The Orpheum Theater presents an evening with Dar Williams and Joan Osborne Wednesday, September 21, 2011.
Dar Williams and Joan Osborne, two of the most acclaimed female recording artists of the last two decades, are joining forces for a two-week co-headlining tour this fall. Although they both played the inaugural Lilith Fair tour in 1997 and have worked with some of the same musicians over the years, this will mark the first time that Williams and Osborne have actually performed together. The tour kicks off September 15th in Eugene, Oregon and covers the Western half of the country, finishing on the 30th in Bloomington, Indiana. In addition to performing their own and each other’s material, there will be some surprises in store. “We’re trying to think outside the box,” says Osborne while Williams adds, “We’re on the prowl for the coolest covers we can find!” The two will alternate doing individual opening sets and will also perform as a duo, hitting top venues in such major markets as San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Denver.
Williams and Osborne – both of whom came to prominence in the early ‘90s and have influenced many other artists since that time – are mutual fans. “Joan doesn’t just have a great voice,” notes Williams. “You get a sense of the real person behind it. A voice like that is an inspiration on a lot of levels. You leave the theater feeling like you didn’t just experience skill or virtuosity; you really experienced an artist working.” For her part, Osborne says, “I love Dar’s voice and I love her guitar playing. She’s a good instrumentalist. I’m not that much of an instrumentalist and I tend to do a lot of collaborative writing whereas she does most of her writing on her own. But I also feel like there’s an intersection of our sensibilities. Having songs come from this very strong female perspective is something that we both share – even though it comes out in different ways.”
A native of Westchester, New York, Dar Williams established herself as one of popular music’s premier singer-songwriters when she released The Honesty Room, her Razor & Tie Records debut, in 1995. The material on that album ranged from “When I Was a Boy,” a beautiful examination of gender roles, to the fan favorite “The Babysitter’s Here,” a much lighter song based loosely on her youth. Since then, she has released six more studio efforts, all on Razor & Tie. Last fall, Williams unveiled the double-disc anthology Many Great Companions. Williams is also a committed environmentalist. She co-authored The Tofu Tollbooth — which provides readers with a list of vegetarian restaurants and natural food stores across America, is an Environmental columnist for The Huffington Post and has recently had a workshop produced by NY Stage and Film of her children’s musical “The Island Musical” extolling the virtues of preserving the environment. This summer, Williams embarks on a two-week tour of children’s camps, where she’s performing songs and educating kids on planting bee gardens, with a performance stop at Newport Folk Festival along the way.
Originally from Kentucky, Joan Osborne’s career caught fire after she moved to New York and became a regular on the lower Manhattan club circuit. Her 1995 Mercury Records debut Relish contained the Top 10 smash “One of Us,” as well as the rocking single “Right Hand Man” and a cover of the Bob Dylan ballad “Man in the Long Black Coat.” In the wake of that album’s success, Osborne appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone and was nominated for an astounding seven Grammy awards. In the years since, she has released another half a dozen studio discs that have ranged from straight R&B to country music to more pop-oriented work. Osborne has toured extensively as a member of both The Dead and the legendary group of Motown musicians known as The Funk Brothers and performed at the Grand Ole Opry in 2007. In 2008, she reunited with her Relish Grammy All-Star team and recorded the soulful rock roots album, Little Wild One.
Both Williams and Osborne will stay busy after their tour comes to an end. Williams heads into the studio to begin work on her eighth studio album, which will be produced by Kevin Killen. Osborne, meanwhile, is already at work on her next studio release, which will be a collection of soul and blues covers by the likes of Al Green, Bill Withers and Muddy Waters. She has also been working with a new band called Trigger Hippy, which includes two former members of The Black Crowes
Located in downtown Flagstaff, Arizona, the historic Orpheum Theater is also pleased to announce the following confirmed events:
Friday, September 16 – MELT
Wednesday, September 21 – Dar Williams & Joan Osborne
Saturday, September 24 – Mickey Avalon
Wednesday, September 28 – Film Premiere “Changing Gears: Flagstaff & The Mountain Bike”
Thursday, September 29 – Vertical Relief Climbing Gym presents The Reel Rock Film Tour
Saturday, October 1 – We Came As Romans
Thursday, October 6 – Yellowman
Friday, October 7 – Big Brothers/Big Sisters “A Big Night Out”
Tuesday, October 11 – Tech N9ne: The Lost Cities Tour
Wednesday, October 13 through Sunday, October 16 – Flagstaff Mountain Film Festival
Wednesday, October 19 – Friends of Flagstaff Public Library screen “Library of the Early Mind”
Thursday, October 20 – MELT
Friday, October 21 – The Black Dahlia Murder
Saturday, October 22 – Super Happy Funtime Burlesque
Sunday, October 23 – The Game
Thursday, October 27 – Puente de Hozho – Ballet Folklorico de Colores
Friday, October 28 – The Halloween Metal Bash
Sunday, October 30 – Calexico with special guests Sergio Mendoza Y La Orkesta
Monday, October 31 – Movie: “Rocky Horror Picture Show”
Thursday, November 3 – Greensky Bluegrass
Sunday, November 6 – Iration
Wednesday, November 9 – The Fearless Friends Tour featuring blessthefall
Saturday, November 12 – Baked On Stage Tour featuring Doug Benson
Friday, November 18 – An Evening with Leo Kottke
Sunday, November 20 – Exhumed
Friday, November 25 – Max & Ruby Bunny Party
Saturday, December 3 – Keller Williams
Friday, December 30 – Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers
For additional event and ticket information go to www.orpheumflagstaff.com
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