The Staples Singers recorded their hit
“I’ll Take You There”
in ‘72, at Stax Records studio in Memphis, TN.
Mavis Staples sang the song.
She didn’t like it, at first.
Vice President of Stax, Al Bell,
had to sell her on it.
He showed her the music and sang the song for her,
but Mavis wasn’t convinced.
Al Bell wrote "I'll Take You There"
for his brother who was murdered.
After the funeral,
Bell went home and walked outside.
In his backyard, Al had an old yellow school bus
that stood in the weeds.
He sat in the bus and asked why, and how,
and he heard a voice say, “I’ll take you there”.
Mavis listened to Al Bell sing,
and the song grew on her, little by little.
I think it must wait until we’re listening.
Waits in the weeds until we are still.
Comes like a song.
Grows on us
and I think it's there if we're listening or not.