Album · Mavis Staples
If All I Was Was Black by Mavis Staples
If All I Was Was Black is an album by Mavis Staples, released in 2017. 1 song from it has charted on rock radio countdowns, with 2 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “If All I Was Was Black”, on 2 lists with a best position of #68.
If All I Was Was Black, released on ANTI- on November 17, 2017, was Mavis Staples's thirteenth studio album and her follow-up to Livin' on a High Note, with Jeff Tweedy writing and producing every song. The partnership makes sense: Tweedy keeps things spare and warm, all rough-grained guitars and unfussy rhythm, and leaves plenty of room for the voice that carried the Staple Singers.
Staples, a gospel singer and civil rights activist, sings like someone with nothing left to prove and plenty left to say. The title track is the one that turned up on the countdowns. We Get By followed in 2019.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from If All I Was Was Black on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | If All I Was Was Black | 2 | #68 | – | 2017 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.