The Staple Singers were the figurehead of soul label Stax in the 1960s. In the music of Pops Staples and his daughters, the blues and gospel, from which soul music had once originated, could still clearly be heard. Singles like Respect Yourself and I'll Take You There were embraced by the civil rights movement of Martin Luther King and are still rock solid today. Of the Staple Singers, Mavis was
… the singer with the most talent. Her passionate reading and hiccups ad-libs were a direct influence on the young Michael Jackson. But Prince was also a fan, and it was not without reason that her solo album The Voice (1993) was released on his Paisley Park label. Only eleven years later, Have A Little Faith is released, a fine record that shows exactly that unique combination of soul, blues and gospel that made The Staple Singers so unique. Even now there is a message in the music, 'there is evil all around us / we got to rise above / got to fight the good fight / win that war with love / have a little faith, my friend'. (MS)more
