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Grim days call for fierce love—and Mavis Staples, one of America’s most enduring musical figures, is laying it down. Sad and Beautiful World, her fifteenth solo album, stands as both testimony and torchlight. Produced by Brad Cook (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee, Iron & Wine), the record spans seven decades of the American songbook, blending reinventions of timeless songs with new material that speaks to hope, resilience, and faith in humanity.Now 86, Mavis has been performing since the age of eight. Beginning with her father Roebuck “Pops” Staples and her siblings in The Staple Singers, she remains the group’s last surviving member—still carrying her family’s legacy of music and activism. Inducted into the Blues, Rock, and Gospel Halls of Fame, a Kennedy Center Honoree, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Mavis has collaborated with Dylan, Prince, Aretha, Willie, and countless artists across generations.
Sad and Beautiful World features appearances from Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt, Jeff Tweedy, Derek Trucks, Katie Crutchfield, MJ Lenderman, and Justin Vernon—all drawn into Mavis’ orbit of warmth and power. Hozier and Allison Russell penned the first track, “Human Mind,” written for and about Mavis, who sings, “Even in these days… I find good in it sometimes”—that “sometimes” capturing her unyielding yet hard-earned hope.
Across the album, Mavis turns familiar songs into affirmations of endurance. Her take on Tom Waits’ “Chicago” recalls her family’s migration north, with searing guitars from Buddy Guy and Derek Trucks. Sparklehorse’s title track, Gillian Welch’s “Hard Times,” and Kevin Morby’s “Beautiful Strangers” become hymns for hard seasons. Her version of Frank Ocean’s “Godspeed” offers a staggering benediction: “There will be mountains you won’t move. I’ll always be there for you.” She pleads and preaches through Curtis Mayfield’s “We Got To Have Peace,” channels quiet fury in Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem,” and closes with the grace of “Satisfied Mind” and “Everybody Needs Love.”
Producer Brad Cook built the record around her voice—rich, textured, and unmistakable—crafting each song to highlight her compassion and conviction. He envisioned a collaborative spirit akin to Will the Circle Be Unbroken: artists gathering to celebrate community through Mavis’ presence. “I just have to deliver the compassion I feel,” she says. “I want to share the song the way I feel it.”
After more than seventy years, Mavis remains one of the most recognizable and revered voices in music—an artist whose moral authority and musical artistry are inseparable. She lived through the Jim Crow South, marched for freedom, sang for Dr. King, and helped shape the soundtrack of the civil rights movement.
Though she once considered retiring, Mavis still tours and records, returning to festivals like Newport Folk, where younger artists kneel before her in reverence. But she’s not waiting to be worshipped—she’s too busy leading the charge. Still evolving, still believing, still singing the truth: Mavis Staples is making music and history just when we need her most.
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The Biamp Portland Jazz Festival, March 5-14, 2026, is a multi-venue, citywide celebration of sound and culture presented throughout Portland, Oregon. Dedicated to evolving out loud, the Festival honors America’s art form while embracing its future—bringing together legendary masters, boundary-breaking artists, and rising local talents who are redefining jazz and expanding its reach across genres and generations.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark St, # 110,Portland,OR,United States
Tickets
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.
