Talk:Me and Bobby McGee

Untitled

I feel Janis Joplin's association with the song was misrepresented, I hope the edits I made to her section are satisfactory to most. Kristofferson and Joplin were closely associated.

"most-covered"?

The article currently needs a citation for the statememnt "one of the most-covered songs of all time", otherwise it should be removed. Design 23:26, 27 April 2006 (UTC)

Broken link

I don't know if this is the ideal place to do this. But the external link for the lyrics of this song is currently broken and leads to the front page of the site.

An alternate link might be [link to copyvio website removed] (the first one googling)

Are we allowed to post such links? My understanding is that links to lyric sites aren't alloweed on grounds of copyvio. 23skidoo 04:44, 11 October 2006 (UTC)

Yes, exactly. Mushroom (Talk) 00:33, 7 November 2006 (UTC)

Contradiction between this and Janis Joplin

Me and Bobby McGee and Janis Joplin have contradictory information. Janis Joplin says that the last song she recored was Mercedes Benz while Me and Bobby McGee says that it was Me and Bobby McGee. - Jarn 04:52, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:Me and Bobby McGee - Roger Miller.jpg

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BetacommandBot (talk) 19:32, 2 January 2008 (UTC)

harpoon?

I have always thought hearing the word "harpoon" in the line "..I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna.." must have been a mondegreen. But checking a lyrics site, I see it (probably) isn't ! So I ask, is harpoon another word for harmonica/mouth organ? Feroshki (talk) 06:15, 12 November 2009 (UTC)

• In southern slang, "harp" (or "harpoon") is short for mouth harp, and is a colloquialism for a harmonica. In the 60's a "harpoon" was also slang for a heroin needle. Though he's never said, I suspect Kristofferson picked the word because of the double-meaning (as many songs that year did, famously including Hey Jude). --SilyOlPooh (talk) 02:36, 5 November 2010 (UTC)

Argument that it was impossible for Joplin to have copied Weir's ending

I undid this edit for more than one reason. It left a paragraph in a self-contradictory state, it used an idiosyncratic term ("the dreads") for the Grateful Dead, and it (maybe inadvertently?) changed the year 2009 to 009.

However, if there's merit to the complaint, then someone who knows more about it than I do might take it up. --Trovatore (talk) 05:10, 11 February 2014 (UTC)

mentor?

Curious as to how Kristofferson was mentored by Joplin. (188.146.136.33 (talk) 10:32, 9 October 2015 (UTC))

External links modified

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Still looking for the original lyrics

Well, dudes,

I am still looking for the original lyrics which I would like to present to my students in Germany. Freedome is just2003:CA:93C6:820:2CC0:5FE3:B81E:AF93 (talk) 22:55, 10 December 2017 (UTC) another word for nothing have to lose!!! Chris and Janis have been right, imho.

Other artists

I plan on removing the list of "Other artists" in the next few days if they are not updated to include year of release and album name. --Khajidha (talk) 14:58, 6 July 2020 (UTC)

• I just corrected an error on the list - the incorrect Olivia Newton-John album was cited. In fact, it is the lead track on her very first solo album from 1971. 23skidoo (talk) 22:12, 4 June 2023 (UTC)

American Pie

The statements about the meaning of lines in "American Pie" should have a source. Presently it appears to be the author's interpretation. If it is another writer's interpretation, that should be noted. Don McClean famously does not talk about the meaning of the lyrics of "American Pie".Joe Avins (talk) 00:32, 10 August 2021 (UTC)

I think it's pretty certain that the "girl who sang the blues" is Janis Joplin, and we could probably find a reliable source to that effect. But the specific connection to Me and Bobby McGee is much more tenuous. Joplin sang many blues songs, and I don't believe that McLean's lyric was specifically referring to this song. I think the paragraph about American Pie should be removed from this article. CodeTalker (talk) 00:59, 10 August 2021 (UTC)

"Harpoon"

Aside from the ambiguity over the name Bobby, there is also some debate over what is meant by "harpoon" in the first verse. It is apparently a nickname for a harmonica (maybe a brand name?), which certainly makes sense in the context of playing music and "blowing sad". Bizarrely some have taken it to be a drugs reference, which doesn't make sense in this context. I wonder if there's any place in the article for defining "harpoon"? Even Olivia Newton-John sings "harpoon" in her version. 23skidoo (talk) 22:17, 4 June 2023 (UTC)

A couple (or maybe a few) comments

IMHO, right off the bat there seems to me too much information about various versions of the song mentioned in the lead. I think a single mention of the now most famously recognizable version (Joplin) should suffice. The rest should just live in the appropriate section.

I also feel that including the mention of Joplin's version being posthumous is a bit confusing. Yes, it was released after HER death, but not after Kristofferson's the creator of the song. (Look up the definition). First thing I thought was, "Wait a second, Kris was still alive then!" Somehow that mention should be better worded.

Finally, the Narrative section lacks any citations at all. In addition, a conclusion is drawn about the use of "Bobby" that absolutely MUST be cited or removed as far as I am concerned. (What's up with "(especially in America)" as well? That's quite an assumption by the editor who wrote that without any source at all.)

In conclusion, if no one objects I'm considering the following edits:

Rewording the mention in the lead of Joplin's version to read, "Released days after her death," or something to that effect.

Removing the rest of the various mentions of covers less known and ensuring that if they aren't in the appropriate section that they are moved there.

Tagging the Narrative section with "citation(s) needed," and removing entirely the assumptive interpretation of the use of "Bobby" until such time as someone can find a source for the claim.

If there are no objections over the next several days and I actually remember to come back here, if no one else has agreed and done it before me, I shall return and make these changes.

Thoughts? 2601:19E:8280:3050:E413:D330:E6AE:2776 (talk) 22:46, 8 May 2024 (UTC)

I think we should at least mention Kristofferson's own version in the lead (as far as I can see, we don't currently). It was released before Joplin's. It's also better, but of course that's my opinion. The correct opinion, but still mine. --Trovatore (talk) 23:16, 8 May 2024 (UTC)

That was the other thing I forgot to mention. It absolutely should be mentioned. Considering how many mentions of other artists covering it are in the article, it's a bit flabbergasting why it's not mentioned at all. 2601:19E:8280:3050:E413:D330:E6AE:2776 (talk) 00:20, 9 May 2024 (UTC)

I feel obliged to mention that I actually did notice how many mentions I mentioned in that post. I'd like to mention that perhaps I should be committed for dementia. Good grief. *rolleyes* 2601:19E:8280:3050:E413:D330:E6AE:2776 (talk) 00:29, 9 May 2024 (UTC)

Posthumous refers to after the death of the originator, but there is a complexity to the concept of originator here. The sentence says "posthumously released version by Janis Joplin". Joplin is the originator of that version, which is what "posthumous" is referring to here. --User:Khajidha (talk) (contributions) 13:15, 30 July 2024 (UTC)