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An inspirational force in modern popular culture and music, Mavis Staples is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and one of VH1’s “100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll.” Her voice has influenced artists from Bob Dylan to Prince, who dubbed her "the epitome of soul,” and she has appeared with everyone from the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to Bill Cosby, Presidents Kennedy, Carter and Clinton, to Janis Joplin, Pink Floyd, Santana and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and has recorded with Bob Dylan, Los Lobos, Aretha Franklin, Marty Stuart and many others. Mavis Staples began her career with her family group in 1950. Initially singing locally at churches and appearing on a weekly radio show, the Staples' scored a hit in 1956 with "Uncloudy Day.” When Ms. Staples graduated high school in 1957, The Staples Singers took their music on the road. Led by family patriarch Roebuck "Pops" Staples on guitar and including the voices of Mavis and her siblings Cleo, Yvonne and Pervis, the Staples were called "God's Greatest Hitmakers," becoming the most spectacular and influential spiritually-based group in America. By the mid-1960's The Staples Singers, inspired by Pops' close friendship with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., became the spiritual and musical voices of the civil rights movement. They covered contemporary pop hits with positive messages, including Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall" and a version of Stephen Stills' "For What It's Worth." The Staples sang "message" songs like "Long Walk To D.C." and "When Will We Be Paid?," bringing their moving and articulate music to a huge number of young people. The Staples Singers hit the Top 40 eight times between 1971 and 1975, including two #1 singles "I'll Take You There" and "Let's Do It Again," and a #2 single "Who Took the Merry Out of Christmas?" Now a long ways from their early roots as a pure gospel group, The Staples Singers were bona fide pop stars. Mavis Staples recorded her first solo album, “Mavis Staples,” in 1969. After another release, “Only for the Lonely,” in 1970, she released a soundtrack album, “A Piece of the Action.” A 1984 album (also self-titled) preceded two albums under the direction of rock megastar Prince, 1989's “Time Waits for No One,” followed by 1993's “The Voice,” which People magazine named to its Top Ten Albums of 1993. “Spirituals & Gospels: A Tribute to Mahalia Jackson,” recorded in 1996 with keyboardist Lucky Peterson, is a moving song cycle honoring Jackson, a very close family friend and a huge influence on Ms. Staples’ life. During her career Ms. Staples has appeared in many films and television shows, including “The Last Waltz,” “Wattstax,” “Soul Train” and “The Cosby Show.” Her voice has been sampled by some of the biggest selling hip-hop artists, including Salt 'n' Pepa, Ice Cube and Ludacris. She has recorded with a wide variety of musicians, from her close friend Bob Dylan, with whom she was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award in the "Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals" category for their duet on "Gotta Change My Way of Thinking" from the album “Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan,” to The Band, Ray Charles, Nona Hendryx, George Jones, Natalie Merchant, Ann Peebles, Delbert McClinton and many others. She has provided vocals on current albums by Los Lobos and Dr. John, and she appears on recent tribute albums to Johnny Paycheck, Stephen Foster and Bob Dylan. Tickets are $60, $55, $45. The Westport Arts Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating arts experiences that contribute to individual growth and enrich the community. The Westport Arts Center is supported with funds from The Artur and Heida Hermanns Holde Foundation, Inc., Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, National Endowment for the Arts, Connecticut Light & Power, Fairfield County Bank, Gault, Inc., Main Street Resources, U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management, and Westport Resources. For information and tickets, contact Westport Arts Center at 203-222-7070, purchase online at www.westportartscenter.org, or visit the gallery, M-F, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sat. and Sun. from 12 noon to 4 p.m., at 51 Riverside Avenue, Westport. © Copyright by NorwalkPlus.com. Some articles and pictures posted on our website, as indicated by their bylines, were submitted as press releases and do not necessarily reflect the position and opinion of NorwalkPlus.com, Norwalk Plus magazine, Canaiden LLC or any of its associated entities. Articles may have been edited for brevity and grammar. Related Articles: Connecticut Theater Coalition participates in 2008 Free Night of Theater - Sep 25, 2008 - 4:41 PM Gas stations must provide free air for tire inflation, Agency warns - Sep 25, 2008 - 3:35 PM Ailey II performs for Yerwood Center's 65th anniversary fundraiser - Sep 23, 2008 - 6:33 AM Westport Country Playhouse stages John Steinbeck classic “Of Mice and Men” - Sep 23, 2008 - 6:32 AM Notable locals are "King For a Day" in Bridgeport - Sep 22, 2008 - 10:55 AM CURRENT HEADLINES: Top of Page
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