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It is a little past noon on a blustery, sunny Saturday in late October, and Mavis Staples takes the stage in front of over 200,000 people on the Washington Mall. At 71, Staples is a veteran of similar massive gatherings.

Mavis Staples

The gospel musician sang at the inaugurations of former presidents Kennedy, Carter, and Clinton, and appeared with Martin Luther King Jr. at dozens of civil rights rallies in the 1960s. But she is on the Mall today at the request of comedians Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart, whose Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear is about to take a humorous but not-so-gentle poke at the histrionic polemics and hand-wringing that have recently characterized political dialogue in America.

As she and Jeff Tweedy, the founder of indie rock band Wilco, launch into "You Are Not Alone," the title track from her latest album, she's taking no prisoners:

A broken dream, a broken heart
Isolated and afraid
Open up, this is a raid
I wanna get it through to you
You're not alone

It is intended as a healing balm for a troubled and divided nation, and it is, as it has always been, the only real and lasting antidote for fear. She is singing the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the answer that still matters most to Mavis Staples. She's been at the forefront of political change in the United States for the better part of fifty years, so it's more than a cause. It's a life.

"It's hard times for many people," she told me after the rally. "People are losing their jobs, losing their homes. There's a lot of fear out there. And that song, 'You Are Not Alone'—that's the song we wanted to communicate to everyone, that we are all in this together. You don't have to do this by yourself.

"And, of course, I believe that Jesus is with us, too. Some people will hear it as a gospel song. And some people will hear it as a song about solidarity, about sticking together. And it is. It's all of those things. Stephen Colbert asked me to sing that song at the start of the day, to set the tone. And I thought it went pretty well."

She chuckles, recalling the rapturous ovation that greeted her performance. "Not too bad, I guess, for an old gospel singer."

A longtime member of Trinity United Church of Christ on Chicago's South Side, Staples has always sung about her Christian faith. Her latest record—You Are Not Alone, which finished number two in Christianity Today's Album of the Year voting—includes plenty of rousing gospel but also a few tracks that could be called protest songs, or at least "social awareness" songs. That the record, produced by Tweedy, has been nominated for a Grammy in the Americana category, instead of one of the typical gospel categories, speaks to its eclecticism. (Update: On February 13, Staples won the award for best Americana album.)

'We can overcome every injustice'

Staples says the new album "goes deep." She adds, "With my music I want to show people that we can overcome every injustice and every trial. People need to know that even though they may not be able to change their circumstances, they themselves can be changed. You know, prayer changes things. God changes things. And if you'll let him, God is able to carry you through."

Staples's mainstream appeal demonstrates that we are a long way from the days when early rhythm and blues and soul pioneers like Sam Cooke and Wilson Pickett had to fend off criticisms from the church for singing about "secular" themes. The battle lines have long been drawn, but Staples, who moves seamlessly between traditional gospel songs, social protest anthems, and rock and pop standards, is having none of it.

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