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Joan Osborne
Pretty Little Stranger
(Vanguard)
First Appeared in
The Music Box, January 2007, Volume 14, #1
Written by John Metzger
Joan Osborne has not had an easy time since she issued her mega-selling
single One of Us in 1995. She cannot, however, assume all of the blame
for her floundering career. Instead of capitalizing upon her success by quickly
following her breakthrough outing with a new recording, her third endeavor Righteous Love was delayed for five years because her label wouldn’t release
it. Consequently, Osborne found herself poised at the brink of irrelevancy, and
she nearly was a forgotten entity by the time she had secured a contract with
another company.
In her own way, though, Osborne managed to persevere, despite the challenges
she faced. She developed her own niche by establishing a well-received presence
on the Lilith Fair circuit. She also played a prominent role in a post-Jerry
Garcia rendition of the Grateful Dead, and her 2002 set How Sweet It Is
featured her interpretations of many classic rock and soul songs.
In creating her latest outing Pretty Little Stranger, Osborne, once
again, has switched direction. This time, she opted to utilize a
country-oriented framework for her material. Unfortunately, although this should
be a natural progression from her prior endeavors, the album lacks inspiration,
and it sounds terribly bland. Although her vocals are in fine form, the
arrangements that she employs are so tastefully generic that they completely
undermine the proceedings.
The cover songs on Pretty Little
Stranger — which include the Grateful Dead’s
Brokedown Palace, Patty Griffin’s What You Are, and Kris
Kristofferson’s Please Don’t Tell Me How the Story Ends — are utterly
lifeless, and while Osborne provides more of a spark to her original compositions,
they also have a tendency to meander along in a somnambulant fashion. Even the
guest appearances by Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, and Rodney Crowell don’t help,
though Sonny Landreth does succeed in injecting some fire into Dead Roses.
Regardless, Pretty Little Stranger is an instantly forgettable affair
that makes it plainer than ever that Osborne is on the verge of being remembered
as nothing more than a one-hit wonder. 
Pretty Little Stranger is available from
Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!
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Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2007 The Music Box
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