The Staple Singers: Be Altitude: Respect Yourself (50th anniversary edition) [CRAFT]

Why you'll love it

This 50th anniversary edition was mastered all-analogue from the original stereo tapes by Jeff Powell, on 180g vinyl in a gatefold jacket. "I'll Take You There" went to No. 1 on both the pop and soul charts, and "Respect Yourself" reached No. 2 soul and is in the Grammy Hall of Fame.

This edition

• 50th anniversary edition
• All-analogue mastering from the original tapes
• 180g vinyl
• Gatefold jacket
• Stereo mix

About the album

The Staple Singers had spent two decades singing gospel when Stax boss Al Bell had a bright idea: take Pops, Mavis, Cleotha and Yvonne down to Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and put them in front of the rhythm section that had backed Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett. Barry Beckett, Roger Hawkins, Jimmy Johnson and David Hood laid down the grooves, horns and overdubs were added in Memphis at Ardent, and the family's message music suddenly had a funk engine underneath it.

"Respect Yourself," written by Luther Ingram and Mack Rice, rides a tough, chicken-scratch groove under Mavis's commanding lead. "I'll Take You There" is pure joy, a reggae-tinged vamp built on a borrowed bass line, with Eddie Hinton's guitar solo and Mavis calling out to the band. "This World" was another hit, and deeper cuts like "We the People" and "I'm Just Another Soldier" keep the album's quiet, steady message of dignity and togetherness front and centre. Terry Manning engineered and added his own flourishes, from Mellotron to marimba.

The album reached No. 3 on the soul albums chart and No. 19 on the pop chart. Fifty years on, Mavis is still telling people to respect themselves, and on the evidence of the queue at our counter, plenty of them are listening.

Also at Kops: more The Staple Singers on vinyl · browse Classic Soul

Tracklist

Listen

On Stax / Craft Recordings (cat# CR00511), a reissue of the 1972 album.