible to get past. It’s raw and powerful, yes, but not exactly buoyant. It doesn’t lift you anywhere. Maybe it made her feel better. I guess primal scream is an element of the hippy ethos. Still, it’s obvious why so many of these tracks are sloe-gin slumpers rather than transcendent anthems - evidently more libation than liberation. Now, some clever dicks bypass the conventional wisdom that Black Sabbath birthed heavy metal and credit Cream. Maybe even Blue Cheer. But I think it’s clear that Joplin set the template for classic metal singing - the sweep from gutter to stars - before Robert Plant did. In the way she digs deeper into the gravel pit of her throat to come at a note from below, you can already hear Axl Rose being born. Indeed, it is metal that takes the heaviness of the blues and manages to meld it with altered perspective: fantasy, horror, the occult. But that’s probably too heavy for Janis Joplin, who had real problems to deal with: the wrong drink, the wrong drugs, the wrong man. And, I think, the wrong genre too. Even a standout like “Piece of My Heart” - which is powerful - doesn’t work in a psychedelic context. A great vocal performance, sure. Metaphysical in the sense that Donne might encourage a lover to take his heart, bit by bit. But if this is psychedelic music, it’s the kind with one foot still stuck in the mud. Be honest: would you want to hear that while tripping? With all its raw, clenched emotion? It would just bring you down, man. Cheap Thrills promises wildness, ecstasy, escape. What it delivers is psychedelic only if your idea of an altered state involves a migraine 2 I have never heard this album before although I know and like this version of Piece of My Heart. Janis Joplin’s voice is rather stressful to listen to, sounding like something is going to tear any moment. But following on from the flaccid fumblings and cooings of yesterday’s record (Disraeli Gears) this album came across as very exciting indeed. Janis is the star but credit too to James Gurley’s grotesque lead guitar in Combination of the Two and Ball and Chain which felt thirst-relieving after the desert of Clapton’s tidy pentatonic lines. There’s quite a lot going on on that front cover - some of it could do with being cut out. 3/5

Incredible album

Lots of soul and blues, but "Summertime" and "Piece of My Heart" are the only songs that stand out. 7 out of 10, rounding down.

Amo este álbum, muy psicodelico.

So many people try to sound like Janis (and do it badly!) that it's hard to remember how great she was. This was an excellent reminder.

Never knew she had such a voice. Not really my thing, but I respect it!

This one’s on the list for one reason only and it ain’t Big Brother and the Holding Company. 3 stars for Janis Joplin making it something way greater than it otherwise is.

I listened to the BB&THC album prior to Cheap Thrills, and they really did not know what they had with Janis. They only really let her off the hook with Cheap Thrills, and it is absolutely to everyone's benefit. They're a so-so band with one of the best and most emotional vocalists of all time.

Wow Janis went hard on this one. Such bluesy grooves

Didn’t really feel this one apart from some of the instrumental parts. Never really liked Piece of My Heart much to be honest.

Good old straight rock and R&B, but with Joplin’s incredible voice and personality.

Janis podrá haber tenido los mil defectos posibles, pero su voz se calaba en los huesos con su entrega, este álbum desde otra visión no hace más que destacarla desde otra vision

Joplin does a marge simpson voice for the first few tracks which is why this is not a 4 from me. Love piece of my heart. And Joplin completely makes some otherwise boring enough songs. Guitar was good I thought

I’m extremely allergic to Janis and the rest of this side of the psychedelia/hippie spectrum. I can’t stand this shit. But, it’s an interesting record for its conceit: the fake live album. Evidently this was the product of failed attempts at capturing their live set - as with most crap like this, that becomes a celebrated part of the legend, they were SO GOOD LIVE but...problems arose... - so instead they recorded in a studio and tried to make it sound like a live document of an incredible live act. And that aspect of this otherwise long-playing stack of garbage is recreated profoundly well. Not a second of what I heard of this could be confused for being a studio recording (which does in fact beg the question, why not just cut a record like a 1000000 other bands before and since?).

solidno, zabavno. nisam znao da je janis joplin bila u bendu prije solo karijere. ovdje je i "peace of my heart", super stvar

Janis Joplin was a phenomenal talent and her voice carries almost all these songs but the sound of the album itself is a side of 60s music, I rarely listen to. It’s a nice detour.

Janis is obviously a force of nature, but this isn't really my thing.

Great album

Hard to listen to this album without thinking that Joplin is already on a disastrous ride that she won’t be able to escape. When Janice is singing this album is powered by her ferocious voice. When she’s not singing it’s a crazy jam fest that doesn’t really do it for me.

It’s alright, I just don’t feel a lot of influence from this nowadays compared to the rest of the hippie scene music.

Heard it before. My mom being a Janis fan, I'm kinda bound to like her too. But just in general it's a great album 3/5

Was okay, but not really amazing.

The gateway to Zeppelin. Just not as good.

