Multigenerational gospel soul group Annie and the Caldwells are the rarest of things: a genuinely homespun family band. Formed in the 1980s as a way for matriarch Annie to keep her four children out of trouble, the group have spent the past four decades honing their richly melodic sound in their home town of West Point, Mississippi.
Their debut album, Can’t Lose My (Soul), arrives on the heels of the acclaimed 2022 reissue of Annie’s 1975 gospel record with her brothers the Staples Jr Singers, When Do We Get Paid, and its six tracks cover similar ground of spiritual struggle, redemption and grace with an updated, punchy backing track.
Sibling rhythm section Willie Jr on bass and Abel Aquirius on drums hold down a formidable groove, anchoring the uptempo funk of Wrong and polyrhythmic percussion of I Made It, while daughters Anjessica and Deborah and goddaughter Toni provide honeyed backing vocals on the title track. Yet, it’s the mature husk of Annie’s voice that commands most attention. Effortlessly soaring through the yearning emotion of Don’t You Hear Me Calling and producing celebratory shouts on Dear Lord, her lead vocal carries a life’s worth of experience that is joyous to hear.
