Janis Ian - Stars (live 1974)

Old Grey Whistle Test.
Recorded 29th October 1974.

[@stevenkessler701]

I feel terrible that I have forgotten her voice and words. I am 72 now and found you again Janis and will never let you leave my heart and my soul. It is yours. Love

[@awakeningphilspost520]

me too

[@mebdoc]

Ditto !!

[@williampotter2098]

People on the internet always exaggerate anymore. It's the "Best" or "Amazing" or "Easiest". So please don't think that I'm using an unwarranted superlative here. But I listen to this song on occasion and each time, it stops me and I truly am stunned. No other singer I know of strips the cover off of their soul like Janis does on this song. And I remained stunned for a short while until life again intrudes. This woman is such a gift from wherever such gifts come from. Janis, I'm sorry for the suffering you lived through in your career for us. Thank you Janis Ian. You are special.

[@MrLisbonlions1967]

Hear hear

[@b0bthebuilder198]

Damn.. I'm not crying.. your crying..

[@williampotter2098]

@@b0bthebuilder198 Not sure what you're talking about. Who's crying?

[@ANTONIORODRIGUES-zt6yf]

Yeah

[@mangochutney4874]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@artnickel1664]

If her voice doesn't touch you then you have a problem receiving. One of the most beautiful voices I ever listened to in my 75 years...

[@LauraMalek-qd5dp]

True. If you can't love Janis you have no soul.

[@aliciarobertson4979]

Art, well said!

[@ggeemmiinnii]

Her little vibrato is just so tender and vulnerable sounding. Very special voice this woman possesses.

[@marilynfosseen1541]

And yet her voice can be so powerful when it's appropriate for the song, like in In the Winter and This Must Be Wrong.

[@ipsurvivor]

“Some make it when they’re young...before the world has done its dirty job” What a great line.

[@berlinbrownin]

I am in tears and I can't even calm down now that the song went off. I've been looking for this lady for over a decade behind a video I came across of her on somebody's blog from Australia one time. She sang "At seventeen", but I forgot that as well as her name, so for years looking for her was like needle and haystack. Hopeless. Yet she never left my mind, and after some time I didn't even remember why, but I kept wanting to find her. Tonight I said I said to myself "tonight's the night" and after fumbling in the dark for a while I decided to type Phoebe Snow into the search box because perhaps she kind of sounded like her, I couldn't remember... . And all the Phoebe Snow footage popped up and I listened to "Poetry Man" with a smile on my face, when there, right on top of the page, above all the other videos, as an advertisement, sat a screen showing a pretty Afro clad girl and the only thing it said was "At Seventeen" Mix. And I knew before I pressed Play I had found her! And when she sang I was overjoyed and at peace. For I had found her!!! Then I clicked on this video because it said 1974, the year I was born, and almost the moment she started singing the flood gates opened and I have been sobbing ever since. I can't even describe what it is, I just understand now why I kept looking for an artist with no information whatsoever to go on, whose grip on me never loosened even when her outline became more and more blurry. It's like a home coming. This is what it must be like to run into your long lost love again. Such a weight off! Janis Ian! What an absolute pleasure to finally meet you!!

[@intlprofs]

Good for you, now you have again this rarest talent.

[@jorgepozotobar5669]

!!Entiendo y siento tan bien lo que dices berlinbrownin. A pesar de que yo "siempre" (desde 1980) supe quien era y sus canciones me ocurre lo mismo cada vez que me encuentro con Star y Seventeen. Es lña voz perfecta para dos canciones perfectas que son capaces de lllegar al alma y romper tu resistencia!!! Janis Ian es de alguna forma parte de mi vida, de mi historia.

[@kathleenbyers1776]

berlinbrownin I feel the same way.

[@MoMoMyPup10]

I'd love to hear the rest of this story.

[@johncrawford1410]

berlinbrownin what a great tribute to Janis. Try the album Between the Lines. You are in for a treat exploring her music.

[@james-pierre7634]

Janis Ian is a very unique person and singer. She’s a writer of her emotions both melancholy and cerebral spoken and song with power poetic lyrics. In other words she is so damn talented.

[@DougWild]

Nina Simone pays tribute to Janis Ian in her performance of "Stars" at Montreux. No need to say more.

[@eduardoalcala8310]

ANd what a version it was from Nina, omg!

