It has taken some time for this last post from Roebuck “Pops” Staples to appear.
Recorded in the 18 months before his death in 2000, Don't Lose This is a righteous rub of blues, country and gospel, the flavours most associated with the Staple Singers kingpin.
The album lay unfinished for a few years before his daughter Mavis enlisted the help of Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, who stripped away the excess musical baggage to bring the voice and guitar-playing, the real strengths, to the fore.
As Staples' voice redefines songs such as Got to Serve Somebody, Nobody's Fault But Mine and Somebody Was Watching, the ambience is emotional, occasionally elated and gloriously punchy.
Throughout, it’s that fantastic, strident voice, reflecting the conviction of a man who probably knows the end is near, which is the boldest, brightest colour here.
