Joan Osborne returns to pop

After forays into soul and country music over the past few years, Joan Osborne returns to the pop fold with a fall tour in support of her forthcoming ninth studio album.

The eclectic singer/songwriter--who performed last year in Nashville's Grand Ole Opry, and the previous year toured with Phil Lesh and Friends--will kick off the outing Sept. 5 in Beaver Creek, CO. Osborne will hit 31 cities on the trek, the first nine of them shared dates with country-rock veteran John Hiatt.

Highlights of the run include stops in Los Angeles (10/10), Chicago (10/21) and New York (10/25), as well as extensive legs in the Southwestern and Southern states. Details are included below.

Osborne will be supporting "Little Wild One," which hits stores Sept. 9. The album will feature the singer's first collaborations with producers/writers Rick Chertoff, Rob Hyman and Eric Bazilian since her debut album, 1995's 'Relish,' which sold more than five million copies and earned Osborne six Grammy nominations.

The singer's previous studio album was last year's "Breakfast in Bed," which contained covers of various soul and R&B classics, including a version of Gladys Knight & The Pips' 1973 smash "Midnight Train to Georgia."