Though Joplin used heroin, the drug that would eventually take her life, the "harpoon" in this song most likely just refers to the musical instrument. This is just speculation, though, much in the same way that some fans thought the Beatles song "Fixing a Hole" might be a reference to heroin even though the Beatles themselves disputed these claims. They say that the harpoon could represent the needle, and that a bandanna is sometimes the means by which the heroin user ties up his or her arm in order to use the drug. Some people have argued that this line might be a reference to heroin, which was eventually the cause of Janis Joplin's death. (It's just like folk singer Woody Guthrie's guitar, for example, on which he wrote, "this machine kills fascists.") On the other hand, the reason harpoon is its nickname could have more significance, since the hippies of the '60s tended to see their music as a form of rebellion-the music was the weapon of revolution. A harpoon is probably just a nickname for the blues harp, a kind of harmonica that was used for playing the blues.
The narrator pulls out a "harpoon" and plays it softly while Bobby sings the blues.
Words to me and bobby mcgee movie#
Throughout the 20th century, several prominent serial killers have been connected to hitchhiking: Beach Boy Dennis Wilson came into contact with the Manson Family when he picked up two hitchhiking girls Aileen Wuornos, whom you may recognize from the 2003 Charlize Theron movie Monster, murdered seven men who had each picked her up on the side of a Florida highway the FBI has even gone on record as stating that they believe there to be a link between serial killers and truckers who work long-haul routes.
Not for nothing, either hitchhiking can be extremely dangerous. It's also illegal in many places to pick up a hitchhiker, so there's that. While many countries allow hitchhiking, most areas of the United States have strict laws against attempting to solicit a ride from a stranger. Today, hitchhiking is frowned upon in the U.S., though. So when Joplin sings that she's as faded as the color of her jeans, it's another way of saying, "Man, I'm beat."īack in Janis' day, hitchhiking was a common way for hippies to travel, especially across long distances through rural areas where public transportation might be expensive or nonexistent. But "Beat" had other implications as well, suggesting that these were people who were "beat" down by society, or "just beat," as in tired, probably from having stayed up all night writing and perhaps consuming lots of alcohol and other drugs. In hippie-speak, it was a way of saying, "Hey, man, I dig your cause."Īnother thing to think about is that culture at that time was greatly influenced by a somewhat modern trend in literature coming from writers from the '50s and '60s that were part of the " Beat generation." The name "Beat" was chosen perhaps as a reference to the rhythmic style of their stream-of-consciousness way of writing, which was greatly influenced by the jazz music of the time.
The fact that it was stylish to have faded jeans was a way of identifying with those of the poorer working class, the struggling Americans. But the fact is that a lot of these young people came from wealthy families and could afford a new pair of Levi's if they really wanted. It is possible that some hippies simply couldn't afford new jeans their old ones faded in time, or they inherited some hand-me-downs. It's such a staple of modern fashion that it's strange to think they exist for any other reason than style, but the reason they have become stylish in the first place is because of the hippies. Tie-dyed shirts were perhaps a tribute to the psychedelic drugs people were experimenting with at the time, which often rendered colors especially vivid, and perhaps it was also a celebration of difference-the acceptance of all colors, or all different kinds of people.Īnd why did they wear faded jeans? Jeans fade on their own, of course, but nowadays we buy them pre-faded. The long hair symbolized a freedom from society's gender restrictions, as well as its rigid, dogmatic way of life. The typical hippie outfit-which could be seen on Janis Joplin almost constantly-often included one or more of the following: faded jeans, big sunglasses, long, untamed hair, tie-dyed shirts, a bandana, maybe some beads, and a good ol' pair of boots.Ĭlothes can tell you a lot about a culture or youth movement, and for the hippies in the 1960s, clothes were an especially vital part of the rebellion.
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