Singer Joan Osborne was born on July 8, 1962, in the town of Anchorage, KY, but it wasn't until relocating to New York City in the early '90s (to study at N.Y.U.'s film school) that she began to take a singing career seriously after singing Billie Holiday's classic "God Bless the Child" at a local bar's "open mic night." In addition to Holiday, Osborne looked to such legendary vocalists as Etta James and Ray Charles as role models, as the up-and-coming singer decided not to cater to major record companies and formed her own label, Womanly Hips, which resulted in such releases as 1992's in-concert Soul Show, among others. But eventually, Osborne decided to sign on with a major label, Mercury, which in turn issued the singer's next release, Relish, in March of 1995. The album proved to have a long life, as almost a year after its initial release the track "One of Us" became a massive MTV and radio smash, camping out at the number one spot on the U.S. singles chart for two weeks and Relish eventually racked up sales of three million copies. Further tracks ("Right Hand Man" and "St.
last.fm page
fare you well, my honey
fare you well, my only true one
all the birds that were singing
are flown except you alone
going to leave this brokedown palace
on my hands and my knees
i will roll, roll, roll
make myself a bed by the waterside
in my time, in my time
i will roll, roll, roll
in a bed, in a bed
by the waterside i will lay my head
listen to the river sing sweet songs
to rock my soul
river gonna take me
sing me sweet and sleepy
sing me sweet and sleepy all the way back home
it's a far gone lullaby i sang many years ago
mamma mamma many worlds are come
since i first left home
going home, going home
by the waterside i will rest my bones
listen to the river sing sweet songs
to rock my soul
going to plant a weeping willow
on the banks clean edge
it will grow grow grow
sing a lullaby beside the water
lovers come and go
the river roll, roll, roll
fare you well, fare you well,
i love you more than words can tell
listen to the river sing sweet songs
to rock my soul