Candi Staton has been singing gospel and soul since the early fifties. Along with an incredible voice she is known for her bad history with men which is described in many of her songs. She has been married four times, including once to the blind soul singer and fellow Alabamian Clarence Carter, whose infidelity is the subject matter of several of his own songs. Here she is with Too Hurt to Cry, recorded at the famous Muscle Shoals Studio.Too Hurt to Cry |
When Staton released her latest album in 2006, I was very interested to learn that Will Oldham had written the title track. Oldham is an avante-garde folk singer whose work is sometimes unpalatable but often brilliant. Here is a song from his masterpiece Viva Last Blues (produced by Steve Albini.)The Brute Choir |
The song that Oldham wrote for Candi Staton is a kind of spiritual love song about domestic abuse (a subject Staton admits to being all too familiar with). The lyrics begin by describing an abusive relationship between a woman and a man. By the end the song is telling the story of the relationship between the human and the Divine. "Lay his hands on me" which first refers to abuse, later refers to the spiritual healing of "laying on of hands." The intentional conflating of a human love with a Divine love is very familiar to gospel and soul. Yet never has this love song been so complicated.
His Hands |