Mavis StaplesBest Mavis Staples Albums Ranked

You Are Not Alone

pitchfork

8.2

“Working with Jeff Tweedy, the soul veteran sounds energetic and artful on a collection of covers and re-imagined hits from her past.”

Sad and Beautiful World

thelineofbestfit

8.0

“Mavis Staples finds the good in people on Sad and Beautiful World”

Sad and Beautiful World

rollingstone

8.0

“Mavis Staples is known as many things: soul hitmaker, civil rights trailblazer, 21st-century torchbearer of American gospel music, roots music luminary, world-class entertainer, and singular lead singer of her family band, the Staple Singers. But throughout her career, Staples has also proven to be a superb interpreter of song. From her teenaged take on standards like “Uncloudy Day” and “Will the ”

Sad and Beautiful World

rollingstone

8.0

“The iconic 86-year-old singer covers Frank Ocean, Leonard Cohen and more on Sad and Beautiful World”

If All I Was Was Black

loudandquiet

8.0

“Mavis Staples’ last album, 2016’s sunny-sided ‘Livin’ On A High Note’, was precision-tooled to raise a smile after a career, Staples noted, of “making people cry for so long” with humble tales from the front line of the civil rights movement, poignant gospel songs, and moving clarion calls to social action. Turns out, however, that that wilful joy was a short-lived phase: ‘If All I Was Was Black’ ”

If All I Was Was Black

pitchfork

7.6

“Mavis Staples presents her signature hope on the taut and lively If All I Was Was Black, another collaboration with Jeff Tweedy. But it doesn’t come as naturally as it once did, as she makes clear.”