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Janis Joplin Up Close In '69: From The Archives Of Rowland Scherman
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 23, 2013
Modified Jan 24, 2013
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 23, 2013
Modified Jan 24, 2013
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Photographer Rowland Scherman, who grew up in Pelham Manor, NY, began his career as the first photographer for the newly formed Peace Corps in 1961. He went on to work for the likes of Life, Time, National Geographic, Playboy, and countless other magazines. He even won a Grammy Award for his iconic photograph cover of "Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits."
But as far as Rowland is concerned, he views himself as "the Forrest Gump of Photography," consistently stumbling into the right place at the right time—and he was there to document some of the most iconic moments of the 1960s and 1970s. For the next few weeks, we'll take a closer look at some of his incredible photos and the stories behind them, including pictures of Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Woodstock, the March on Washington, John Lennon, Bobby Kennedy, and more. To see more of his work, check out his website here—and also make sure to check out the trailer for a documentary being made about him here.
Previously, we got a peek at a very young Bob Dylan making his debut at Newport Folk Festival in 1963, and dipped our toes into Woodstock. There was one particularly stand-out performer that Rowland saw that day: Janis Joplin. He described his process at the time:
I was shooting a kind of film that disintegrated in time--I was shooting Ansco film because an art director friend was head of Ansco. I was working with his film because he was my buddy, but the film didn't last a year. It just turned pink, it was crap film. Some of the stuff I shot straight—if I had to do it again, I'd shoot it all in black and white. I'm essentially a black and white guy, but the most memorable pictures I got of Woodstock were of Janis, and many of those were color.
Janis: of all the people, of all the rockers I ever photographed, she was the one who sent shivers up my spine. In a live performance, there was nobody who could touch her. She was unbelievable to listen to live.
I did see Janis on another occasion—that was the "shivers" occasion. It was out in a field somewhere in Virginia, maybe. Is this a senior moment? I can't remember! The Supremes were on the same bill, and I was flirting with them until Janis started to sing. If I had it to do over again, I'd follow Janis around. I want to talk to her.
Tagged
janis joplin
Music
photography
rock
rowland scherman
woodstock
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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