[@rbnumbs5853]

What a performance!

[@KaterCarlinki]

I also love the French version by Francoise Hardy. It's been so true for her. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fJ_OYn59gZx6bLM

[@vernonhedge4530]

Where were you when the title was written?

[@DougWild]

@@vernonhedge4530 Vernon, if that question is addressed to me, I'm an old man. I can barely remember where I was 5 minutes ago. I only know that certain voices stopped me dead in my tracks and Janis Ian, Nina Simone, Joe Williams and Roberta Flack are at the top of that list.

[@garymauro8869]

One of the most beautiful and saddest songs ever written

[@alexanderschoemaker5853]

Janis Ian knows how to break your heart in the sweetest way. She rips it apart and brings you to desperate tears, and you thank her for it.

[@williampotter2098]

No. She just sings her soul, bare of artifice. She isn't trying to "break your heart". It isn't about you at all. She just is singing to get her crushing feelings out because she has to.

[@james-pierre7634]

@@williampotter2098 A song is sung to express emotions or feelings that are shared with others. How the listener responds is up to the individual without being judgmental or condescending.

[@hdebard]

yes

[@frednurk8590]

As a child her voice beguiled me. Fifty years later her voice still makes me weep. Gorgeous

[@kevinlambert2756]

She has a sadness and a wisdom beyond her years...💜

[@DudeWatIsThis]

I love the deadpan delivery. It's like: "I don't need to use my face muscles, it's my heart who's talking now."

[@richardsmith3121]

I remember watching this when it was broadcast. As a young schoolboy I was completely mesmerised and bought the album from my pocket money. I have all of her recordings, and seen her live many times. She is such a lovely lady and I’m proud to have been with her nearly all my life.

[@jkalarkhall]

Me too!

[@barbarabaldwin7120]

SAME HERE-I'VE LOVED THIS SONG A LONG TIME!

[@caryncleary7857]

Is anyone listening,,,,,, oh the beauty and sadness of life

[@arthurjenkin8623]

A very underrated and unrecognized artist in my mind. She always told a story that made sense to me. Go love her for her words and the pleasure she brought forth. She brought REALITY to feelings and experience many have not experienced if that makes sense to anyone.

[@BjBeam]

Please don't put her in the past tense. She just came out with a new album and is currently on tour.

[@williampotter2098]

Janis just sang things that many people never understand and therefore never appreciate. But she was recognized by many.

[@laurenlake5204]

"They'll never know the pain of living with a name you never owned" My favorite line. As someone who loves golden age Hollywood and has read so much about, it makes me think of all those old stars whose careers or lives came to sad ends.

[@dean5220]

Hello Lauren, How are you doing?

[@brunocorticelli3494]

It's so beautiful that it hurts !

[@suziewade]

It’s all too much! The sheer pleasure of watching Janis singing stars almost kills me.am crying so much,beyond beautiful.xx

[@JannetteRoadsStevens]

such a sincere, heartfelt, quietly powerful lyricist and singer..sweet and deep.

[@christopherlococo2483]

Janis, You play a fine guitar, and that eloquent voice, I can listen to all day.

[@johnlux6635]

Yes both of those but for me the words are the most important

[@bobmace5189]

I'm sorry it took me 40 years to find this song and the deep sentiment that Janis puts into her music. She and I are only a month apart in age, but I feel like a child listening to her music. I could love her in a heartbeat. Thank you, Janis.

[@fizzgum]

+bob mace You're not the only one bob :)

[@brianthompson6703]

Agree entirely with your closing comments BOB …..Janis , you're the BEST !!!!

[@voulafisentzidis8830]

The impact of hearing Janis' lyrics as impressionable teenagers is long-lasting. Still worth listening to decades later. Wonderful.

[@williampotter2098]

Don't be sorry it took you 40 years. Be happy you have found a treasure. If it weren't for old musical treasures there would be none. No company in the music industry would look twice at this song now. But great music stays alive. We can listen to it forever.

[@cliveyboy44]

Many years later, I too have found this amazing clip.. and yes, I feel the same about J

[@IIIlllBravo]

the sad mellow 70.s..... todays generation cant bear to hear this .... and that's truly sad

[@MrDuffmann22]

whoa, this is a REAL song. This star hasn't come and gone in my book, idk about anyone else. What a writer!

