Mavis Staples 'If All I Was Was Black' Out Now
The timely and powerful new album by soul/gospel legend Mavis Staples entitled If All I Was Was Black is now available.
In their early review of the record, The Chicago Reader writes, “working again with producer Jeff Tweedy, she's created the best solo album she's done over the last couple of decades.” The Chicago Tribune heralds If All I Was Was Black as “their most powerful collaboration yet."
This is Mavis’ third collaboration with Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy. Their first, You Are Not Alone, won a Grammy, and their second, One True Vine, was a Grammy nominee. This is the first time Tweedy has composed an entire album of original songs for Mavis' legendary voice and a nation she's uniquely poised to address. It is a record that delivers an affecting counterpoint to these turbulent times.
Mavis Staples is currently on tour with Nobel prize winner Bob Dylan.
Praise For If All I Was Was Black:
"Staples’s voice has a strength and endurance not heard in years.” - The New Yorker
"If All I Was Was Black is an album about American perspectives and the compassion it takes to see the world from someone else’s point of view." - Pitchfork
"Mavis Staples remains a force of nature.” - American Songwriter
"Once again, Staples is the voice of activism. If All I Was Was Black is a reminder of her timeless talent -- and the work that still needs to be done to build relationships with our fellow man.” - Billboard
"A subtly provocative commentary on the country’s troubling, unrestful state, “If All I Was Was Black” is yet another high mark in the long and eventful career of Ms. Staples, who has seen much and knows what it means.” - Wall St. Journal
"Just a couple years shy of 80, Staples once again proves herself an essential force; having been musically active since the Fifties her continued vitality is astonishing. Her voice has grown even more commanding with time, and it’s nigh on impossible to refuse her entreaties.” - Drownedinsound.com
"Mavis Staples is a badass lady. She’s speaking out against the inequalities in today’s nation, and with the help of Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, she’s doing it through the vehicle of If All I Was Was Black.” - Paste
"If All I Was Was Black is another late-career winner from Staples, an album that perfectly captures her gentle, loving and elegant way of making a political statement without sacrificing the passion she's built her career upon.” - Exclaim!
“At 78, Staples has never sounded more contemporary.” – Associated Press
Live Dates with Bob Dylan:
11/17 Palace Theater. Albany, NY
11/18 Shea's Performing Arts Center. Buffalo, NY
11/20 Beacon Theater. NYC, NY
11/21 Beacon Theater. NYC, NY
11/22 Beacon Theater. NYC, NY
11/24 Beacon Theater. NYC, NY
11/25 Beacon Theater. NYC, NY