The Collection (2000)

About this title: For the second time, Sony issued the three best albums in Janis Joplin's catalog -- I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama, Pearl, and Big Brother & the Holding Company's Cheap Thrills -- in a slipcased three-CD box; the difference is that this latter package contains the remastered versions of those three albums, which were released individually in 1999. All of the albums feature bonus tracks, quality remastering, and expanded liner notes; there's nothing here you can't get on the individual issues, but it's a handy way to pick up all three at once if you haven't gotten them already. Steve ... read more

Tracks:

1. Combination of the Two [Andrew]
2. I Need a Man to Love [Andrew/Joplin]
3. Summertime [Gershwin/Gershwin]
4. Piece of My Heart [Berns/Ragovoy/Ragav]
5. Turtle Blues [Joplin]
6. Oh, Sweet Mary [Joplin/Albin/Andrew]
7. Ball and Chain [Thornton/Thornton]
8. Road Block [Previously Unissued Outtake] [Joplin/Albin]
9. Flower in the Sun [Andrew]
10. Catch Me Daddy [Live] [Albin/Andrew/Getz]
11. Magic of Love [Live] [Spoelstra]
12. Try (Just a Little Bit Harder) [Ragovoy/Taylor]
13. Maybe [Barrett]
14. One Good Man [Joplin]
15. As Good as You've Been to This World [Gravenites]
16. To Love Somebody [Gibb/Gibb]
17. Kozmic Blues [Joplin/Mekler/Melke]
18. Little Girl Blues [Hart/Rodgers]
19. Work Me, Lord [Gravenites/Traditio]
20. Dear Landlord [Dylan]
21. Summertime [Live] [Gershwin/Gershwin]
22. Piece of My Heart [Live] [Berns/Ragovoy/Ragav]
23. Move Over [Joplin]
24. Cry Baby [Berns/Ragovoy/Meade]
25. A Woman Left Lonely [Oldham/Penn]
26. Half Moon [Hall/Hall]
27. Buried Alive in the Blues [Gravenites]
28. My Baby [Ragovoy/Shuman/Raga]
29. Me and Bobby McGee [Kristofferson/Foste]
30. Mercedes Benz [Joplin/McClure/Neuw]
31. Trust Me [Womack]
32. Get It While You Can [Ragovoy/Shuman/Raga]
33. Tell Mama [Live] [Daniel/Terrell/Cart]
34. Little Girl Blue [Live] [Hart/Rodgers]
35. Try (Just a Little Bit Harder) [Live] [Ragovoy/Taylor]
36. Cry Baby [Live] [Berns/Ragovoy]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.