[@drewsagar2634]

Fell in love with Janis at fourteen That is I think she was fourteen & I was 12 . When she did society’s Child When everyone was still raving about Joplin I was smitten with Janis Ian. Been smitten ever since

[@bartonsmith44]

The lady with the saddest eyes i have ever seen. Like a baby you want to wrap your arms around her and tell her that everything is alright. i saw an interview she gave and it left me in tears and i'm an old rugged but she brought me to tears. i like to think that she had some incredibly happy days for she is everyones angel.

[@klauskarnath2935]

Wonderful Voice....i love her....

[@fuga9]

What a wonderful humanity song..she touch me and this songs will comfort many people

[@jasonrichardson1208]

Wow! This is an incredibly moving performance. The expression on Janis' face as she sings is almost too much for me to handle. I've heard it said that beauty is sometimes born of pain....surely this is such a time. 🥺

[@Ciotat1895]

I have always loved this song by Janis Ian. Melancholic but beautiful. So rich, direct that it hurts. A close friend of mine’s sister, Nicky, gave me tape of it to me shortly after my brother died in a tragic car accident in San Diego,California, back in 1973. This recording being from the Old Grey Whistle Test in 1974. So sadly Nicky has now died, a life touched by melancholy. She will be a star gone out with a blaze but someone whose life touched all her family and friends.

[@janebden9071]

A beautiful song...

[@evaverrips5216]

Oh Janis your voice is so amazing and your songs are a comfort for me for a very long time. Thank you

[@Wildevis]

That velvet voice always gets to me and the sadness in her music

[@rfrolicarts]

It's incredible that someone so young had the life experience to write such an honest and world-weary song. Her and Laura Nyro both had something special at a precocious age.

[@ReeseMac]

That is very true.

[@captainkangaroo4301]

Indeed. Jackson Brown wrote some very insightful songs by the time he was 16. Incredible talents all.

[@TheMarkoPolo2011]

Joni Mitchell too with Both Sides Now

[@richkroberts]

Yes, Janis is an old soul.

[@Seriph1]

Exactly, though all of us who has been 17 remember how intense our feelings were. Our "galaxy" may have been only the size of our tiny community or youth group, or class, or street .... but everything in that galaxy was still filled with a universe of feelings, perhaps made larger because our feelings were larger. But Janis (and the rest of us) survived it and went on, hopefully to find happiness. I cherish meeting her music when I needed to. It was a blessing I will never forget. Sadly, my nation's highest cause of death in young people is suicide ... I must work harder to help these beautiful souls to believe of their pain: "this too shall pass" Hugs to you

[@tullsongs]

One of the very best Whistle Test performances...has you gripped from the very first note.

[@robertmoll1675]

She is a word smith! As a writer myself. Ive never written a sentence or paragraph as well as she.. And her voice is silk...

[@sayusayme7729]

So grateful I grew up with such amazing artists as Janis ♥️

[@soltanalosmi475]

The absolute truth of being famous in general. I met some local famous guys and they almost hate the light. Yes it gives you so much but also take a lot.

[@casseyanzio2568]

as a male that never listens to thr words of songs..and only appreciates music for the melody or hook, this performance has me amazed. her intensity and genuine delivery, like a.poet, has blown my mind..I even Google the lyrics to read along and try understand the meaning. is my morning and evening jam, daily. go janice. you rock gurl

[@stevenrandolph5929]

The most amazing part of this woman is the words and then music. She plays so many instruments and really well. I was astonished at her music instrument prowess. She is such a great talent. All these years later and I’m still in awe.

[@DouglasModig]

A genius. A wonderful poet and a distinguished person...

[@MrJosephdance]

Why on earth hasn't this got more views? Saw the Nina Simone 'Montreux' version on youtube which led me here. Amazing performance.

[@papertooth.]

Im so happy i found this. Listening to this is one of the most true things I've ever experienced.

[@kristenscheid-fox4389]

Wow, I'm absolutely speechless. Brilliant.

[@manoocal]

Reading all the comments, searching for words and nothing comes but tears.

