Mavis Staples : Sad and Beautiful World
At 86 years old, Mavis Staples keeps up the productive streak that began around the release of 2010’s You Are Not Alone and shows no sign of slowing down. Her fire burns as bright as ever on her latest release, Sad and Beautiful World, firing on all cylinders right out of the gate on album opener “Chicago.” Originally written Tom Waits, and featured on his 2011 Bad As Me album, the song takes on a new zeal in Staples’ hands. A torchbearer of the Civil Rights Movement, she brings to the song the experience of seeing friends and family migrate north to cities like Chicago in search of a better life.
The songs that immediately follow the album’s fiery opener present the octogenarian soul legend in a more pensive light. “Beautiful Strangers” tackles more contemporary racial issues, presented over a lush bed of gospel hued background vocals and some Pops Staples-influenced, tremolo-laden rhythm guitar. The title track follows, offering a tender musing on the human condition.
On the heels of these comes “Human Mind,” penned by Hozier and Allison Russell, their own homage to Staples. It features a classic Stax Records-style horn section, and harmonically dense diminished chord passages that harken back to Staples’ roots in the church. It’s only fitting that this masterpiece ended up in the hands of the woman it was bequeathed to.
The cup of gospel wealth continues to overflow on “Hard Times,” a song that feels like it sprouted out of the soil of the Stephen Foster South it references with its branches extending into the skies of our present era. The proceedings are only made sweeter by Derek Trucks’ haunting slide guitar passages that are interwoven between Staples’ vocal lines.
Staples likewise treated to a contemplative rendering of Frank Ocean’s “Godspeed,” showing the breadth of Staples’ musical scope and recalls the unique repertoire choices that Rick Rubin employed on Johnny Cash’s American albums. Seamlessly, it flows into a spirited interpretation of Curtis Mayfield’s iconic anthem “We Gotta Have Peace,” which feels just as timely as it must have upon its initial release a half century ago.
Staples likewise serves up a heartfelt reading of Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem,” which highlights not only Staples’ skill as a song stylist, but the universality of Cohen’s lyrics. The album comes to a close with “A Satisfied Mind,” a country-gospel classic originally released on the legendary Starday label by its co-author Red Hayes. Since its initial pressing in the early 50s, this song has been recorded over 300 times, and Staples’ addition to this canon certainly only adds to its legacy. To truly have a satisfied mind, everybody needs love, not just the title of Staples’ parting overture but a fitting summary for the legendary singer’s 14th album.
Label: Anti-
Year: 2025
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