Jeffrey Osborne
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Jeffrey Linton Osborne (born March 9, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and lyricist. He is the former drummer and lead singer of the American R&B/soul group L.T.D., with whom he began his musical career in 1970.


Biography


Early life and family

Osborne was born in
Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...
. Born the youngest of twelve children which consisted of six brothers and six sisters, Osborne's family was musically inclined. Some of Osborne's siblings went on to have music careers as well; his brother Billy Osborne was his band-mate in L.T.D. Osborne's father, Clarence "Legs" Osborne, was a popular trumpeter who played with
Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...
,
Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
and
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
. Osborne's father died in 1961 when Osborne was thirteen.


L.T.D.

Osborne began his music career in 1970 becoming a member of the American soul band "Love Men Ltd.", who would later become known as L.T.D. The band recorded
hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single, or simply hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record'' ...
s such as " (Every Time I Turn Around) Back in Love Again" (1977), "Concentrate on You," " Love Ballad" (1976) and " Holding On (When Love Is Gone)" (1978). At first, Osborne served as only a drummer, sharing lead vocal duties with his brother Billy Osborne but, by 1976, he became the group's primary lead vocalist. Osborne and his brother both left the band in late 1980 to start solo careers. Osborne sang lead vocals on L.T.D.'s three No. 1 songs on the U.S. R&B Chart and for the band's three gold and platinum albums.


Solo career

In 1982, Osborne sang the opening song "I Just Want to Be Your Friend" for the comedy film '' The Toy''. Osborne later released his self-titled debut album in 1982, which featured two hit singles, " On the Wings of Love" and "I Really Don't Need No Light" (1982), peaking at No. 29 and No. 39, respectively, on the
pop chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...
. It was followed the next year by '' Stay with Me Tonight'', his first solo gold album, which spawned four more hits, "Don't You Get So Mad" (No. 25), the title track (No. 30), "Plane Love" (No. 10 R&B, No. 6 dance), and "We're Going All the Way (No. 48). "Stay with Me Tonight" (May 1984, No. 18) and "On the Wings of Love" (August 1984, No. 11) would belatedly reach the UK Singles Chart. In 1985, Osborne wrote the
lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, ...
to the
Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...
hit " All at Once" (music by Michael Masser). He appeared on
USA for Africa "We Are the World" is a charity record, charity single recorded by the charity supergroup, supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album ''We Are the World (al ...
's fundraising single, "
We Are the World "We Are the World" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album '' We Are the World''. With sales in excess of 20 milli ...
" in 1985. Osborne sang the unreleased single "Everything Good Takes Time" which was part of a video tribute to
Julius Erving Julius Winfield Erving II (born February 22, 1950), commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is an American former professional basketball player. Erving helped legitimize the American Basketball Association (ABA), and he was the best-known player ...
('Dr. J') in 1987. He would later appear on '' Celebrity Duets'' in 2006, performing "On the Wings of Love" with Alfonso Ribeiro. Osborne lent his vocals to the theme song of the soap opera, '' Loving'', from 1992 to 1995 as well as the first-season theme song for the Kirstie Alley comedy '' Veronica's Closet''. Osborne had two more gold albums, ''Don't Stop'' and ''Emotional'', the latter of which had his highest-charting solo pop hit, " You Should Be Mine", which peaked at No. 13 in 1986. The following year, Osborne had the highest-charting hit of his career duetting with
Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...
on " Love Power", which reached No. 12 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and also topped the
Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...
singles chart. It was a turning point in his pop success, as his albums and singles began charting lower and lower. Osborne's 1988 single " She's on the Left" would be his final Hot 100 entry, as well as his only No. 1 R&B hit.


Later career

In the new millennium, he returned with a series of albums that, while far from the success he enjoyed in the 1980s, returned him to Adult R&B radio, scoring modest chart singles such as "Rest of Our Lives" (No. 75, 2003) and his cover of Barbara Mason's classic " Yes, I'm Ready" (No. 64, 2005). In 2008, Osborne sang the
national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...
before game 4 of the
NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...
at
Staples Center Crypto.com Arena (originally and colloquially known as Staples Center) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in downtown Los Angeles. Opened on October 17, 1999, as Staples Center, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along F ...
in Los Angeles, a feat which he repeated in 2009 before game 1 of the
2009 NBA Finals The 2009 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2008–09 season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. A best-of-seven playoff series starting on June 4 and concluding on June 14, 2009, ...
, and also again in 2010 before game 1 of the
NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...
, all at Staples Center. He also performed the national anthem prior to game 3 of the
1988 World Series The 1988 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1988 season. The 85th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the ...
, a feat he repeated two years later at game 3 of the
1990 World Series The 1990 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1990 season. The 87th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the defending champions and heavily favored American League (AL ...
, both at the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum in
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
. He also regularly sang the national anthem before
Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its 25-year existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1 ...
games. On March 1, 2010, Osborne appeared on '' The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love'' season finale, "After the Final Rose", singing his hit "On the Wings of Love" while Bachelor Jake Pavelka took to the dance floor with his newly announced fiancée, Vienna Girardi.


Personal life

Osborne has been married to Sheri Osborne since 1983, and together they have three daughters: Tiffany Nicole, Dawn and Jeanine Osborne; and a son, Jeffrey Jr. His wife passed away in 2025 at the age of 69.


Discography


Studio albums


Charted singles


Filmography

* ''The Young Messiah – Messiah XXI'' (2006) (DVD)


Awards and honors

In 2019 Osbourne was recognized with the Wheeler community Spirit Award, given to a member of the Providence, RI community who advocates for those who have fewer opportunities. Recipients are recognized for their efforts in four key areas: * Passion for equity and social justice, both locally and globally * Appreciation for and promotion of the benefits of education * Commitment to creating opportunities in the community for those who otherwise might not have a voice or an advocate * Resilience in the face of challenge and adversity. We ask each recipient to attend the annual Wheeler School Community Potluck Dinner, where the award is presented. The Family Potluck dinner is a school-wide event, sponsored by the Upper School's diversity club Students Involved in Cultural Awareness (SICA), the Office of Unity & Diversity, and the Wheeler Parent's Association. Osborne received the 2014 New England Pell Award for Artistic Excellence from Providence (Rhode Island)'s Trinity Repertory Company in honor of his artistic achievements and philanthropic work in Rhode Island.


Grammy Awards

The
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
s are awarded annually by the
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...
. Osborne has received four Grammy nominations.


See also

*'' L.T.D. discography''


References


External links

* * Allmusic.com biography
Soultracks.com profile of Jeffrey Osborne


a
Wenig-LaMonica Associates

VH1 bio on Jeffrey Osborne
{{DEFAULTSORT:Osborne, Jeffrey 1948 births Living people Musicians from Providence, Rhode Island 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers American male singers American soul singers American funk singers Private Music artists 21st-century African-American musicians