The Staple Singers - This Land (1963) - ZEROSOUNDS

Now I may be a heathen unbeliever (read atheist) but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy the gospel songs and roots of soul music and RnB that comes from places like this wonderful lot. From Mavis' last album supported by Ry Cooder and the number of quasi-religious early songs Ry researched for us (Denomination Blues anyone?) but the Staples singers were exceptional and if this album doesn't sound like something timeless which could be from the 80's or nineties (it's 1963!) then I don't know where ya bin! 'Pops' Roebuck Staples was a preacher after all!

Old Time Religion is a favourite as is Didn't it Rain (a la Sister Rosetta Tharpe) but the cover of This Land Is Your Land by Woody Guthrie stands out for me here! A staple (sic - ahem!!) of communist socialist folk club repertoire and no mistake

The Staple Singers - This Land Is Your Land - Zerosounds

Zero G says:

One of the most powerful vocal groups of the '60s and '70s, the Staple Singers embraced an impressive stylistic diversity while always staying true to their roots in gospel harmonies. Led by Roebuck "Pops" Staples, the quartet first rose to stardom in the gospel music community before detouring into folk and a socially conscious gospel and R&B hybrid, then enjoying their greatest success with a handful of soul music hits for Stax Records in the '70s. 

Throughout their evolution, the constants in their work were the rich blend of their vocals, delivered with a churchy mix of joy and restraint, Roebuck's subtle but emphatic guitar textures, and in the Stax era, the glorious lead vocals of Mavis Staples. The compilation "The Best of the Vee-Jay Years" is a superb overview of their early gospel sides, 1965's "Freedom Highway" marks the point where their gospel and folk leanings merged with a growing political consciousness, 1972's "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself" was the high point of their hitmaking years at Stax, and 1984's "Turning Point" was an impressive late-career effort that included an excellent cover of Talking Heads' "Slippery People."

"This Land" was released in 1963. In the early 60s the Staples Singers, now with Riverside Records, looked for an audience "beyond the ghetto", recording coffeehouse favourites such as Cotton Fields, Bob Dylan's Blowin' In The Wind and Woody Guthrie's This Land Is Your Land. Such choices were mildly controversial at the time, but Staples was quick to defend them. "I think they're good material. I think it's time for the whole nation to start listening to something that means something, and think that this land belongs to everybody. If they would think like that we'd have a better United States."

Tracklist:

A1 This Land 2:39

A2 Old Time Religion 2:29

A3 Blowin' In The Wind 2:26

A4 Wish I Had Answered 2:47

A5 Twelve Gates To The City 2:40

A6 Gamblin' Man 2:39

B1 Didn't It Rain 2:46

B2 Swing Down, Chariot! 2:38

B3 Let That Liar Alone 2:43

B4 Cottonfields 2:10

B5 Motherless Children 3:00

B6 A Better Home 3:18

This Land Is Your Land - The Staple Singers