Band leader, guitarist and vocal group patriarch Roebuck “Pops” Staples died in 2000, leaving a number of recent unfinished recordings and an instruction to daughter Mavis: “Don’t lose this album.” It has taken more than a decade for her to let it go. Co-produced by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, here are 10 spare and uncluttered blues, traditionals and covers featuring Tweedy on bass, his son Spencer on drums and Staples’ daughters high in the mix. Some songs roll along with almost indecent ease – Somebody Was Watching, No News Is Good News – while some draw you up, like the Pops/Mavis duet Sweet Home.
