Joan Osborne's Exclusive Christmas Album



I can't believe this slipped by me! (...and thanks to Leo for letting me know about this and watchin' my back.) But then again, it's not like Joan has the best PR presence. If you go to her website (www.joanosborne.com), it takes you the Compendia Records website, which seemingly hasn't been updated since 2002. Luckily there is a good fan site out there keeping up on things.

Now if you're saying "lah dee dah, who cares about Joan Osborne..." I would plead with you to give her a chance! Sure One of Us was OVER PLAYED, but the rest of that album has some amazing stuff on it. After that, she layed low for quite a while (like any self-respecting artist would... uh, Alanis), but she has continued to leave her mark in the music industry, from contributing to compilations, to producing gospel albums, to touring as the front-person for the Grateful Dead! She's a solid performer with a powerful voice and the soul of a 60's Motown singer.

Here's Joan covering Dolly's "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind":

Anyway, this is a Holiday album called "Christmas Means Love" which is only being sold at Barnes & Noble. Check it out (you can hear samples on their website).

Here's the description from BN.com:

For Joan Osborne, Christmas is a bluesy, soulful affair, uplifting but tinged with melancholy. And it makes for stirring music. Christmas Means Love follows in the tradition of How Sweet It Is, Osborne's album of soul covers: Backed by a rootsy blues band and, on some songs, a female chorus, she sings her heart out. Or maybe she's just singing with her heart out, with direct emotion. Osborne's no show-off: She avoids superfluous pyrotechnics in favor of deep-pocket soul grooves that let these songs and carols simmer and smolder. On the airy "Christmas in New Orleans," Osborne is lighthearted and intimate, backed by acoustic guitars and a jazzy harmonica. On "Cherry Tree Carol" and "Children Go Where I Send Thee," she slips into gospel mode, the former song accented with slide guitar and organ, the latter with a slinky, swampy electric groove that nods to the Staple Singers. One minute, she's playing it straight and somber on the beautifully spare "Angels We Have Heard On High"; the next, she's sassy and sexy on the country blues of "What Do Bad Girls Get?" A mix of the secular ("Santa Claus Baby") and the sacred ("Away in a Manger"), Osborne's Christmas Means Love takes a wonderfully earthy approach to heavenly music. Steve Klinge

So I just posted this entry, and I started chatting with my "friend" Matty... I just had to share the transaction:

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Roger: Just posted about Joan Osbornes new Christmas CD... You need to go and buy it!!
Matty: is she still recording?
Matty: i thought that i saw her working at the Wal-Mart
Roger:
Roger: Dick.
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That boy cracks my shit up.,,

Posted: Wed - November 30, 2005 at 03:15 PM           |

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