Here’s a fun throwback – he’s still out there on the road today: Jeffrey Osborne is a human thread that weaves its way through music history. Starting with mid-70’s funk/pop, as the voice and front man of LTD, it was his voice singing of being “Back In Love” again. In the 80’s, Osborne split off and recorded his first three solo albums with the legendary George Duke in the control room, producing. Hits like “On The Wings Of Love,” and You Should Be Mine (The Woo Woo Song) were crossover smashes that not only topped the R&B charts, but are right there on the top shelf with other 80’s songs that you still know by heart.
When I saw Jeffrey Osborne perform last week at The Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia, I saw almost the exact same show that I’ve seen him perform for years, with almost the exact same set list. And that’s not a criticism -Osborne is a savvy showman who knows exactly what turns the audience on the most, and he doesn’t withhold the goods like some artists, ashamed of their pasts, do.
But the one thing that was different this time, is that Osborne said he had a new album coming out with a couple of new songs. This is the point at which a lot of audiences head for the restroom or the snack bar, but on this evening, no one moved. They waited with palpable anticipation to see what would happen next.
Well, what happened was that Osborne pulled out two old nuggets—some jazz standards that Osborne puts his own touch on, while still respecting the original source. The sound was amazing. The arrangements very tasteful. It wasn’t just a coincidence that the set list took that unexpected turn—clearly, Osborne hopes his longtime fans will pick up a copy of the new CD, “A Time For Love.” It reunites Osborne with the aforementioned George Duke for the first time in many years.
“This album is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Osborne said recently. “I was the youngest of 12 kids in my family, so when I was growing up I had to wait my turn to listen to what I wanted to listen to. All of my brothers and sisters were into Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald, Gloria Lynne, Della Reese, Joe Williams and Billy Eckstine, so I got to hear all of that before I would put on my little doo wop music, Motown and stuff. Plus my father was a great trumpet player and he would listen to Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard and Clifford Brown and I got a chance to learn about all these great trumpet players back then. So despite my love for Motown and doo wop, I really grew up listening to jazz and standards.”
Osborne can still do his “On The Wings” vocal acrobatics, and now the brings it down for a mini-set of things he hasn’t sung every night, 7 nights a week, 52 weeks a year. He’s still got it.
