Joan Elizabeth Osborne (born July 8, 1962) is an American singer, songwriter, and interpreter of music, having recorded and performed in various popular American musical genres including rock, pop, soul, R&B, blues, and country. She is best known for her recording of the Eric Bazilian-penned song " One of Us" from her debut album, ''

Relish A relish is a cooked and pickled product made of chopped vegetables, fruits or herbs and is a food item typically used as a condiment to enhance a staple. Examples are chutneys and the North American relish, a pickled cucumber jam eaten with ho ...

'' (1995). Both the single and the album became worldwide hits and garnered a combined seven

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

nominations. Osborne has toured with

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

sidemen

the Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

and was featured in the documentary film about them, '' Standing in the Shadows of Motown'' (2002).

Biography

Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb of

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

, Osborne moved to New York City in the late 1980s to study filmmaking at New York University, where she had classes with legendary documentarian George Stoney, among others. Osborne was paying her own way through college and taking time off to earn money for another semester when, by chance, she sang at an open mic night at the Abilene Café. The other musicians encouraged her to return, and she began singing weekly at the Abilene's open mic and at other blues open mics in NYC's East Village. She soon became immersed in NYC's live music scene, forming her own band and playing in nightclubs alongside groups like the Sweetones,

Surreal McCoys Surreal may refer to: *Anything related to or characteristic of Surrealism, a movement in philosophy and art * "Surreal" (song), a 2000 song by Ayumi Hamasaki * ''Surreal'' (album), an album by Man Raze *Surreal humour, a common aspect of humor * ...

Spin Doctors Spin Doctors are an American alternative rock band from New York City, best known for their early 1990s hits "Two Princes" and "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong", which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart at No. 7 and N ...

Blues Traveler Blues Traveler (formerly known as "The Establishment" or "The Black Cat Jam" or "The Establishment Blues Band") is an American rock band that formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. They are known for extensive use of segues in live performan ...

, and the

Holmes Brothers The Holmes Brothers were an American musical trio originally from Christchurch, Virginia. Mixing sounds from blues, soul, gospel, country, and rhythm & blues, they have released twelve studio albums, with three reaching the top 5 on the '' ...

, and artists like

Chris Whitley Christopher Becker Whitley (August 31, 1960 – November 20, 2005) was an American blues/rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. During his 25-year career he released more than a dozen albums, had two songs in the top 50 of the Billboard mains ...

Frankie Paris Frankie may refer to: People * Frankie (musician), indie pop musician from Los Angeles, California *Frankie Abernathy (1981–2007), American MTV Real World cast member * Frankie Adams (born 1994), Samoan New Zealand actress *Frankie Avalon (born ...

, and

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...

. In 1991, she formed her own record label, Womanly Hips, to release her first full-length album, '' Soul Show: Live at Delta 88'', and she began to tour around the Northeast, building a devoted regional following. She signed a recording contract with Rick Chertoff of

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it ...

, and released her second (and first major label) album ''

'' (1995), which became a hit on the strength of the single " One of Us". "Right Hand Man" and " St. Teresa" were minor hits, and "Spider Web" also received radio play. Osborne wrote and directed the second music video for "St. Teresa". Osborne was a co-headliner for the

Lilith Fair Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 ...

in 1997. In 2001, Osborne produced an album for her friends the

, ''Speaking in Tongues'', engineered by Grammy winner

Trina Shoemaker Kathryn "Trina" Shoemaker is an American mixer, record producer and sound engineer responsible for producing/engineering and/or mixing records for bands such as Queens of the Stone Age, Sheryl Crow, Emmylou Harris, Something for Kate, Nanci Griff ...

and featuring backing vocals from Catherine Russell, Maydie Miles, and Osborne. The album was released by Alligator Records. In 2001, Osborne appeared on ''

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American live music television program recorded and produced by Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and is the only television show to ...

'', singing material mainly from '' Righteous Love''. In a brief interview segment at the end of the episode, Osborne reflects on her gladness to have gotten out of the limelight of her mid-1990s stardom. She was featured in the 2002 documentary film '' Standing in the Shadows of Motown'', and toured with

sidemen

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

. She and her band accompanied the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) an ...

for a national tour in the summer of 2003, during which time she also joined veteran San Francisco jam-rockers The Dead as a vocalist, and released her fourth album, titled ''How Sweet It Is'', a collection of classic rock and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

covers.

Phil Lesh, Joan Osbourne and Bob Weir - June 17, 2003

During 2005 and 2006, Osborne performed on numerous occasions with

Phil Lesh and Friends Phil Lesh and Friends is an American rock band formed and led by Phil Lesh, former bassist of the Grateful Dead. Phil & Friends is not a traditional group in that several different lineups of musicians have played under the name, including gr ...

. Her vocals were featured prominently on the album '' Live at the Warfield''. She continues to make appearances with the band. In February 2007, she appeared on the ''

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a div ...

