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Tune in to the XPN Morning Show each Monday to hear, Host, Mike Vasilikos, review XPN's Featured Album of the Week. This week's album is....

Joan Osborne - Pretty Little Stranger (Vanguard)

Joan Osborne calls this new album - Pretty Little Stranger - her version of a country record, and that seems pretty fair after a few listens. The pace is moderate, the songs nicely arranged, and the whole package is tied together by her most important attribute - that remarkable voice.

Osborne wrote several of the tunes on this album, including the title track, "Who Divided" (the first "single"), and "Shake That Devil", which are all highlights of Pretty Little Stranger. This new record also includes songs written by Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Garcia / Robert Hunter, and Patty Griffin. Guest artists include Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, Sonny Landreth and Rodney Crowell, who provides harmony vocals on "When The Blue Hour Comes."

There's not a whole lot of Joan's signature "belting it out" style on this new album, but it does include some of her best ballad singing to date.

Written by Dan Reed

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