What Good Can Drinkin' Do
| "What Good Can Drinkin' Do" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Janis Joplin | |
| from the album Janis | |
| Released | 1975 |
| Recorded | Between c. 1962 - c. 1963 |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 2:41 |
| Label | Columbia |
| Songwriter(s) | Janis Joplin |
"What Good Can Drinkin' Do" is a blues song by Janis Joplin, considered the first song she ever recorded.[1]
The song has six verses, in a 12-bar blues pattern. Lyrics in the first and last verse are almost identical: "What good can drinkin' do ?" is sung twice, then answered with "Lord, I drink all night but the next day I still feel blue."
Recordings of Joplin performing the song can be heard on the 1975 compilation album Janis,[2] and on the 1993 box set Janis.[2] Record Collector cites her intro to the song: Up steps a feisty young woman, one month short of her twentieth birthday. "Uh, this is a song called 'What Good Can Drinkin' Do', that I wrote one night after drinkin' myself into a stupor." ...[1]
Austin musician Carolyn Wonderland began featuring the song in live performances after appearing in the November 2009 tribute concert "Kozmic Blues: The Life and Music of Janis Joplin," part of the American Music Masters series presented by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.[3] Wonderland later included the song on her 2011 album Peace Meal.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Paytress, Mark (March 1994), "Janis Joplin. Mark Paytress assesses Columbia's three-CD 'Janis' retrospective", Record Collector, 175: 140–141
- ^ a b "Janis - Janis Joplin | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "Kozmic Blues: The Life and Music of Janis Joplin". Cleveland Scene. November 6, 2009. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ "Carolyn Wonderland: A Full 'Meal' Of Texas Blues". NPR. January 7, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
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