Mary Osborne
Mary Osborne, born Mary Osborn on July 17, 1921, in Minot, North Dakota, and
died March 4, 1992, in Bakersfield, California, was an American jazz guitarist
and singer who pioneered the electric guitar in professional settings.
Influenced by Django Reinhardt, she was introduced to the electric guitar in
1938 when she met Charlie Christian at a Bismarck club. Christian advised her of
a music store where she could purchase a Gibson ES-150 electric guitar and a
matching amplifier. Osborne toured with a female trio led by pianist Winifred
McDonald, and later settled in New York, where...
