So misunderstood!!! Janis took old blues and folk songs that everybody at the time had only heard done in passive, slow grinds, and took them to another level! Jaws hung open at the Monterey Pops Fesival. She mixed the soul, spirit, meaning, and history of these well known songs with the passion, anxiety, and experimentation of the Haight Ashbury psychedelic musical growth spurt, and created raw, pure, and inspired art. This woman sang from her soul! She had an extensive range, and she hit notes that most vocalists can only hope to reach. Yet she did it with a raw edge that can only be gained from living a life of struggle. People that don't like her voice are really saying they don't like the grit and authenticity of her delivery. She is so real it bothers people. Many famous female singers credit Janis as an inspiration and an idol. Janis broke the mold, she set the standard, and she paved the way for all female rock singers to come. Sometime lyrics say it best: I don't know, but something like a bird within her sang. She sang a little while and then flew off. and Such a long, long time to be gone and a short time to be there.
