Make Amends With Janis Joplin’s Porsche 356 SC Cabriolet

By Adam Pockross - October 26, 2015

janis joplin porsche 356 sc

Remember when Janis Joplin sang that her friends all drive Porsches, and that she must make amends by getting a Mercedes-Benz? Well, she actually made those amends before singing that song, by buying a Porsche 356. And now her old car can be your new one.

If there is such a thing as a “normal” Porsche 356, then this isn’t it. Janis had hers painted to represent the history of the universe, as only someone steeped in the counter-culture of the ’60s could possibly imagine it.

Well, she didn’t exactly mean to have it painted this way. But after Joplin purchased the gray 1964 Porsche 356 SC Cabriolet for $3,500, she handed the keys over to one of her roadies, Dave Richards, while giving him little direction on how she wanted it painted. It being 1968, this is what Janis got — Richards’ vision of “The History of the Universe,” complete with portraits of Joplin’s band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Joplin’s astrological sign, Capricorn, and the “eye of God,” among other trippy accents.

And apparently, Joplin loved the car, as she used it for her daily driver up until her death at the accursed age of 27, back in 1970.

Eventually, Joplin’s siblings took ownership of the car. They eventually had it painted to its original Dolphin Gray finish, and her brother rebuilt the engine. But Joplin’s siblings soon realized the error of their Dolphin Gray way. Using a stack of photos as a guide, they had artists repaint the car back to its original, universally correct form. The car’s been on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland ever since.

And now, thanks to Sotheby’s and RM Auctions, you too can make amends by owning this piece of rock and roll and automotive history.