“Me and Bobby McGee,” a song written in the late 1960s by Kris Kristofferson and his record producer pal Fred Foster, has a long and interesting history.
It was first recorded in 1969 by Roger Miller. In 1970, versions came out by the Statler Brothers, Gordon Lightfoot, Bill Haley & His Comets, Sam the Sham, and Kristofferson himself. Over the years, another 50 artists, including Pink and Jennifer Love Hewitt, have recorded it.
In spite of all that, the premier recording remains the 1971 version by Janis Joplin.
As originally written, the song is the story of a man and his girlfriend, Bobby McGee, two drifters hitch-hiking around the country. To the man’s eternal regret, they eventually part ways.
Joplin’s version, of course, changed Bobby from a girlfriend to a boyfriend. It became her most popular song, ironically topping the charts after her death in 1970.
Joplin’s demise at age 27 was sadly familiar: a massive heroin overdose rendered her unconscious, and she fell, striking her head on a bedside table.
“Maybe I won’t last as long as other singers,” she once said. “But I think you can destroy your ‘now’ worrying about ‘tomorrow.'”
As an entertainer, Joplin was a force of nature. Her voice and delivery were awesome to behold. And she absolutely owns “Me and Bobby McGee.”
Me and Bobby McGee
By Janis Joplin and the Full Tilt Boogie Band, 1971
Written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster
Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin’ for a train.
And I’s feeling nearly as faded as my jeans.
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained.
It rode us all the way to New Orleans.
I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandana.
I was playing soft while Bobby sang the blues.
Windshield wipers slapping time. I was holding Bobby’s hand in mine.
We sang every song that driver knew.
Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.
Nothin’ don’t mean nothin’, honey, if it ain’t free — now, now.
And feeling good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues.
You know feeling good was good enough for me.
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGee.
From the Kentucky coal mines to the California sun,
Hey, Bobby shared the secrets of my soul.
Through all kinds of weather, through everything we done,
Hey, Bobby baby kept me from the cold.
One day up near Salinas, Lord, I let him slip away.
He’s looking for that home and I hope he finds it.
But I’d trade all of my tomorrows for one single yesterday,
To be holding Bobby’s body next to mine.
Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose,
Nothin’ — that’s all that Bobby left me.
But feeling good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues.
Hey, feelin’ good was good enough for me, hmm, hmm.
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGee.
La la la, la la la la, la la la, la la la la.
La la la la la la, Bobby McGee.
La la la la la la, la la la la la
La la la la la la, Bobby McGee, la.
La La la, la la la la la la.
La La la la la la la la la — hey, now, Bobby, now, Bobby McGee! Yeah!
Na na na na na na na na, na na na na na na na na na na na.
Hey, now, Bobby, now — Bobby McGee! Yeah!
Lord, I called him my lover, called him my man.
I said I called him my lover just the best I can, c’mon.
Where is Bobby now? where is Bobby McGee? Yeah.
Lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lord!
Hey, hey, hey, Bobby McGee! Lord!
Yeah!
Lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lordy, lord!
Hey, hey, hey, Bobby McGee!
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