You Are Not Alone [LP]

You Are Not Alone [LP]

by Mavis Staples
You Are Not Alone [LP]

You Are Not Alone [LP]

by Mavis Staples

Vinyl LP(Long Playing Record)

$29.99 
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Overview

Mavis Staples may not have a voice with the kind of range and pure power of an Aretha Franklin, but she understands the ins and outs of phrasing and nuance, and brings an inimitable, gritty passion to everything she sings, even into her seventies. She's also not afraid to walk right down the middle of the road between secular and sacred, fully aware that both the blues and gospel are really talking about the same thing -- the need to get to a better place. She performs this delicate synthesis well on You Are Not Alone, an album that finds her teamed with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy, whose production on this project is surprisingly sympathetic to Staples' strengths, and more importantly, doesn't make her sound like an adjunct participant in a Wilco album. No, this is Mavis' show, and she grabs ahold of well-chosen covers like Randy Newman's "Losing You," Allen Toussaint's "Last Train," Reverend Gary Davis' "I Belong to the Band," and John Fogerty's "Wrote a Song for Everyone" with conviction, wringing every bit of wisdom, anger, compassion, and joy out of them, while bringing a fresh perspective to traditional gospel pieces like "In Christ There Is No East or West," "Creep Along Moses," and "Wonderful Savior," reminding that redemption is pretty hard work even in the best of times. She tackles a couple of Pops Staples pieces here, too, "Don't Knock" and "Downward Road," making this whole set a well-rounded portrait of Mavis Staples as she stands then, now, and tomorrow. Tweedy wrote several songs for the project, but only two, including the title track "You Are Not Alone," appear here, and he wisely resisted any urge to overdo his sonic stamp on the album. Most tracks feature sturdy, simple, and subdued backing that allows Staples' voice to carry the show, highlighted by reverbed guitar reminiscent of Pops Staples' trademark sound, although only enough to suggest it -- nothing here gets in the way of Mavis' voice. You Are Not Alone is a solid outing that somehow amazingly manages to be both secular and sacred at once, and there is a stripped-down timelessness to it. It's gospel. It's blues. It's about love and redemption, and how each needs the other. You Are Not Alone won Best Americana Album at the 2010 Grammys. ~ Steve Leggett

Product Details

Release Date: 09/14/2010
Label: Anti-
UPC: 0045778707614
Rank: 35319

Tracks

  1. Don't Knock
  2. You Are Not Alone
  3. Downward Road
  4. In Christ There Is No East or West
  5. Creep Along Moses
  6. Losing You
  7. I Belong to the Band
  8. Last Train
  9. Only the Lord Knows
  10. Wrote a Song for Everyone
  11. We're Gonna Make It
  12. Wonderful Savior
  13. Too Close/On My Way to Heaven

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Mavis Staples   Primary Artist
Kelly Hogan   Vocals (Background)
Jeff Turmes   Guitar,Vocals (Background)
Jeff Tweedy   Bass,Fuzz Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic),Vocals (Background)
Rick Holmstrom   Vocals (Background)
Nora O'Connor   Vocals (Background)
Pat Sansone   Organ,Piano,Celeste,Mellotron,Wurlitzer,Tambourine,Vibraphone,Vocals (Background)
Richard Parenti   Vocals (Background)
Mark Greenberg   Celeste,Vibraphone

Technical Credits

Traditional   Composer
Billy Davis   Composer
Carl William Smith   Composer
Gene Barge   Composer
John Fogerty   Composer
Jeff Tweedy   Arranger,Composer
Randy Newman   Composer
Mavis Staples   Arranger,Composer
Raynard Miner   Composer
Rev. Gary Davis   Composer
Roebuck "Pops" Staples   Composer
Allen Toussaint   Composer
Alex Bradford Jr.   Composer
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