IM: WHUSDJ
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Just Folkin' Around
The "Funk/Soul/R&B" tag looked lonely, so I decided it'd be best to throw some music up here, just for you. Dean Farrell, long-time host of "The Soul Express" (and current co-host of "The Soul Show"), used to do an amazing segment on his show during Black History Month. It was called "Soul Originals," and it chronicled the nearly endless list of songs that white musicians and groups made their careers off of, that were actually originally written by/for and recorded by black artists in previous years.
The following is the original version of the song made famous by Janis Joplin, "Piece of My Heart." As was common in the time, it was written by two songwriters, Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns. Joplin recorded the track in 1968 for her album, "Cheap Thrills." But Aretha's big sister, Erma Franklin originally recorded the track in 1967. It is long forgotten, so here it is, for your enjoyment: