Joan Osborne has suffered from a tumultuous career ever since she reached her biggest mainstream success with the one hit people remember ? “(What If God Was) One Of Us.”
Being nominated five times at the Grammys for her “Relish” release and walking away with none was only a snippet of what was to come.
Right after the Lilith Fair phenomenon faded, Polygram Records dropped her, predicting that the market for female singer-songwriters was long gone and pop was the coming wave.
Osborne, surprised by this sudden and unexpected loss, took five years off to recuperate and sign onto the Interscope Records roster ? releasing her most accomplished effort musically, “Righteous Love,” amid the healthiest days of Napster.
Again, her record company dropped her.
This whole ordeal left Osborne as an unsigned one-hit wonder with two highly impressive albums under her belt.
However, most people remember her as the curly-haired pierced-nosed crooner with that song about god being a slob like one of us.
Fazed by all of this, the soulful folkie went indie with a new record company named Womanly Hips with the help of Compedia Music Group.
Osborne then released her latest LP, “How Sweet it Is,” which is an album of cover versions from soul artists, citing most of her influences one by one. This might not be a good decision after a long break. It’s also not a clever idea to generate airplay ? since all of the tracks are cover versions, and these rarely make their way onto the airwaves.
Soul classics appear from start to finish, with a heavy ’60s ambience. The track that will stand out the most is “Think,” a remake of Aretha Franklin’s legendary theme.
Although this version does not capture an ounce of the pizzazz it had, it still serves as a refreshing resurfacing of a timeless classic. The title track is a Marvin Gaye cover with strong emotional flow and simple, yet solid lyrics.
What would a soul collection be without Stevie Wonder? Osborne speaks for many music lovers when she covers “Love’s in Need of Love Today” from the monumental “Songs In The Key Of Life.”
This album merges with a bell-ringing chain of ditties. Otis Redding’s “These Arms Of Mine” shines, while Edwin Starr’s “War” is an aptly-timed number, that was previously covered by Bruce Springsteen during the Gulf War.
No legend is left uncovered by Osborne. Jimi Hendrix’s “Axis: Bold as Love” is a sweet stretch, and a Sly & The Family Stone number, “Everybody’s A Star,” closes the set.
“Sweet” is made of carefully handpicked tunes, lined up in the smoothest way possible, both lyrically and musically ? note that “Why Can’t We Live Together” immediately follows “War.”
This is a good album of unoriginal material. No new material after a long wait can kill a fan base, but this album has the ability to muster curiousity of what is to come out of this white girl with a whole lot of soul.
Joan Osborne will be at the Water Street Music hall this Saturday.
Al-Qatami can be reached at nalqatami@campustimes.org.
