Rhiannon Giddens is a folk revivalist who knows that old stories can still have a powerful and painful relevance, and on her second solo album since leaving the Carolina Chocolate Drops, she sings about the history of America’s fight against racism, in order to warn of current dangers. Her last album was an adventurous covers set, but here she matches her own powerful compositions based on vivid, true stories from the slavery era against classic blues, and civil rights songs from the 60s. There’s a powerful, gospel-edged treatment of Birmingham Sunday, about a church murder by the Ku Klux Klan, and a rousing duet with Bhi Bhiman on Pops Staples’ Freedom Highway. Influences include folk, blues and jazz, along with funk and rap on a song about death in present day America. The exquisite We Could Fly brings a note of optimism to this powerful and timely set.
