Joan Osborne

Sings the songs of Bob Dylan

NORTH ADAMS, MASSACHUSETTS — “Like Bonnie Raitt, a musician to whom she has often been compared, Ms. Osborne is a fiercely intelligent, no-nonsense singer-songwriter who is allergic to traditional pop sentimentality, though hardly devoid of feeling… She treats Mr. Dylan as fellow troubadour and roustabout, inventing the rules while traveling along an endless road. Mr. Dylan’s songs are so deeply ingrained in the culture, it’s a wonder more singers haven’t devoted entire concerts to his songs” (The New York Times). Joan Osborne sings the songs of Bob Dylan at MASS MoCA on Friday, July 7, at 8pm.

Osborne made a name for herself in 1995 with the success of her multi-platinum album Relish, which featured the hit “One of Us.” But it wasn’t until a couple of years after moving to New York City in the late ’80s that Osborne began to take her singing career seriously, when — after running out her film school scholarship — she found herself belting out Billie Holiday’s classic “God Bless the Child” during a local open-mic. In 1992, Osborne formed her own label, Womanly Hips, and released a few recordings before signing on with Mercury Records to release Soul Show: Live at Delta 88, in 1991. The success of “One of Us” in 1995, which spent two weeks at the number one spot on the U.S. singles chart, sold three million copies, and received numerous Grammy nominations, made Osborne a household name. After spending nearly a decade collaborating with the likes of Mavis Staples, Isaac Hayes, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, and Melissa Etheridge, Osborne went on to release several more albums, including Bring It On Home, which received a 2013 Grammy nomination for Best Blues Album. Her style encompasses multiple genres — including soul, pop, blues, jazz, and rock — to create a rugged yet melodic sound that is “simultaneously gritty and clear, smoky and dark while bright and warm” (Soul Train).

This year, Osborne sets out on tour performing Bob Dylan songs in anticipation of her newest album, Joan Osborne Sings the Songs of Bob Dylan. The project came about after Osborne performed an all-Dylan show while in residency in New York to great reception. Although she is no stranger to covering Dylan, it’s her first go at an in-depth revival of the material, and a successful one as Relix Magazine stated, “Osborne was an effusive and effective frontwoman, introducing the songs and speaking reverently of Dylan’s writing. She crooned and she belted. She sang sweetly and saucily and shook and banged a white, star-shaped tambourine.”

Join us at MASS MoCA for an evening of Bob Dylan classics from the gritty, bluesy rock stylings of Joan Osborne on Friday, July 7, at 8pm. Lickety Split, MASS MoCA’s café, serves up crisp salads, hearty soups, and lip-smacking pub fare. A full bar serves Bright Ideas Brewing beers and Berkshire Mountain Distillery spirits. Tickets are $25 for students and in advance, $35 day of, and $45 preferred. Tickets for all events are available through the MASS MoCA box office located on Marshall Street in North Adams, open 11am to 5pm every day except Tuesdays. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during box office hours or purchased online at massmoca.org.

Sponsorship
This performance is sponsored by The Porches Inn at MASS MoCA and Blue Q.

Images
High-resolution images of MASS MoCA’s winter/spring 2017 events are available through this link: bit.ly/mm2017summer.

About MASS MoCA
MASS MoCA is one of the world’s liveliest (and largest) centers for making, displaying, and enjoying today’s most important art, music, dance, theater, film, and video. MASS MoCA will nearly double its gallery space in spring 2017, with artist partnerships that include Laurie Anderson, the Louise Bourgeois Trust, Jenny Holzer, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, and James Turrell.

Gallery admission is $18 for adults, $16 for veterans and seniors, $12 for students, $8 for children 6 to 16, and free for children 5 and under through May 21, 2017. Members are admitted free year-round. The Hall Art Foundation’s Anselm Kiefer exhibition is seasonal and currently on view. For additional information, call 413.662.2111 x1 or visit massmoca.org.

Hours
11am to 5pm, closed Tuesdays

Summer Hours (beginning June 24)
10am to 6pm, Sundays–Wednesdays
10am to 7pm, Thursdays–Saturdays

Download the Joan Osborne press release