Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings
I don't so much buy CDs as inhale great gobs of them, like so many krill, across a wide range of musical genres. Often this means that some pretty good stuff gets put away, only to be truly "discovered" at a later date. I use long road trips to catch up on some of this music (much to the chagrin of Thing One and Thing Two, who would prefer to watch "Finding Nemo" over and over again on the van's DVD player). This year's vacation gave me a chance to really get into "Naturally," the second CD release from Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, and it is one of the finest new recordings I have heard in a long time.
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings are part of the excellent revival in funk and funky soul music that in the US revolves around independent label Daptone Records (a topic I hope to explore in more detail in a subsequent post). Their debut album, Dap Dippin' with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, was strong. As a lover of 60s and 70s soul music, I often lamented that "they don't make music like that anymore," and was stunned to discover that in this case, they still do. It is clear after hearing it that Sharon Jones is a gifted singer who can belt with the best of them, and can also handle the ballad. That the Dap Kings are a James Brown influenced throw back band composed of the essential ingredients of a good funk band: fatback drums, kick-ass bass, scratchy guitar, hammond organ, and a virtuoso horn section.
So based on their first album, naturally I bought Naturally, listened to it a couple of times, thought it was good, and didn't get back to it for awhile. But after repeated listening on vacation, I can recommend this disc to any lover of Aretha Franklin or Stax or other funky soul. It is outstanding and far superior IMO to the excellent debut. The songs are simply great, well written, and well performed. Hard and funky, sweet and soulful, this one has it all. Sharon brings it, but the instrumental breaks are as good as her singing.
The good news is that unlike the great soul artists of the 70s, you can catch this act doing their thing in their prime. Current tour dates can be accessed here.
(Another fine band in the Daptone stable is Sugarman 3, and I highly recommend all their material as well.)
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings are part of the excellent revival in funk and funky soul music that in the US revolves around independent label Daptone Records (a topic I hope to explore in more detail in a subsequent post). Their debut album, Dap Dippin' with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, was strong. As a lover of 60s and 70s soul music, I often lamented that "they don't make music like that anymore," and was stunned to discover that in this case, they still do. It is clear after hearing it that Sharon Jones is a gifted singer who can belt with the best of them, and can also handle the ballad. That the Dap Kings are a James Brown influenced throw back band composed of the essential ingredients of a good funk band: fatback drums, kick-ass bass, scratchy guitar, hammond organ, and a virtuoso horn section.
So based on their first album, naturally I bought Naturally, listened to it a couple of times, thought it was good, and didn't get back to it for awhile. But after repeated listening on vacation, I can recommend this disc to any lover of Aretha Franklin or Stax or other funky soul. It is outstanding and far superior IMO to the excellent debut. The songs are simply great, well written, and well performed. Hard and funky, sweet and soulful, this one has it all. Sharon brings it, but the instrumental breaks are as good as her singing.
The good news is that unlike the great soul artists of the 70s, you can catch this act doing their thing in their prime. Current tour dates can be accessed here.
(Another fine band in the Daptone stable is Sugarman 3, and I highly recommend all their material as well.)
1 Comments:
By 
, at
Wed Aug 10, 02:45:00 PM:
Rum, gin, the Dap Kings, the Cubs, Iowa football, c'mon Villain, you're having too much fun! Share your hootch with your co-writers, who need to lighten up every now and then.
