Photo by Greg McKean

Today, Mavis Staples and the late Levon Helm have shared a lively take on Nina Simone’s “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free,” in addition to previously unseen footage of the two musicians performing the tune together in 2011. 

The song will appear on the duo’s forthcoming collaborative live album, Carry Me Home, due out on May 20 via ANTI-Records. The LP is comprised of 12 tracks recorded at Helm’s home studio in Woodstock, N.Y., before his 2012 passing stemming from a prolonged battle with throat cancer. 

Carry Me Home showcases the unbreakable friendship forged between Staples and Helm. A relationship that began during the 1976 making of The Last Waltz, when The Staples Singers collaborated with The Band on their seminal track, “The Weight.” 

“I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free” displays the joyous lightness of friendship and interconnectedness of two musicians captured on film. The video clips show Staples and Helm mingling and performing the tune live in front of a packed house. Bright smiles seem never to escape the artists’ faces as they deliver the iconic ditty. 

In celebration of the forthcoming LP, Staples will perform with Amy Helm on May 20 at Brooklyn Academy of Music. The two artists will also play at the Dirt Farmer Festival on May 21, alongside the Midnight Ramble Band. 

For more information, visit mavisstaples.com. 

Watch the official music video for  “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free” now.