Mavis Staples - You Are Not Alone

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Jeff Tweedy and rock and roll hall of famer and legend Mavis Staples sat down to talk about what they wanted the new Mavis Staples album to sound like. They both turned to the original spiritual roots of the Staples Singers as a backbone, wanting to make a record about connection and reaching out to someone through the power of music.

What they achieved is possibly the album of Staples' career, a warm, powerful, and fervent collection of brilliantly chosen and interpreted songs. Produced by fellow Chicagoan Jeff Tweedy at Wilco's studio The Loft, the intimate and textured production mixes traditional gospel numbers with two new songs written for Mavis by Tweedy, plus her unique interpretations of songs by Pops Staples, Randy Newman, Allen Toussaint, John Fogerty, Rev Gary Davis, and Little Milton.

Backed by Mavis' smoking touring band and featuring guest turns from Tweedy and Wilco's Patrick Sansone, with background vocals by Kelly Hogan and Nora O'Connor, the album cradles Mavis' exquisite voice, allowing her to stretch out emotionally on tracks like Randy Newman's "Closing You" and the Creedence Clearwater Chesnut "Wrote a Song for Everyone."

The two songs Jeff wrote for Mavis also meld seamlessly into the vibe and theme of the album: "He would listen to my conversations, my words, and then feed off that... The songs he wrote take me places I wouldn't normally go," says Mavis.

Sure to be one of the best-received releases of 2010, Mavis' message of joy and redemption has found the setting it has always deserved.

Side A:
Don't Knock
You Are Not Alone
Downward Road

Side B:
In Christ There Is No East Or West
Creep Along Moses
Losing You
I Belong To The Band

Side C:
Last Train
Only The Lord Knows
Wrote A Song For Everyone

Side D:
We're Gonna Make It
Wonderful Savior
Too Close / On My Way To Heaven

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