Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

The latter day revival of Mavis Staples' music continues with her latest set and a pile of new songs written specially for her, from such songwriters as Nick Cave, Justin Vernon and M Ward. As far as we know, Mr Cave isn't a believer though that hasn't stopped him from penning a rather good song called "Jesus Lay Down Beside Me". Mavis will be 77 this summer and yet still sounds in amazing voice. The album blends gospel, soul and contemporary sounds with plenty of space for some soulful vocalising. This is a collection of uplifting songs with the tracks ranging from the upbeat opener "Take Us Back" to the playful "Tomorrow" and the closing "MLK Song" based on the words of Martin Luther King. These days the diva continues the journey of singing songs with messages though this time around, it feels like the voice of wisdom and experience gently guiding us. As well as this fine album, it's also worth checking out the film documentary Mavis! which is a rich telling of her story and the history of The Staple Singers.

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