Legendary soul singer Mavis Staples, age 86, is walking into the front row of the audience at the intimate Soho Sessions, leading a singalong on the chorus of “I’ll Take You There,” the iconic 1972 hit she recorded with her father and siblings, the Staples Singers. “Come on now, now, y’all!” she exhorts. “A little bit louder — take us there! … Don’t you wanna go?!”- By Jem Aswad - Variety
Unaccustomed to reassuring a Rolling Stone, I say, “I think you’ll be fine, Keith.”Needless to say, he was. Richards then took the stage and led current Rolling Stones drummer Steve Jordan, guitarist Larry Campbell (last seen accompanying Bruce Springsteen for a recent “Nebraska” set), keyboardist Ivan Neville and NRBQ bassist Joey Spampinato into a loose three-song set featuring the blues classic “Key to the Highway,” an acoustic take on his 1969 Stones showcase “You Got the Silver,” and the Chuck Berry seasonal chestnut “Run Rudolph Run.”
In the audience Demi Moore, Emma Heming Willis, Michael J Fox, Tracy Pollan, Whoopi Goldberg, Jeff Ross, Steve Guttenberg, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick and many more. AFTD is dedicated to advancing research, awareness, and support for those affected by frontotemporal degeneration (head here for more information and to donate); previous beneficiaries have included Everytown for Gun Safety; Music Will, the largest nonprofit music program in the U.S. public school system; the National Alliance on Mental Illness / Hawaii (after the devastating fire in Lahaina); and others.
