Janis Joplin 1969 Frankfurt, Germany Concert Poster....

Description

HOW CAN YOU NOT SAY JANIS WAS BEAUTIFUL?

Janis Joplin 1969 Frankfurt, Germany Concert Poster. An original vintage concert-advertising poster for Janis Joplin appearing in Frankfurt, Germany on Saturday night, April 12, 1969.

This poster is a total charmer and has to be an immediate candidate for the best Janis concert poster ever. Maybe not if your priority is colorful psychedelic artwork, but in terms of presenting Janis the person in one of the happiest times of her life, doing some of the best shows in her life, and radiating that on the poster itself, this one takes the cake.

In April of 1969, Janis made her one & only trip to Europe, playing only six shows in six different countries. This was her second stop, and the only concert she ever performed in Germany. By all accounts, her band was cooking, the reviews were glowing, and she was relaxed and happy. She was also enjoying the mystique of being from the other side of the world, representing the famous San Francisco sound, so the red carpet was rolled out everywhere she went, and she felt like royalty.

This poster might look just black & white at first, but it makes sublime use of gray and silver shades as well to give it terrific richness. Janis herself is just so darn happy in the picture; it's almost like she's "a little bit hippy and a little bit wholesome." It's great the way it says "Cheap Thrills" in big letters, too. Such a shame this design was used for only one concert.

Wanna see the concert? Fortunately, German TV taped the show, and some of it's on the internet. The ending is remarkable; the audience is allowed to swarm onstage, and Janis is completely comfortable belting out her song and interacting with the throngs, which end up standing right next to her. It's from such an innocent age, just before tight concert security took things over.

This great piece comes from our consignor in Germany, who also consigned the Led Zeppelin, Elton John and Who posters in this auction, so it's been on German soil for all of its 51 years. Time to let Janis' radiant smile light up somebody else's home going forward.

Measures 23 3/8" x 33 1/8" and grades to Very Good Plus condition. COA from Heritage Auctions.

More Information: There's a small, professionally patched tear in the harmless gray area to the left of Janis's head, about 1 ½" from the poster's edge. We were impressed with the precise German repair job here, and never noticed it on the front; we finally saw it while examining the verso. Otherwise some small surface creases here & there from handling over the 50 years, most noticeably in the lower right corner involving Janis's knee and the gray area, including a slightly bent corner tip, and then a little more in the lower left. Just a very slight bit of toning around the edges; just enough to make the poster feel five decades old, but not enough to notice visually. Frankly, we first examined this poster to see if it was a reprint, it's so clean to the eye. So it's a super-solid specimen.


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