Joan Osborne

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.

Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb of Louisville, 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, Spin Doctors, Blues Traveler, and the Holmes Brothers, and artists like Chris Whitley, Frankie Paris, and Jeff Buckley.

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.

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 is best known for her recording of the Eric Bazilian-penned song "One of Us" from her debut album, Relish (1995).

Both the single and the album became worldwide hits and garnered a combined seven Grammy Award nominations.

She signed a recording contract with Rick Chertoff of Mercury Records, and released her second (and first major label) album Relish (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 in 1997.

She also provided some vocals for "Wayfaring Stranger" on Spearhead's 1997 album Chocolate Supa Highway.

In 2001, Osborne produced an album for her friends the Holmes Brothers, Speaking in Tongues, engineered by Grammy winner Trina Shoemaker 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, singing material mainly from Righteous Love.

Osborne has toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers and was featured in the documentary film about them, Standing in the Shadows of Motown (2002).

She was featured in the 2002 documentary film Standing in the Shadows of Motown and toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers.

She and her band accompanied the Dixie Chicks 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 covers.

She covered Dolly Parton's "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" on the 2003 tribute album Just Because I'm a Woman: Songs of Dolly Parton.

During 2005 and 2006, Osborne performed on numerous occasions with Phil Lesh and Friends.

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.

In May 2007, she issued Breakfast in Bed, produced by Tor Hyams, 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 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-penned "Spoonful" on Vivian Campbell's solo album Two Sides of If.

She is featured on the Holmes Brothers 2007 collection State of Grace performing "Those Memories of You", 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, the 2009 album and DVD by Cheap Trick.

In 2010, she was awarded the Woman of Achievement Award from Women's Project Theater.

In 2010, Osborne again produced an album for the Holmes Brothers on Alligator Records, Feed My Soul, which featured contributions from keyboard player Glenn Patscha.

She performed with The Waybacks at Merlefest, 2011, during the Hillside Album hour, featuring The Allman Brothers' Eat a Peach.

Her album Bring It On Home was released on March 27, 2012.

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 and Sheryl WuDunn's book.

Osborne was a member of Trigger Hippy, along with Steve Gorman, Tom Bukovac, Jackie Greene, and Nick Govrik.

It is a collection of vintage blues and soul covers, and it received a 2013 Grammy Awards nomination for Best Blues Album.

The band released their debut album on September 30, 2014.