By — PBS News Hour PBS News Hour Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/soul-singer-mavis-staples-vocalizes-civil-rights-movement Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. MAVIS STAPLES, Musician (singing): Down in Mississippi where I was born, down in Mississippi, where I come from, way down… JEFFREY BROWN: On a recent summer night at the beautiful Red Rocks Amphitheater outside Denver, Mavis Staples sang of what she witnessed as a young girl in the segregated South. MAVIS STAPLES (singing): She said, "You drink from that fountain over there," and that fountain had a sign. It said "for colored only"… JEFFREY BROWN: As lead singer for the Staple Singers, the legendary gospel and soul group, and in recent years on her own, Mavis Staples' powerful voice has been moving audiences since the 1950s. MAVIS STAPLES (singing): Down in Mississippi… JEFFREY BROWN: "Down in Mississippi" is the opening number on her latest recording, "We'll Never Turn Back," a collection of songs from and about the civil rights era.Very personal stuff, right? MAVIS STAPLES: Yes, it is. It's very personal, and it's real. It's true, you know, walking with my grandma, and these things just actually happened. My grandmother told me I couldn't drink from that fountain. You drink from that fountain over there. Listen to this Segment By — PBS News Hour PBS News Hour