Recording of Staples’ Acclaimed Show at Chicago’s Hideout

 

Truly great live albums are about capturing lightning in a bottle, that rare and perfect convergence of time, place and performance. When legendary soul/gospel artist Mavis Staples returned home to Chicago this last June for a performance at The Hideout, Chi-Town’s renowned stronghold of alt country and purist rock and roll, it was undeniably such a moment.

 

Those who packed the sold-out club were blessed with a riveting musical statement as Staples, backed by her fiery three-piece band and three backup singers, put on a rousing musical tour de force. Fortunately, for those of us unable to be there in person, the show was recorded and the album, Mavis Staples Live: Hope at the Hideout, is set for release November 3rd.

 

Acclaim for Staples’ Hideout performance:

• “Anyone who was hearing this American treasure in concert for the first time learned precious lessons about where we have been and where we are today. Staples stood tall and shouted, ‘My mind is made up, my heart is fixed.’ And she smiled. She was not alone.” - Chicago Sun Times

• “There are few living musicians who can lay claim to being America’s conscience, even fewer who continue to make vital music. On Monday night at The Hideout, Mavis Staples proved she’s still capable of both… Staples showed she can light a fire, agitate for change or re-energize the American songbook.” - Time Out Chicago

• “While performing a 14-song set that canvassed her 52-year career, Staples sang with a voice that has long distinguished her from the R&B greats of her era and those who reach for that crown today.” - Chicago Tribune

• “Staples’ sold out performance at Chicago’s Hideout last night brought the Civil Rights movement and all those souls who marched, sang and prayed during that critical time, to the crowded little room... The ghosts of the marchers stood among us, swaying, stamping, clapping.” - Popmatters

 

Track Listing for Mavis Staples Live: Hope at the Hideout:

1. For What It's Worth
2. Eyes on the Prize
3. Down in Mississippi
4. Wade in the Water
5. Waiting For My Child
6. This Little Light
7. Why Am I Treated So Bad
8. Freedom Highway
9. We Shall Not Be Moved

10. Circle Intro (encore)

11. Will The Circle Be Unbroken (encore)

12. On My Way (encore) -

13. I'll Take You There (encore)

 

Credits:

Recorded at The Hideout in Chicago, IL
Mavis Staples - vocals
Rick Holmstrom - guitar
Jeff Turmes - bass
Stephen Hodges - drums
Yvonne Staples - background vocals
Donny Gerrard - background vocals
Chavonne Morris - background vocals
Mixed by Rob Schnapf

 

PRODUCED BY JEFF TWEEDY

 

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and soul/gospel legend Mavis Staples delivers more wall-to-wall joy on her triumphant new Anti- album, ‘You Are Not Alone’ (September 13), than any other release you’re likely to hear this year.

 

Produced by fellow Chicagoan Jeff Tweedy at Wilco’s studio The Loft, the intimate and textured production showcases the iconic singer at her most powerful and fervent.  ‘You Are Not Alone’ 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.

 

The album features Mavis’s touring band of the last three years: Rick Holmstrom, guitar, vocals; Jeff Turmes, bass, vocals; Stephen Hodges, drums; Donny Gerrard, background vocals; plus special guests Jeff Tweedy on guitars, bass, and vocals; Wilco’s Patrick Sansone, keys, vibes; Mark Greenberg, vibes, keys; with additional background vocals by frequent Neko Case collaborators Kelly Hogan and Nora O’Connor, and Richard Parenti.

 

‘You Are Not Alone’ is Mavis’s second studio release for Anti.  It follows her 2007 critical triumph, “We’ll Never Turn Back,” produced by Ry Cooder, which revisited the great songs of the civil rights era and prompted her hometown paper The Chicago Sun-Times to hail her as “an American treasure.”  In 2008, Anti- issued a rapturously received live album, ‘Live: Hope at the Hideout,’ which was named one of the Best Live CDs of All Time by Amazon.com’s editors and earned Mavis her first Grammy-nomination as a solo artist.

 

Mavis Staples is enjoying a major career resurgence, having become a festival favorite in recent years.  This summer she will play Lollapalooza on August 6, and the Wilco-curated Solid Sound Festival at Mass MoCa on August 14 with additional US and European tour dates to be announced soon.

 

Track listing for Mavis Staples, ‘You Are Not Alone’

 

1. You Don’t Knock (Pops Staples/Wesley Westbrook)
2. You Are Not Alone (Jeff Tweedy)
3. Downward Road (Pops Staples)
4. In Christ There is No East and West (traditional; arranged by Jeff Tweedy)
5. Creep Along, Moses (traditional)
6. Losing You (Randy Newman)
7. I Belong to the Band (Rev. Gary Davis)
8. Last Train (Allen Toussaint)
9. Only the Lord Knows (Jeff Tweedy)
10. Wrote A Song for Everyone (John Fogerty)
11. We’re Gonna Make It (Little Milton)
12. Wonderful Savior (traditional)
13. Too Close To Heaven / I'm On My Way to Heaven Anyhow (Prof. Alex E. BradfordJr./Brad Pathway)