Janis Joplin Honored with Music Icons Forever Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service has added legendary singer Janis Joplin to its Music Icons Forever Stamp series during a first-day-of-issue ceremony at the Outside Lands Music Festival at Golden Gate Park.
The Janis Joplin Forever Stamp is the fifth in the Postal Service’s Music Icons series. Through the power of stamps, Joplin joins a list of celebrated artists so honored: Lydia Mendoza, Johnny Cash, Ray Charles and Jimi Hendrix.
The ceremony paid homage to the iconic singer with performances by Mary Bridget Davies, from the critically acclaimed Broadway play A Night with Janis Joplin, and Outside Lands performers Kacey Musgraves and Nicki Bluhm. SiriusXM Radio DJ, Jim Ladd, served as master of ceremonies.
The artwork for this stamp was designed by Art director Antonio Alcala of Alexandria, VA, and features a June 1970 portrait of Janis Joplin taken in New York City by renowned music photographer David Gahr.
The original black and white photograph is rendered in shades of blue, with Joplin’s trademark round sunglasses tinted a dark shade of pink.
The words “Janis Joplin,” along with the “Forever” denomination and “USA” appear in psychedelic-style script reminiscent of the 1960s, in shades of gold, orange, and pink. Small blue stars pop out from the stamp’s dark blue background.
Joplin broke onto the national music scene at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 and was known for her rebellious public persona. Her time at the top, however, was brief. She recorded three hit albums and performed at Woodstock.
The album she was recording at the time of her death, Pearl, went on to cement her reputation as one of the greatest rock singers of all time. “Me and Bobby McGee,” written by Kris Kristofferson, became the second posthumous no.1 hit in history after Otis Redding’s no. 1 hit, (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay.
As the years passed, Joplin’s legacy was increasingly recognized. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005.
Rolling Stone included Joplin on its list of 100 Greatest Artists. Some of her most popular songs include Piece of My Heart, Ball and Chain and Cry Baby.