[@enya6951]

I was never one for singing what I really feel Except tonight I'm bringing everything I know that's real Stars, they come and go, they come fast or slow They go like the last light of the sun, all in a blaze And all you see is glory Hey but it gets lonely there when there's no one here to share We can shake it away, if you'll hear a story People lust for fame like athletes in a game, we break our collarbones and come up swinging, some of us are downed some of us are crowned, and some are lost and never found But most have seen it all, they live their lives in sad cafes and music halls They always come up singing Some make it when they're young, before the world has done its dirty job and later on someone will say "You've had your day, now you must make way" But they'll never know the pain of living with a name you never owned or the many years forgetting what you know too well That the ones who gave the crown have been let down You try to make amends without defending Perhaps pretending you never saw the eyes of grown men of twenty-five that follow as you walk and ask for autographs Or kiss you on the cheek and you never can believe they really loved you Some make it when they're old (Perhaps they have a soul they're not afraid to bare or perhaps there's nothing there) Stars, they come and go, they come fast they come slow They go like the last light of the sun, all in a blaze And all you see is glory But most have seen it all, they live their lives in sad cafes and music halls They always have a story Some women have a body men will want to see and so they put it on display Some people play a fine guitar, I could listen to them play all day Some ladies really move across the stage and gee, they sure can dance I guess I could learn how, if I gave it half a chance But I always feel so funny when my body tries to soar And I seem to always worry about missing the next chord I guess there isn't anything to put up on display Except the tunes, and whatever else I say But anyway, that isn't really what I meant to say I meant to tell a story, I live from day to day Stars, they come and go, they're coming fast they come slow They go like the last light of the sun, all in a blaze And all you see is glory But most have seen it all, who live their lives in sad cafes and music halls And we always have a story So if you don't lose patience with my fumbling around I'll come up singing for you, even when I'

[@jarasimonson4040]

I´ll come up singing for you, even when I´m down..

[@eeddingt]

Just recently discovered how amazingly talented Janis is. This is a great performance. The comments are amazing too. She really moves people.

[@vickiecanupp7815]

Sheer and Beautiful Poetry with the perfect voice to sing it.....

[@yedediyahkingdavidson]

WOW WITH TEARS!!!!!!!

[@josephcox736]

Swoon. God I love this incredibly talented person.

[@biriyaniferrari165]

just discovering, so beautiful ,,,,,...

[@stanleypugh8201]

For those songs that give us part of their soul we carry as memories (we all have a story)

[@CarlLv]

Beautiful

[@anthonydavid5121]

I'm just dying over this ... OMG. I love this woman

[@nursegrace7492]

She is an exquisite performer. So very, very personal...

[@sgtpreppy7148]

the man behind her...stunned and in awe...says it all...

[@bjsteinhoff9810]

A masterpiece! ✨✨

[@jameswood1818]

Thank you, Janice, for taking the time to teach me how to finger pick back in the summer of 1989 in Ithaca NY. I still play folk, and owe a lifetime of gratitude to you...

[@nulixity6711]

RAAAAAAAAAAH

[@KingdomofYah12]

I truly believe this is one of the best written songs I ever listened to because it's real life, an janis has a understanding of this at a young age an packed it in to her writing, thats the brilliance of janin ian. Simply remarkable 😉🙏

[@aliciarobertson4979]

Yes, it’s still pure bliss listening to this so many years since it was first released.

[@rommelbernardo4204]

This is too beautiful for us mortals.

[@aalanireland3982]

This is one off the beautiful song of all times. Today artistist do not have a clue to write a song about real life in the music industry . They have it to easy. Love yore music.

[@isee5740]

I have always loved the stories in your music that touched my heart. You are a beautiful soul and at 17 you were as beautiful as any debutante!

[@RC-Flight]

WOW I don’t think that I have ever heard this song before! I’m mesmerized by her singing and guitar playing. This is such a grabbing beautifully melancholy song.

[@pattithompsett9540]

so hauntingly beautiful..

[@christopherlococo2483]

I just close my eyes, lay my head back, and drift away with the song. Such a beautiful ride it is Janus, thank you.

[@keithbuchanan986]

If this song doesn’t shatter your heart to pieces then I don’t want to know you. Janis is the Queen of emulating sorrow and such a beautiful soul. She was rip roaring and full of fun and mischief when I had caught her act back in the 90’s.

[@marbo6429]

This woman is awesome...she can sing with such feeling that she really makes me feel

[@joycecattanach4002]

Beautiful, in every sense .

[@skadefryd8281]

A favorite since it was first released. Stars has remained on every playlist I have created, to this day. Ms. Ian is a true genius and has made this world a better place. Thank you, Janis Ian.

