Long before the phenomenon that was Amy Winehouse, whose mesmerizing voice captivated millions, there was Janis Joplin, to whom Winehouse was often compared. While Joplin only released three albums during her lifetime (and a few posthumously) and only one Top 40 hit, she still became one of the biggest American music stars of the 1960s, and her music continues to influence musicians today.

Joplin and her band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, first made a name for themselves at the 1967 Monterey Music Festival where she emerged a bright and talented star. Unfortunately, the lifestyle of a hard-partying '60s rock star soon took its toll. Her love of whiskey brand Southern Comfort became as well known as her voice, just like other hard-partying bands like Led Zeppelin or eccentric personalities like Ozzy Osbourne. While the story of Janis Joplin's passing in 1970 serves as a somber end to her tale, underneath her music-star persona, she was a sensitive soul who had been damaged by bullies and hurt by lovers, and who wanted to be loved simply because she couldn't do it herself.