Mavis Staples: One True Vine

Jeff Tweedy has, you might say, done a Rick Rubin on it – ensuring in the process that gospel legend Mavis Staples is not forgotten. This is his second time working with the septuagenarian, following 2010’s Grammy-winning You Are Not Alone and it’s another stunning, career-high collection.
The voice of The Staple Singers, dubbed God’s Greatest Hitmakers in the 1950s and for many the musical wing of the US civil rights movement, the 73-year-old Mavis has been belting out her unique brand of spiritual R&B and bluesy hymns for over six decades, yet she still sounds as proud, passionate and pristine as ever.
As on their previous collaboration, the songs are a mixture of Tweedy originals (‘Every Step’, ‘Jesus Wept’, the title-track), inspired covers and re-imaginings of classics penned by Mavis’ father, the late Roebuck ‘Pops’ Staples, including the slinky ‘I Like The Things About Me’, built on a bassline so funky it could jam with James Brown on The Band’s ‘Cripple Creek’.
Of the covers, Funkadelic’s ‘Can You Get To That?’ features a deliciously deep backing vocal from soul singer Donny Gerrard, while Low’s stunning ‘Holy Ghost’ features the most heart-rending, soul-searching vocal from Mavis, all over the simplest acoustic guitar backing.
Herein lies the genius of Jeff Tweedy’s unfussy production: he allows the songs and Staples’ stunning vocal instrument the space they need to breathe. Take ‘Woke Up This Morning (With My Mind On Jesus)’, sadly not an Alabama 3 cover, but an old gospel standard, which is truly joyous, or Nick Lowe’s ‘Far Celestial Shore’, a celebratory statement of faith, both given the room to weave their simple spiritual magic, and made all the more powerful as a result, even to agnostic ears like mine.
If you ever wanted to hear where the likes of Alabama Shakes and Matthew E. White got their inspiration, look no further than this magnigicent fusion of gospel, blues, roots and country from two American greats.

Key Track: 'I Like The Things About Me'