[@elianlondono1563]

I'm 20 and I picture myself at a very old age listening to this song, looking back to a whole life full of experiences. When we least think, life goes by. I wonder what older people feel when listening to this wonderful composition. 🤔

[@debra13]

For me, sad. I didn't soar.

[@OldMan1962]

Full of hope that we have been blessed with such talent.

[@KingdomofYah12]

I just fell in love with you again Janis ,exceptional writing singing, song and soul 🙏🎼🕎

[@alainmelchior5808]

Une des plus belles choses que j'aie jamais entendues. Un vrai joyau !

[@stewartallan1440]

Such an intimate song...I love Janis

[@nickharris9761]

Superb song and she delivers it so well. Janis : a great songwriter. Nina did a fab job.

[@reddstevenbaladad8709]

janis ian great female legendary soft rock artist great voice essential songs 🤗

[@bhdickstein]

She is a gift to the heart

[@eduardoalcala8310]

and the soul

[@dougscrivens4002]

Haven't heard this for years. Oh man what a depth of feeling and such sadness. Can bring a big guy to tears.

[@yacovgolian363]

One of the greatest artists ever.

[@frankmalfitano282]

Saw her at The Roxy on Sunset Blvd when AT 17 was a hit, beautiful literate writer, touching, intimate performer, vastly underrated!

[@tedspencer3385]

My first job at 15 was at a pizza parlor when At seventeen came out. The customers played it so often, so one night I played the flip side of the 45 and found this GEM. It is one of the best songs I have ever heard.

[@patwheeler4940]

miles ahead of at17

[@WinterWilson]

Utterly beautiful. Thanks you Janis Ian x

[@tonifrancis2189]

Such a beautiful song. Thank you, Janis.

[@Suzy35895]

What a BEAUTIFUL SOUL 💛 AMAZING ARTIST 🥰

[@robertbrittenham5475]

A very melancholy song . . . but my favorite penned by Janis Ian. Such an insightful writer and poet. Still putting out great music, too!

[@paulwright8322]

For all the "stars" we have loved and lost recently...

[@wwagpoi]

Wow! I don't think I've ever seen such a moving performance

[@ruudvanmontfoort2132]

after 42 years, and still such a beautiful (and sad) song.

[@douglasauker8469]

Bought this album in '75 and it's been an enduring favourite ever since.

[@lynnadams7017]

Anything Janis Ian does is great

[@presleyslave]

A sublime song and performance.

[@dhenderson195961]

Remember watching this in 74, loved it then love it now, all these years later. In those day's I was a huge rock fan, but hearing this just blew me away, still moves me to tears.

[@janettodd1924]

I've been following Janis since Society's Child. The best writing and voice for folk of all times. There's something that touches the soul in every song.

[@user-mr9uy9gj5l]

That song takes me back to the 1960s. When it was released I was 15. Janis was 16.

[@dendromorphe1646]

Bouleversante Janis ! Sublime couple chanson- auteure-interprète !

[@jamesdolan4042]

Now this is aJanis Ian classic for the ages.

[@MrLisbonlions1967]

I’m have no words except Thank you 🙏

[@LucindaSings]

Devastaingly beautiful...authentic and deeply moving. Nina Simone brought me here too. The song is just genius

[@TheGinger5678]

Ian is beyond epic...that voice and her phrasing is like no other...thank you Jan

[@michaelboss7968]

I have the album "In between the Lines" and I have played it a thousand times and I have cry a thousand times. she's beautiful like a flower . I hate that we get old and died. I wish we could live forever. People like her deserved it.

[@TheSleepbabysleep]

So beautiful, I can listen to it all day long, every day!

[@cadmarbusinesssuite9155]

Brilliant and breathtaking.

[@evanleehome2178]

Great performance, great camera work

[@rafaelfavila5635]

One of the great Singer, Song Writers of my time, will always be a fan.

[@markchasse8992]

What an artist!

[@taracrowley8968]

if you haven't seen Janice now, you must. Saw her in 2013 in a tiny northern California town. She was as brilliant as ever.

[@gijsschubert7901]

I saw her around 2011 in the town of Gouda, Netherlands.... this lovely lady travelled all the way to rainy Holland to sing for us... incredible. What a fantastic, moving song....