Mavis Staples has a remarkable voice. While some singers let the rough edges of their vocals show as they age, adding an impression of authenticity to their singing, Staples wraps her seven-plus decades of musical experience in honeyed tones. There is a sweetness that comes across even as she sings about war and injustice, as well as joy and happiness.
The adjectives from the title of her latest opus Sad and Beautiful World could easily fit as a description of her singing. She knows the current state of the nation has declined in terms of race relations and other social causes. It may make her depressed, but not for long. Staples also sees the glory and good that exists. You can hear it in her voice.
Producer Brad Cook (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee) smartly recorded Staples’ voice first with minimum accompaniment before adding an all-star roster of background singers and players to flesh out the songs. The list includes notable artists such as Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt, Jeff Tweedy, Derek Trucks, Katie Crutchfield, Sam Beam, Patterson Hood, and MJ Lenderman. The album also features a first-rate collection of songs by luminaries such as Leonard Cohen, Curtis Mayfield, Tom Waits, and David Rawlings & Gillian Welch, as well as one track specially written for Staples by Hozier and Allison Russell. That song, “Human Mind”, is the standout song in an album full of masterworks.
The confessional track is simultaneously personal and confessional despite not being written by Staples. She sings about her father and family, her past career and present concerns, and “finding the good in us, sometimes”. There’s a comforting, hymn-like quality to the song, abetted by Matt Douglass’ (The Mountain Goats) soulful saxophone playing. Staples simultaneously expresses hope and doubt, and a belief in love without being smarmy or corny. Due to her age, the singer’s awareness of mortality lies latent in the lyrics, both as a fact and a mystery.
These themes carry over into several of the other nine tracks. Staples sings “Satisfied Mind”, a number hit by Porter Wagner in 1955 that’s been covered by everyone from Bob Dylan and the Band, Mahalia Jackson, Willie Nelson, Ella Fitzgerald, and countless others, into a soft and primarily quiet acoustic ballad with Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) on harmony vocals.
Staple’s take on Kevin Morby’s apocalyptic “Beautiful Strangers” into a surrealistic dream-like prayer. Mark Linkous (Sparklehorse) penned the title track. Staples conveys the passing of time by slowing things down and annunciating each word. She croons, “Sometimes days go speeding past / Sometimes this one seems like the last” with conviction.” Love and death go together like beauty and sadness, indeed.
One can find compelling associations with Mavis Staples’ life on all the songs, from Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan’s “Chicago”, to Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch’s “Hard Times”, to Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem”, but one needn’t be familiar with her storied biography to appreciate the richness of her vocals. The Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award winner continues to inspire with her performances. If anything, she’s only getting better with age—although she’s always been one of our best artists.