Janis Joplin's vocal is so ridiculously powerful. There's a great soul / rythm and blues feel to it, whilst still being guitar-forward a lot of the time. The use of crowd noise like this is something I've never heard on a studio album before. It gives the record a different energy entirely and paints a picture of a smoky late 60s / early 70s live show in my head. Really like the version of 'Summertime' on this — although the album artwork depicting this track has aged like milk. Same goes for 'Little Piece of My Heart' — which might be the only track I'd previously heard from this recording, although not knowingly. As the album goes on, the guitar starts to feel more and more self indulgent. The shredding has its place for sure, but this record is at it's best when it's kept simple. The whole record has got a great groove to it. Two live tracks at the end of the version I was listening to, which prove that the free and easy studio recording captured their live sound really well.

Producing this to sound like it was recorded live was a brilliant choice, and made me look it up to confirm it. Quite enjoyable. The band feels both tight and loose.

Combination of the Two 3.7 I Need a Man to Love 4 Summertime 4.1 Piece of my Heart 4.4 Turtle Blues 3.8 Oh, Sweet Mary 3.4 Ball and Chain 4.3 Score: 3.957142857

5/9

Ok. Of its time.

Janis!

Rv/G

Her poor voice, from time to time it's just painful to listen to, and the little coughing fits. Hard to rate this one, it sounded really good but I just don't really love this era of music.

they were really starting to figure it out at this point in the 60s. we finally got good at making rock n roll!

LOVED this

Piece of My Heart is a 5 but a lot of this album overall got too jammy for my taste

not my cuppa

Absolutely fantastic album. The moment I heard the singer's voice I felt like it was familiar to me. Come to find out, Janis Joplin was a part of a band and was not solely a solo act. Piece of My Heart I have heard before (and love), so I was excited to see what the rest of the album had in store. It didn't disappoint. Joplin's voice is phenomenal and so unique. Her raspiness may not be for everyone, but to me it is absolutely addictive. This is the album that brought her to stardom and what a great album it is.

I've never heard the whole album before. I can't say it was unexpected but it was pretty good.

Never heard but very bright and energetic

Classic 60's SF rock with outstanding vocals from Janis. Well worth the listen.

Classic Americana sound. Janis has such an iconic voice - it's not always the easiest on the ears, but it resonates with distinction. The guitars and overall feel emanates the era of the 60s and the lo-fi grittiness that comes with it. Solid record.

I enjoyed this one quite a bit, but I’ve always liked Janis Joplin. I had heard a few of these songs that made it onto the Best of Janis albums I’ve heard, but quite a few of them were new to me. I’m interested enough to try and look into some of the other Big Brother & The Holding Co albums just to hear their works before and after Janis. 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

Not bad - enjoyed it, probably need another listen or two to really get into it.

Fierce acid blues rock, featuring ear piercing guitar solos and Janis Joplin's immortal vocals in turns soulful and screeching. It's a lively, loud album (even louder and lively on the live tracks) but there are some subtle shades for contrast. It does rock but tends to meander, meaning you have to be in a lysergic stoner mood to fully appreciate. The best tracks are 'Summertime' and 'Piece of my Heart' and the cover artwork is pretty awesome.

Yeah nice set of covers and love her vocals and nice Rcrumb racist and sexist cover.

Never heard this album before, it's awesome! Outshines other blues rock of the time (I'm looking at you messrs Plant and Page). Fabulous album cover too.

I am loving the growling vocals of Joplin's decidedly alternative delivery. This is the definitive version of Another Piece Of My Heart for me. It's a shame that's it's mostly covers and that she died so young as this album is passionate and exciting.

Iconic artwork by R. Crumb! This album is quite out there in a psychedelic bluesy way. Too much to take in on a first listen, will need to revisit in future.

I enjoyed the album, Janis Joplin definitely has a cool and unique sound. It didn't blow me away though so I'll give it a 3. Standouts: I Need a Man to Love, Piece of My Heart Rating: 3.4/5

Decent blues album, however I have never been able to properly enjoy Janis she always sounds like she's straining and screeching.

The album is a pumping psychedelic machine fueled by Janis Joplin's unique and raw vocals. The rest of the band play their asses off too and sound like they were having a ton of fun ripping these tracks. The instrumentation is richly layered and a pleasure for anyone with ears for groovy and psychedelic experimentation.

Incredible rock/jazz/blues/soul album. It is all of those things. Joplin is a fucking animal on this thing. The voice of a much older woman truly, idk if it's because of whiskey or what but she definitely has a Marge Simpson quality to her meandering, mixed with like a more fucked up Ella Fitzgerald. When I mean soul I mean like Janis is pretty damn preacher-shamanic like on this album. The band is good and tight but her voice is the real entertainment. Big Brother just keep the party going and pick it the fuck up when they need to with intense, speedy grooves like on Roadblock. There's a beautiful proglike nature to the unfolding of these tracks, prime for late 60s blues-soaked psychedelia. This album was for sure a pivotal cornerstone in that era. It's got piano ballads, sweeping cinematic passages, and a truly soulful improv quality that makes it all feel like a true live album, even if it's only partially live. Peace, love, and Marge Simpson man.

Bluesy, experimental and original.

!!!

It was okay.

