Born Swedish and transplanted 'Nawlins, Osborne fell for Southern blues in his youth, when '70s soul was seeping into its stream. Osborne can be compared favorably with Springsteen and Van Morrison, gifted with both electric crunch and a clean, bright howl. Hopping labels and studios, post-Katrina strife has rounded out the latter half of his career. The singer/guitarist is now housed on Alligator Records, aging like blues-out David Gray in his somber moments, and Ben Harper in his fury. (Gavin Paul)
