Mavis Staples: The one singer Bob Dylan called his “favourite voice”
When Bob Dylan came along with his voice of sand and glue, he changed singing forever. Suddenly, what you were saying was more important than being able to say it cleanly. Dylan had power and authenticity in his smokey pipes, and it shook the foundations of the mainstream forever.
He might not be what you’d call a classically excellent singer, but he does have character and soul and that counts for a lot. In an age where there was much to be said, his un-prettified pronouncement made you focus on the substance of the words for once. His revolution was rough and rowdy.
And he backed the substance with plenty of spirit. As Robbie Robertson of The Band would opine when he embarked with Dylan on the infamous electric ‘Judas’ tour: “When I started playing with Bob, I didn’t know how so much vocal power could come out of this frail man. He was so thin. He was singing louder and stronger than James Brown”.
That’s quite some praise. It was needed too—as he added: “We were in a battlefield on that tour, and you had to fight back.”
He had plenty of inspiration in his ranks when it came to this belting premise. Dylan had come through the ranks admiring one of the most soulful chanters that music has ever seen, and he set out to channel her in his own gruff way. ”I’ve always liked Mavis Staples ever since she was a little girl. She’s always been my favourite… she’s always had my favourite voice,” he told Rolling Stone.
Mavis Staples was born in Chicago on July 10th, 1939, and she began her career in the family singing troupe in 1950. While her early years mostly consisted of church singalongs and the odd weekly slot on a local radio show—which Dylan may or may not have heard—the rhythms and blues proprietors soon had a hit in 1956 and became a much-loved sensation.
However, they became a sensation that sustained a lauded status when the counterculture revolution followed. While many acts from the ’50s were often considered to be too corporate or aligned with the status quo, The Staple Singers keenly supplied their pipes to the daring new cause. They even signed with Stax Records to ensure that they could be at the forefront of the battle for liberation. So, the kids who had grown up loving them never stopped admiring them as the pinnacle of soul.
As it happens, they also loved Dylan from day one. ”Long before they were on Stax they were on Epic and they were one of my favourite groups of all time,” Dylan told MusiCares in 2015. ”I met them all in ’62 or ’63. They heard my songs live and Pervis wanted to record three or four of them. He did it with the Staples Singers. They were the type of artists that I wanted recording my songs.” They did, indeed, record his songs, and eventually, they would appear on stage alongside him as part of The Band’s legendary concert film The Last Waltz.
All that time, they never once dropped below the eyeliner of excellence, spearheaded by Mavis Staples and her golden soulful voice. Now, she remains the last surviving member of the group, and her timbre still floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. Dylan might have also heaped praise on the likes of Joe Cocker and Stevie Wonder as singers of note, but the sweet tones of Mavis have always endeared him, and her unpretentious power is something he has always looked to serve.
Never Miss A Tale
The Far Out Bob Dylan Newsletter
All the latest stories about Bob Dylan from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.