Marie Osmond and her famous family have been entertaining audiences for decades. From stage to screen, the Osmonds were practically everywhere in the 70's. And while Marie and her brother Donny have kept the musical tradition alive well into the new millenium, their other siblings gradually retired from the limelight.
Osmond was at the Rocksino with Donny last November, but is returning this Thursday with a show she knows will excite longtime fans of the family. It's extra special to her because she's coaxed brothers Merrill and Jay out of retirement and is bringing her nephew David along to round out the family affair and give fans a taste of the good old days.
"They’ll be doing their hits and I’m going to sing with them some of my hits like 'Meet Me in Montana,' 'You’re Still New to Me' which were big duets for me in my country career. I’m going to be doing everything from, oh my goodness, a little bit country to a little bit opera and rock and roll and everything in between. I have a new number that I’m putting in the show that I’m excited about. I think people will enjoy it. I’ll do a duet with myself. It will be fun."
Beyond the duet with herself, Osmond is more excited for fans to see her brothers return the the spotlight and see her nephew David perform as well.
"My brothers are amazing. Honestly, I still can’t believe they’ve got it in them. It’s just this genetic thing. They are so amazing on stage and you will have a great time. Come see it and you’ll see the originals. And then David who’s going to be the third Osmond. David is going to perform on his own and we’ve got a special number that we’re going to do that I think people will absolutely love. We’ve tried it a couple of times and it’s brought tears to people’s eyes."
With a catalog of songs that range from pop to country to Broadway, if you try to get Osmond to pick a favorite, the singer says it's a bit like having to choose a favorite child.
"I like different songs for different reasons. 'Paper Roses' was my first number one record. I recorded it when I was 12 and a half. And everything was live. From the strings to the percussion. The singers next to me were the Jordanaires. Goodness, they sang background on all of Elvis’ songs. So that was an amazing day for me. I think we did it twice and moved on to the next song and there was the record. That’s unheard of today.
"There were some wonderful Donny and Marie hits that I had and then I went and did my own career which was like 'No Stopping Your Heart,' 'Meet Me in Montana' and 'Read My Lips.' I sang that before President Bush ever said it, ok? He loved country music and I told everybody he stole that line from me.
"I love performing on Broadway. And I love The King and I and there are some beautiful songs in that. The Sound of Music. I love performing Rodgers and Hammerstein. And James Hammerstein, son of Oscar, directed me in that show. There are so many songs, I don’t know what to pick."
Even with the diverse and expansive catalog she has already, Osmond is not content to sit back and rest on her past success. She keeps pushing herself to explore new musical frontiers.
"I love music. I also feel kind of fortunate and maybe a little odd, that I can sing many different styles of music. I’ve worked very hard to develop that skill. I love anything that keeps challenging me. I am recording a new album. To stretch myself further, I am recording in Italian, French, German. Just doing some real operatic pieces, some really beautiful Broadway pieces. And I am doing that to move into some more symphonic shows on my own. Because I can do a symphonic show that is very different from a lot of artists because I have a lot of hits, but I also can perform beautiful orchestrations to highlight the orchestra and lead it to that type of an audience. That’s something that I’m really excited about."
In a career that has seen its share of highs, hits and accolades come her way, Osmond points to one recent acknowledgement as having extra-special meaning to her.
"I’ll tell you one thing I received that was very touching to me and I actually got kind of emotional on stage. It was in Hawaii. The Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, was given to me by General Bob Brown. He heads up the whole Pacific. He came out and it was to celebrate my birthday and said this is from General Mattis wanting to thank you for all of your years of service and serving the troops. He said 'About 30 years ago, I was a soldier in Saudi Arabia and you came and performed for me over the holidays. As a soldier that meant so much to me.'
"And they gave me the highest award that a civilian can receive and that was just very touching for me. I love that. That was very special. I love the men and women that serve our country and give us our freedom. And I honor and respect them. I’m one of those people that if you don’t appreciate our military, you should go to Saudi Arabia. You should go over to where they’re serving and see what they do on behalf of us and the sacrifices their families make. And it will change your life totally."
Outside of her music and work visiting the troops, Osmond is also well-known for her work as a celebrity spokeswoman, author and philanthropist. While all those efforts require an intense balancing act, Osmond says it's a part of who she is.
"I guess the reason I’ve done so many things is I’m a person, I joke that I never had a sister, so I like sharing. Nutrisystem, I have been endorsing them for 12 years now. So, I’ve talked about it before, I was given a million head trips in my industry. Women in the 70’s had to be lollipop heads. I had people taking me out in the parking lot and telling me I was too fat and I was an embarrassment to my family. I just had all that stuff that happens to kids. And I fought my weight my entire life. I don’t have to worry about it anymore because Nutrisystem not only helped me lose 50 pounds, but they taught me how to keep it off forever and I would not have this last decade of my life, being so busy and performing in Vegas and I had a talk show, you know, doing all these things if I did not have my health and to me that’s what it’s about. That’s why I promote Nutrisystem. It’s a game changer.
"As far as writing books, I was the first celebrity that talked about postpartum depression because I had it. I had severe postpartum depression and it was one of those things that was so shameful to talk about. I wanted to write that first book to say there’s no shame in it, this is a normal thing that happens. We just don’t talk about it. When I did my book signing there was this couple that came up, and it was very touching to me, they said they wished I had written this book a year ago and maybe our daughter would still be alive.
So those kinds of things, I love helping people. We have now raised 6.5 billion dollars for Children's Miracle Network and 100% of the money goes to the kids and stays in your area. There’s no charity like us. It’s so cool because we serve 11 million children every year now, and their families. Those are the things that are meaningful for me."
With all of her success in music and in helping others, Osmond knows that none of it would have been possible if it had not been for one thing. The fans.
"I feel very blessed to be a female who can still sing, and perform and who has done it consistently for five decades now. I just feel that God has been incredibly gracious and most of all, that I have the best fans in the world. And the next generation keeps finding me, so we have 6 year olds to 90 year olds at the shows. But it’s this new 25 – 30 year olds that keep finding me and that has been so much fun."
An Evening with Marie and the Osmonds
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 14.
Where: Hard Rock Rocksino, 10777 Northfield Road, Northfield, OH 44067.
Tickets: Range from $49.50 to $264.50, plus fees, at the box office, at ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000.
