Gospel great Mavis Staples is at the centre of this documentary, which charts her life as a singer and a civil rights activist. Staples began performing with her family band the Staples Singers in the late 1940s. Led by their father, Roebuck ‘Pops’ Staples, the group were early to adopt civil rights messages into their music after hearing Dr. Martin Luther King speak. They soon became friends of Dr. King’s and an important instrument in preaching his message.
Through changing decades, record labels and musical styles that evolved through gospel, jubilee, blues, funk and soul, Mavis and her family remained relevant throughout, never far away from any significant musical movement.
Having discovered Mavis one fateful night at a concert in Brooklyn, still performing regularly at age 74, documentary filmmaker Jessica Edwards took her instant fandom and turned a camera on it. Not wanting to focus solely on the past, Edwards follows Mavis for a year on tour to capture the vibrant life she still leads. The ace in the hole happens to be hours of pristine archival footage from decades of tours and TV appearances. Interviews with musical stars like Bob Dylan, Prince, Bonnie Raitt, Al Bell, Levon Helm (The Band) and Jeff Tweedy highlight the huge legacy and lasting effect made by the Mavis and the Staple Singers.
All the elements are there for a satisfying, if not innovative, documentary that pays tribute to a never-dull life. Importantly, Mavis both young and old remains the heart and soul of the picture.
Recent Oscar-winning Music Docos: 20 Feet from Stardom, Amy, Searching for Sugar Man
