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Time Waits for No One is the fourth solo studio album by American soul singer Mavis Staples. The album was her first on Prince’s Paisley Park Records label and was released on May 24, 1989.
The album includes six Prince-penned songs and two songs written by Homer Banks and Lester Snell.
Prince took a great interest in Mavis Staples after she provided him rousing background vocals and appeared in the 1990 film Graffiti Bridge.
He signed her to his label and wrote and produced some of the tracks on this disc. Unfortunately, it enjoyed little impact sales-wise, although Staples soared, shouted and roared with splendor.
But her sound and approach were so soulful that it seemed out of place in the detached setting of urban radio.
There were both fiery message tracks and blistering love songs, with Staples’ assertive, tender and intense vocals. However, not even Prince’s name could break the embargo on acts considered too old-school for modern audiences.
Prince wrote the majority of the songs for the album, and got friends like Sheila E. and Eric Leeds to pitch in during the recording sessions. Mavis of course supplied her trademark soulful vocals.
Highlights include “Train”, an outtake from Prince’s recent “Sign o’ the Times” album, and the title track. “Jaguar” is another fun dance track originally written for Sheena Easton. Perhaps when Mavis sang it, they should have re-named it “Cougar” (Mavis was nearly 50 at the time)!
Sadly, no hits materialized, and the album is now out of print. But “Time Waits for No One” marked the start of a great friendship and a fruitful collaboration with Prince. Mavis would eventually move into recording Americana with the likes of Jeff Tweedy, but she proved that she had the goods to assure her longevity beyond the 1970s with this album.
Track listing
- “Interesting” – 4:26
- “20th Century Express”
(Homer Banks, Lester Snell)– 3:52 - “Come Home” – 5:21
- “Jaguar” – 5:31
- “Train” – 4:25
- “The Old Songs”
(Homer Banks, Lester Snell)– 4:51 - “I Guess I’m Crazy” – 4:12
- “Time Waits for No One”
(Prince, Mavis Staples)– 5:51
All tracks composed by Prince; except where indicated
Personnel
- Mavis Staples – vocals
- Prince – all other instruments, drums, backing vocals
- Sheila E. – drums, percussion, co-lead vocals on “Time Waits for No One”
- Lester Snell – keyboards
- Eric Leeds – saxophone
- Atlanta Bliss – trumpet
- Miko Weaver – guitar on “Interesting”
- Boni Boyer, Dr. Fink – keyboards on “Interesting”
- Levi Seacer – bass on “Interesting”
- Ray Griffin – bass on “20th Century Express”
- Michael Toles – guitar on “The Old Songs”
- Lawrence Harper – drums on “The Old Songs”
Technical
- Joe Blaney, William C. Brown III, Susan Rogers, Coke Johnson, Eddie Garcia, Sal Greco – engineer
- Greg Gorman – photography
Notes
Released: May 24, 1989
Recorded: 1988–1989 Studio Paisley Park, Chanhassen, Minnesota, US Ardent, Memphis, Tennessee, US Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California, US
Length: 39:11
Producer(s): Prince, Al Bell, Homer Banks, Lester Snell on “20th Century Express” & “The Old Songs”
Label – Paisley Park Records
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