In an upstairs lounge at Hackney Picturehouse, Candi Staton is reflecting on the documentary that has just premiered on screen one. The American singer, a vivacious and very much active octogenarian, is one of the stars of the British-made I’ll Take You There: Discovering the Sound of Alabama, and the evening’s guest of honour.
“It is amazing,” she says, beaming, of this late-in-life recognition that’s brought her to London. “Years ago, when I was in my thirties, my forties, my fifties, people said: ‘God is saving the best for the last. Your last days will be your better days. Just be patient…’ So I always kept a mental positive attitude, and I kept those things in mind.”
