Credit: Darin Schnabel © 2015 courtesy RM Sotheby’s.
In 1968, singer Janis Joplin purchased a Porsche and then had Big Brother and the Holding Company roadie Dave Richards give it a paint job. His distinctive “History of the Universe” mural (if you can call it that) featured images of butterflies and jellyfish. When Joplin drove the car around her home, fans would recognize it and leave notes for her on her front windshield. For the last 20 or so years, the car has been on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. This week, it left for an auction at Sotheby’s where it’s expected to fetch $400,000.The auction takes place on Dec. 10 in New York City.

Fans of Joplin can take solace in the fact that other items from Joplin (clothing, music) are still in the collection and on display in the San Francisco case in the Cities and Sounds exhibit. The Rock Hall’s official statement follows:

“We’re grateful to the Joplin family for their generosity in lending us Janis’ Porsche. It’s been a fan favorite over the twenty years that it rotated in and out of our exhibitions. We’ll bring back the ZZ Top Eliminator to that space shortly as a part of our continuous updates of exhibits and artifacts. While we’ll miss having this amazing piece of psychedelic history, Janis will always be a part of the stories we share with our visitors.”

This article appears in Sep 16-22, 2015.

Jeff has been covering the Cleveland music scene for more than 25 years now. On a regular basis, he tries to talk to whatever big acts are coming through town. And if you're in a local band that he needs to hear, email him at jniesel@clevescene.com.