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The Spirit of Janis Joplin's Porsche 356 Lives On
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With this year marking the 40th Anniversary of Woodstock, I thought it would be fitting to look back on one of the stand out performers lost sports car. The great blues singer Janis Joplin famously lamented in her song Mercedes Benz, "Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz, my friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends." It's kind of ironic, that in reality she really did drive a Porsche. Janis' was a 1965 Porsche 356C Cabriolet.
For Porsche, 1965 was the last model year for the 356 and was denoted with a C when it was introduced in 1964, replacing the 356B. The 356C featured disc brakes and a slightly more powerful inline four cyliner, horizontally opposed "boxer" engine. Janis made amends when she purchased the car in Beverly Hills in 1968.
Janis Joplin was not thrilled with the white Porsche, so she had a friend of one of her band's roadies come up with something a bit more appropriate for a successful, outspoken rock star. Dave Richards created a psychedelic paint job that even featured the likeness of Janis on the driver's side front fender.
When anyone in Los Angeles or San Fransisco saw the custom painted Porsche 356 C, they knew it was Janis Joplin at the wheel. During one of Joplin's gigs, the car was stolen and painted grey, but fortunately a local body shop was able to restore it to its psychedelic splendor.
Janis had just completed "Mercedes Benz" and a birthday song for John Lennon when she died from an apparent heroin overdose early in October of 1970. After her death, the Porsche was given to her manager Albert Grossman who kept the car until 1973 when it was returned to her family.
After being restored several times throughout the years, the car appears pretty much as it did back when Joplin was driving it. The paint was restored in 1994 to its original design, and only the top and seats are new.
Personal items of famous musicians always seem to carry a bit of their former owners spirit along with them. Janis' outspoken nature and spirit made quite an impression on many other artists, with The Mamas and the Pappas, The Grateful Dead, and Leonard Cohen all mentioning her in song. Amongst the great exhibits at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio are Janis' scarf, necklaces, and one very special 1965 Porsche 356C Convertible!
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