''. In May 2007, she issued '' Breakfast in Bed'', produced by

Tor Hyams Tor Hyams (born May 28, 1969) is an American songwriter and record producer. History Hyam's roster of artists include Joan Osborne, Edwin McCain, Vivian Campbell, Billy Gibbons, Lou Rawls, Rachel York, Lisa Loeb, Perry Farrell and Deborah Harry. ...

, a return to the soul music that she had covered on ''How Sweet It Is''. ''Breakfast in Bed'' also featured the two songs (" Heatwave" and " What Becomes of the Brokenhearted") that she had covered for the film '' Standing in the Shadows of Motown''. The same year, Osborne appeared as a featured guest in the third season of the ''

Transatlantic Sessions Transatlantic Sessions is the collective title for a series of musical productions by Glasgow-based Pelicula Films Ltd, funded by- and produced for BBC Scotland, BBC Four and RTÉ of Ireland. The productions comprise collaborative live performan ...

'' television series, performing "Saint Teresa", "Holy Water", and "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends". Osborne sang lead vocals on the cover of the

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

-penned "

Spoonful "Spoonful" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and first recorded in 1960 by Howlin' Wolf. Called "a stark and haunting work", it is one of Dixon's best known and most interpreted songs. Etta James and Harvey Fuqua had a pop and R&B reco ...

" on Vivian Campbell's solo album ''Two Sides of If''. She also provided some vocals for "Wayfaring Stranger" on Spearhead's 1997 album '' Chocolate Supa Highway''. She covered

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album ...

's "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" on the 2003 tribute album '' Just Because I'm a Woman: Songs of Dolly Parton''. She is featured on the Holmes Brothers 2007 collection ''State of Grace'' performing "

Those Memories of You "Those Memories of You" is a song written by Alan O'Bryant. It was first recorded by Bill & James Monroe in 1978 and later released as a single by Pam Tillis in 1986, whose version peaked at #55 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart. In 1 ...

", an old Alan O'Bryant bluegrass tune. Osborne released the studio album '' Little Wild One'' in September 2008. She performed as a guest vocalist on ''

Sgt. Pepper Live ''Sgt. Pepper Live'' is a performance by the American rock band Cheap Trick with a full orchestra, released on August 25, 2009, in commemoration of the 42nd anniversary of the release of the historic album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Ban ...

'', the 2009 album and DVD by

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. The current lineup of the band consists of Zander, Nielsen a ...

. In 2010, she was awarded the Woman of Achievement Award from

Women's Project Theater WP Theater (formerly known as Women's Project Theater) is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater based in New York City. It is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing and promoting the work of female-ident ...

. She performed with

The Waybacks The Waybacks are an American four-piece band based in the San Francisco Bay area of California. Their style has been alternately described as Americana, Progressive bluegrass, rock-n-roll, folk, and acoustic mayhem. They described themselves ...

at Merlefest, 2011, during the Hillside Album hour, featuring

The Allman Brothers The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guitar ...

' ''Eat a Peach''. In 2010, Osborne again produced an album for the

on Alligator Records, ''

Feed My Soul The Holmes Brothers were an American musical trio originally from Christchurch, Virginia. Mixing sounds from blues, soul, gospel, country, and rhythm & blues, they have released twelve studio albums, with three reaching the top 5 on the ''Billb ...

'', which featured contributions from keyboard player Glenn Patscha. Her album ''Bring It on Home'' was released on March 27, 2012. It is a collection of vintage blues and soul covers, and it received a

2013 Grammy Awards The 55th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 10, 2013, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012. The show was broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. ET ...

nomination for ''Best Blues Album''. In September 2012, Osborne was featured in a campaign called "30 Songs / 30 Days" to support '' Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide'', a multi-platform media project inspired by

Nicholas Kristof Nicholas Donabet Kristof (born April 27, 1959) is an American journalist and political commentator. A winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, he is a regular CNN contributor and an op-ed columnist for ''The New York Times''. Born in Chicago, Kristof wa ...

and

Sheryl WuDunn Sheryl WuDunn (born November 16, 1959) is an American business executive, writer, lecturer, and Pulitzer Prize winner. A senior banker focusing on growth companies in technology, new media and the emerging markets, WuDunn also works with double ...

's book. Osborne was a member of Trigger Hippy, along with

Steve Gorman Steve Gorman (born August 17, 1965) is an American musician and sports talk radio host. Gorman is best known as the former drummer of the American rock and roll band The Black Crowes He spent time as the drummer for British rock band Stereophoni ...

Tom Bukovac Tom Bukovac is an American session musician and producer. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in nearby Willowick, Ohio. He has been a Nashville-based musician since 1992. He previously owned 2nd Gear, a used music consignment shop in Sou ...

Jackie Greene Jackie Greene (born November 27, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He has a solo career and became a member of The Black Crowes in 2013, though the band broke up in 2015 before he could contribute any studio work. Early life ...

, and

Nick Govrik Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealing * Short for nickname Places ...

