Memphis-born, Mississippi-based spiritual blues scion Rev. John Wilkins is home recuperating after a two-month battle with COVID-19. The ordeal found the 76-year-old, spending five weeks in Baptist Memorial Hospital-Desoto, where he lay unconscious for nearly half that time, in ICU and on a ventilator.
Having survived his battle with the virus — though he’s still dealing with its lingering aftereffects — Wilkins has announced the release of a new album, “Trouble,” which will be out Sept. 18 from the local Goner Records label. A preview of the album’s title track was released to streaming services on Thursday.
The album finds Wilkins — the son of 1920’s blues icon Robert Wilkins, whose songs would go on to be covered by the Rolling Stones and Doobie Brothers — continuing his late career resurgence, which began with the release of his 2015 debut album, “You Can’t Hurry God.”
In a statement announcing “Trouble,” Wilkins said the album’s title track was inspired by the tumultuous state of the world.
“Over the last few years it seemed like every time I turned on the TV or picked up a paper there was a school shooting. There were people hurting others, hurting themselves,” said Wilkins. “In the White House there were troubles, nearly nothing getting fixed, leading to more trouble. And look where we are now. But we will find a way…I just needed to find a stanky beat!”
Wilkins’ father, Robert Wilkins, was a Hernando-born singer and guitarist who was a key figure in the Memphis blues scene of the 1920s, along with fellow notables like Furry Lewis, the Memphis Jug Band, and Memphis Minnie. By the early 1940s, when John Wilkins was born, the elder Wilkins had left secular music behind to focus on gospel and ministry. But his early sides would be rediscovered, as would Robert Wilkins himself, who became a beloved figure during the blues revival of the 1960s, giving him a second career.
As a younger man, John Wilkins would follow his father into music, working as a sideman for the “Mother of Beale Street,” Ma Rainey II, and soul singer O.V. Wright (Wilkins would play on Wright’s classic 1965 single “You’re Gonna Make Me Cry”). Like his father, John Wilkins would eventually focus on spiritual music, performing with the M&N Gospel Singers, and by the mid-1980s, had taken on a role as preacher at Hunter’s Chapel in Como, Mississippi.
After 30 years at Hunter Chapel, Wilkins was coaxed into the studio, releasing “You Can’t Hurry God” which became a critically acclaimed LP and found Wilkins touring all over the world to support the project.
For “Trouble,” Wilkins entered the famed Royal Studios in South Memphis – the historic home of Hi Records and just a stone’s throw from where he grew up. The project was produced by Amos Harvey and engineered by Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell (Solomon Burke, Al Green).
The album finds Wilkins working up a collection of spiritual soul numbers from a variety of sources including the Fisk Jubilee Singers’ “Wade In The Water,” Ralph Stanley’s “The Darkest Hour,” and Bill Withers’ “Grandma’s Hands,” among its 11 tracks.
The sessions featured a crew of local musicians backing Wilkins, including guitarist Kevin Cubbins (Beale Street Caravan), keyboardist Rev. Charles Hodges (Al Green, Ann Peebles), bassist Jimmy Kinnard (Isaac Hayes, Al Green), and drummer Steve Potts (Neil Young, Booker T & the MGs). Wilkins’ daughters, Tangela Longstreet, Joyce Jones, and Tawana Cunningham, provide vocal harmonies.
“Trouble” is available for pre-order now from Goner Records.