Biography of Big Brother & the Holding Company

Big Brother And The Holding Company was a psychedelic blues-rock group formed in San Francisco in September 1965. It consisted of guitarist Sam Andrew (b.Dec 18, 1941), guitarist James Gurly, bassist Peter Albin (b.Jun 6, 1944), and drummer David Getz (b.1938). The group's formal debut was at the Trips Festival in January 1966. In June, singer Janis Joplin (b.Jan 19, 1943 - d.Oct 4, 1970) joined. Big Brother signed to the independent Mainstream label in 1966 and recorded Big Brother and the Holding Company. But after their spectacular appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival in May 1967, they switched to major label Columbia, which released the chart-topping, million-selling Cheap Thrills in August 1968. Joplin went solo in November, and Big Brother broke up, but it re-formed to make Be a Brother (1970) and How Hard It Is (1971). Big Brother broke up again in 1972. It re-formed in 1987 with singer Michelle Bastian. ~ William Ruhlmann