. The band released their debut album on September 30, 2014. She announced her departure from the group on her blog in October 2018. On October 31, 2015, Osborne and

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel singer, actress, and civil rights activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers (she is the last surviving member of that band). Duri ...

performed in Washington, D.C. at The George Washington University's Lisner Auditorium as part of their Solid Soul Tour. Joan Osborne (2018) (cropped)

Osborne has a long history of political activism, in particular with

Planned Parenthood Federation of America The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reven ...

. She began volunteering as a PPFA clinic escort in NYC in the 1980s, has organized benefit concerts for the group, and was honored as a PPFA "Woman of the Year" in 1997 after she promoted Planned Parenthood from the Lilith Fair stage in Houston, TX, despite being expressly forbidden to do so by the arena's owners, who then blacklisted her from the venue. Osborne released the original album ''Love and Hate'' in 2014, and followed up in 2017 with ''Songs of Bob Dylan'', another cover album. Her latest offering, ''Trouble and Strife'', was released in 2020.

Personal life

Raised a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

, Osborne distanced herself from that institution after

childhood A child (plural, : children) is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers ...

, particularly influenced by telling her parents that she wished to become a priest only to learn that tradition forbade it. As an adult, she regards herself as skeptical of large-scale

organized religion Organized religion, also known as institutional religion, is religion in which belief systems and rituals are systematically arranged and formally established. Organized religion is typically characterized by an official doctrine (or dogma), ...

and identifies as a " spiritual person" directly influenced by both

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

. Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb of

, Osborne moved to New York City in the late 1980s, Osborne has stated that she feels a particular attachment to the city, particularly the

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. Her interest in her neighborhood of

Boerum Hill Boerum Hill (pronounced ) is a small neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bounded by Schermerhorn Street to the north and Fourth Avenue to the east. The western border is variously given as either S ...

’s culture, history, and society has multiple influences on her music. As well, she has expressed admiration for

American poetry American poetry refers to the poetry of the United States. It arose first as efforts by American colonists to add their voices to English poetry in the 17th century, well before the constitutional unification of the Thirteen Colonies (although ...

, especially the works of

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

, and cited that as a major inspiration for her

songwriting A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

. Joan Osborne has a daughter, born in December 2004.

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards

{, class="wikitable" , - ! colspan="6" align="center",

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

, - ! Year ! style="width:200px;" , Work ! style="width:300px;" , Award ! width="65" , Result ! width="20" , Ref , - , rowspan="5" ,

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...

, Herself ,

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...

, , rowspan=5 align="center", Recording Academy – Grammy Awards (https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/joan-osborne) , - , ''

'' ,

Album of the Year Album of the Year, often abbreviated to AOTY, may refer to: Awards * ARIA Award for Album of the Year, Australia * Brit Award for British Album of the Year, UK * Grammy Award for Album of the Year, US * Juno Award for Album of the Year, CA * Lati ...

, , - , rowspan="2" , " One of Us" ,

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

, , - ,

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...

, , - , " St. Teresa" , rowspan="2" ,

Best Female Rock Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for works (songs or albums) conta ...

, , - ,

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

, "Spider Web" , , align="center", , - ,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, '' Bring It on Home'' , Best Blues Album , , align="center", , - *" One of Us" was also nominated for the

Grammy Award for Song of the Year The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. The Song of the Year award is one of the four most prestigious categories at t ...

. The nomination is credited to the songwriter, Eric Bazilian.

Other awards and nominations

{, class=wikitable , - !scope="col", Year !scope="col", Awards !scope="col", Work !scope="col", Category !scope="col", Result !scope="col", Ref. , - , rowspan="2" , 1996 ,

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an a ...

, rowspan="2" , Herself , Best Female , , align="center", , - , Žebřík Music Awards , Best International Female , , align="center", , - , rowspan="2" , 1997 , rowspan="2" ,

Brit Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

, rowspan="2" , Herself , International Female Solo Artist , , rowspan="2" align="center", , - , International Breakthrough Act , , - , 2010 ,

, Herself , Woman of Achievement Award , , align="center", , -

Discography

* ''

'' (1995) * '' Early Recordings'' (1996) * '' Righteous Love'' (2000) * '' How Sweet It Is'' (2002) * ''Christmas Means Love'' (2005) * '' Pretty Little Stranger'' (2006) * '' Breakfast in Bed'' (2007) * '' Little Wild One'' (2008) * '' Bring It on Home'' (2012) * ''Love and Hate'' (2014) * ''Songs of Bob Dylan'' (2017) * ''Trouble and Strife'' (2020)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Osborne, Joan 1962 births American women pop singers American country singer-songwriters American women country singers Bisexual feminists Bisexual musicians Bisexual women American women rock singers Feminist musicians Interscope Records artists LGBT people from Kentucky Living people Musicians from Louisville, Kentucky Mercury Records artists Vanguard Records artists Singer-songwriters from Kentucky Country musicians from Kentucky Guitarists from Kentucky Kentucky women musicians 21st-century American women singers 20th-century American guitarists People from Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Universal Music Group artists 21st-century American singers 20th-century American women guitarists