Mavis Staples: She’ll Take You There

On the occasion of the publication of Greg Kot's I'll Take You There, I thought I'd showcase some Mavis Staples' and the Staples Singers' discography here at CPL. But first, the book: Kot is a journalist for the Chicago Tribune, and it shows in his short chapters and succinct writing. While focusing mostly on the tours and more public life of Mavis and her family, Kot does take time to mention some of the more personal moments: the friendship with Aretha Franklin, the family's reaction to the assassination of MLK (one of their biggest fans), and the tragic death of the baby of the family, Cynthia. Kot is obviously a great admirer of Mavis Staples, and this may be why he doesn't pry too much. Those wishing for more personal details may want to listen to the discography of the Staples Singers, since they didn't sing anything they didn't feel.

I may be going at this a little backward, but I'm going to start with the album that got me hooked: We'll Never Turn Back. It's a solo record for Mavis, but she's backed alternately by the original Freedom Singers and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Ry Cooder produces and the result is magical. These are songs from the Civil Rights era, updated in certain ways to make them extremely timely. Songs like "This Little Light" helped the Staples expand their audience from gospel to folk, and brought King's message to everywhere the group went, whether the church or the concert hall. As good in its own right is the live album of some of these songs Live (Hope at the Hideout) recorded here on the west side of Chicago a few years later.

For the stuff that got the family group famous, try Staple Singers. This is a collection of their early hits on the gospel circuit. Featuring Pops' tremulous guitar and the siblings' close harmonies, it's not hard to see why they got put on the same ticket as Sam Cooke (in his pre-pop days) and Mahalia Jackson.

For the best place to start with the Staples Singers (particularly the stuff that got them into the mainstream in the 60's and 70's) is with The Very Best of the Staple Singers. This covers stuff both before and after their tenure at Stax, but most of it is the Stax discography. This disc includes hits like "Respect Yourself" and the fiery "I'll Take You There."

Time Waits for No One is one of Mavis' collaborations with Prince, which should make it required listening for everyone. The other Mavis Staples solo albums yet to be mentioned are Have A Little Faith, a gospel album that ends with "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," the first song the Staple Singers ever performed. You Are Not Alone is produced by Jeff Tweedy of Wilco fame (and like Mavis, a Chicagoan) and is mostly gospel, with a few songs from the likes of Randy Newman thrown in. There's a narrative arc to One True Vine, that of a revival. Once again, Tweedy is producing, and the results are as good or better than the previous album. Mavis may be closing in on 80, but she's still got it.