It’s Not What You Know…
Three years after hitchhiking to San Francisco with her close pal Chet Helms, Janis found herself being recruited by him for Big Brother and the Holding Company. Chet had transformed into a big-shot promoter and manager of Big Brother in the interim. He dispatched his buddy Travis Rivers on a mission to locate Janis in Austin, Texas, where she had been strumming her acoustic guitar and serenading audiences, and escort her back to San Francisco.
Knowing her past struggles with addiction in the foggy city of San Francisco, Helms and Rivers insisted she break the news to her parents personally. Helms chauffeured her to Port Arthur, idling in his car like a getaway driver, while she shared her exciting plans (and likely reassured her folks of her sobriety) with her folks. Afterward, they embarked on a lengthy journey back to San Francisco – a city of dreams, fame, and unfortunately, potent narcotics.