Born on this day in 1943, Janis Lyn Joplin the Texas-born singer and songwriter would have turned 82. She was one of the biggest female rock stars of her era and though her candle burned bright, sadly, it also burned at both ends. After releasing three albums, she died of a heroin overdose at the age of 27. A fourth album, Pearl, was released in January 1971, just over three months after her death. It reached number one on the Billboard charts.
In her memory, here's a classic performance of "Piece Of My Heart" (above), and listen to "Me and Bobby McGee," below.