God this album is so much fun. It makes me want to dance all around. Janice Joplin's voice is iconic and soooo great! This was a fantastic album and it felt live at points which was cool!!! Great all around album! "Everyone close and go home!" Liked Songs: "Combination of the Two" , "Summertime" , "Piece of My Heart" , "Turtle Blues" , "Ball and Chain" , "Roadblock" , "Flower In the Sun" , "Catch Me Daddy" , "Magic of Love"

The whole fake live album thing is... a choice. Don't hate me but I don't particularly enjoy Janis Joplin's vocals. This is fine for 1968 rock n roll, but that's about it. 2.25

Very good album phony audience sounds aside. Janis Joplin sure could scream.

Nah, bit wail-ey

Very good guitar playing. As expected Janis Joplin is an incredibly good singer. Very impressive.

One of the all time best albums. I think I still have the LP. I was 16 when it came out. Album perfectly curated up through 'Ball and Chain' which is one of the top songs in rock history as far as I am concerned. The gentle and melodious, but ominous bass accompanying Janice's pained voice/story interspersed with hard diving psychedelic rock is unmatched. The album losses its direction after Ball and Chain, but it is nice to have those songs for posterity as well.

Too boomer. Guitars are cool tho.

not a fan of Janis’s cheese grater vocals

Great janis joplin sound. Some tracks they have it all together, but it feels a little disjointed other times. Good 60s dead adjacent

What a strange album. Why on earth they decided to make a studio album and add audience and even more strange: an MC to it? Why didn't they just make a proper live album? Or a proper studio album, instead of an album that has loads of flaws in sound quality - most absurd in 'Roadblock' (an outtake later added, but indeed a studio recording) The quality is very inconsistent, not just the sound quality. Best songs are of course 'Piece of my heart' but even more so 'Summertime'. That's vintage Janis Joplin. But on the same album we find 'Turtle blues'. Pfff.

A good psych blues rock album I guess, if you like Janis.

Janis Joplin! This was cool. Didnt get to fully finish.

Pretty good rock music. Songs were a little long, though.

Raw blues rock. Exceptional vocals.

Even though she died at 27, Janis Joplin sings and sounds like my grandma. 9/10

Joplin’s voice is occasionally great, but the band never is. The band either sounds like a really bad jam band or a mediocre blues band.

It’s 60s style blues rock performed in a studio with a fake live audience piped in. The band is remarkably raw, and often off, for a studio performance. It feels like they are a live phenomenon that was trying to capture that energy in the studio to mixed results. Janis, of course, is an otherworldly talent, and she often delivers here - though there are moments, such as an “Summertime”, where her whiskey and nicotine infected delivery are distracting. Overall, it’s a fine 60s blues rock record, but mostly memorable because of Joplin.

Generally mid or even solid. Occasionally noisy. Whiny and annoying vocals

Day549 - this is an album i’m glad is on the list and i’m glad to listen. janis’ voice is amazing

Janis Joplin is incredible. Would give 4.5 stars but I can’t, so it gets 5

First listen

*** 1/2 Thrills me

Really cool album. I love Janis Joplin. I didn’t really like the faux “live“ sound of the album, and I thought there were some awesome rock and roll moments that get washed out by the end of the song

Never heard this album before but when I saw that Janis Joplin was the singer I knew that it would be excellent. Some of the songs are familiar to me, "Piece of My Heart" is, of course, a classic. The music is pretty much what you would expect for this time period, it's the vocals that make it stand out. She was just brilliant and I love listening to her sing.

Janis Joplin invented social liberalism.

Didn't realise Joplin had such a good voice.

Clásico rock hippie de fines de los 60s (un sonido que se consolidó en los 70s). La voz de Janis Joplin es extraordinaria. El hecho de que sea en vivo le da la crudeza necesaria para este estilo de música, además de que la interpretación es impecable. Me gustó mucho el track "Ball and Chain".

Janis Joplin feeds my souls every time she wails in the microphone. 10/10

Incredible. I love it through and through. The guitar has that fuzzy garage rock sound that gets me every time. I also am a sucker for a unique voice, and Janis has one of the most interesting voices out there. If I come across this record it'll be an easy buy

Liked the music, not sure how I feel about Janis Joplin’s voice but she definitely brought it.

I really liked this album. New to me as well

My biggest takeaway is that it makes so much sense how successful Janis Joplin would become as a solo artist. Her voice is just unreal on this record. She was one-of-one. Cheap Thrills mostly escapes some of the pitfalls and annoying tropes of its time/genre. I never got lulled to sleep by a fuzzy 12 minute psych rock trip. The opening song would be my pick from this album. If you haven’t heard “Piece Of My Heart” by now I don’t know what you’re doing. Not my favorite type of album, but good for its time. Direct enough for pop listeners ears, but also unique enough for those that were transcending various states of mind or planes of existence at the time. Soft 3/5 very cool fake live crowd

She drove me a bit nuts. A big coke fest.

Outstanding vocals by Janice. Okay blues feel.

Good:)

She Joplin on my Janis till I company

Sympatoche

4/5 good