Ok,so remember a few months ago when I sang the praises of Joan Osborne's amazing vocal ability after seeing her perform on the Motown DVD Standing in the Shadows of Motown?
I was reminded of this when I was perusing the bios of the staff over at the All Music Guide and read the following in Thom Jurek's bio:
"Jurek believes that singer Joan Osborne is one of the most gifted vocalists of our time, but has yet to be recorded properly. His not-so-secret ambition is to co-produce (with Ms. Osborne) the album that proves it."
This is the expert opinion of a man who listens to lots and lots and lots of music for a living.
Still don't believe me?
Listen for yourself (and ignore the creepy French intro - I have no idea):
And because you know I can't resist Hall & Oates, listen to the amazing restraint she shows on "Sara Smile" (Most people who cover this song ruin it by doing too much - in Joan's expert voice, it's perfect):
And the video quality's not so good here, but this slowed-down version of "Midnight Train to Georgia" is exemplary as well (listen to how beautifully she handles the "Superstar but he didn't get far" interlude in the middle - rather than hitting the rhythm too hard as most people do, she almost whispers the melody instead... gorgeous.) :
