In each episode of our podcast “Life in Seven Songs (opens in new tab),” we ask some of the world’s most fascinating people: What songs tell the story of your life?
If you’ve ever wondered, “What if God was one of us?” you probably have Joan Osborne to thank. But you might not realize that Osborne didn’t actually write her chart-topping hit.
In this week’s episode of “Life in Seven Songs,” the singer-songwriter traces her evolution from a Catholic girl in Kentucky singing in church choirs to accidentally discovering her voice at a New York blues bar while covering other artists to writing her own songs and sharing hard-won wisdom with her daughter.
What’s one song that changed your life? We’d love to hear your story. Record a short voice memo telling us about one song that shaped who you are — and why it matters to you. We may feature your voice in an upcoming episode of Life in Seven Songs. Email your voice memo to: [email protected]
“I’m not worried so much about is somebody gonna like this? What are they gonna say about it? Am I exposing too much of myself by doing this?” says Osborne. “Those concerns sort of fall away, and you’re just like, ‘I am who I am. I’m doing what I’m doing. If you’re on board, that’s great, and if you’re not, that’s fine too.’”
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Here’s her playlist.
- Cast of “The Sound of Music,” “So Long, Farewell”
- The Oxford Trinity Choir, “I Saw Three Ships”
- Billie Holiday, “God Bless the Child”
- B.B. King, “How Blue Can You Get”
- The Rolling Stones, “Shine a Light”
- Joan Osborne, “Crazy Baby”
- Joan Osborne, “Nobody Owns You”