Get Ready To Dip-Dap WithSharon Jones

Thu 13th Apr, 2006 in Features

Classic soul and funk sounds have been raided by hip-hop crate diggers for years and interest seems to be on the rise. Al Green and Solomon Burke have stepped out from the pulpit and back into the studio. After years of silence or mediocre records Prince and Stevie Wonder are back recording material that’s worthy of their names. The mighty Soul Jazz and Stones Throw labels unearth and reissue lost soul and funk gems with amazing regularity. Even indie singer-songwriter Cat Power has turned to Al Green’s backing band to record her latest record, The Greatest.

Yet, the recent tour by James Brown and his Soul Generals left many fans underwhelmed as James shuffled through his Vegas-style show, barely able to muster a grunt or a ‘good god’. The godfather of soul may be struggling, but thankfully his hometown of Augusta, Georgia has a new ambassador of soul—Sharon Jones. Sure, she may have lived most her life in New York, but when Sharon was born in Augusta some of the old James Brown magic must have been in the air. With her band the Dap-Tones she’s about to descend on Australia and play what she promises will be the most energetic and storming funk and soul shows we’re likely to see for quite some time. Sharon may turn 50 this year but she’s hardly slowing down, she’s just getting started. ‘I started late, (James Brown) started early,’ she explains, ‘maybe I’ve got energy stored!’

That’s not entirely true. She’s defiantly got energy stored, but she didn’t exactly start late. Sharon’s been singing for various groups for decades, but when she hooked up with the Dap-Kings things changed and more people started paying attention. Sharon started singing with the Dap-Kings about ten years ago when her ex—who was then playing saxophone with the group—introduced her to the band. They were looking for three singers and most of the band members were half Sharon’s age, but her vocal range soon convinced the band that she could cover the work of three singers. ‘I saved them a lot of money’ she jokes. Their acclaimed albums Dap Dippin’ with… (2002) and Naturally (2005) have captured the classic sounds of groups such as The Meters and JB’s without losing any of the energy and feeling that propelled those classic funk/soul groups. She bristles at any suggestion that she and her band represent a revival or retro sound; The Dap-Kings aren’t about studied rehashes filled with reverently timed rim-shots and tired horn breaks. They’re a raw beast tamed by the powerful vocals of their soul queen, Ms Jones.

Perhaps the greatest compliment that can be paid to Sharon Jones and her band is that people so often confuse their recordings with classic soul and funk recordings from the 60s and 70s. Even music fanatic and hip-hop superstar Kanye West has been compelled and tricked by Sharon’s classic sound—sampling from two of her songs in his production work on Rhymefest’s single Brand New—without clearing the sample. Sharon believes that Kanye, ‘thought he’d found the music of some artist that he’d never heard of and that it would be ok.’ The lawyers working on it now, but Sharon’s not particularly fazed—there might be some money in it, but it’s also taken her music to a new audience.

Asked about Kanye’s infamous statements in the wake of hurricane Katrina and the importance of political statements in soul music Sharon points out that she’d already released What if we all Stopped Paying Taxes? and Woody Guthrie cover This Land Is Your Land before he ‘got up there and said all that crap.’ She says what he said was ‘an understatement… he just kinda blasted out, but you know what? It’s true.’ Like most observers, Sharon believes that it wasn’t just about race in New Orleans; rescue efforts were slow because poor people were worst affected. It has become a topic of her onstage introduction to What if we Stopped Paying Taxes? as Sharon pretends to call the White House and grill Bush on the issues of the day.

Like Kanye, DJ Greyboy also thought he’d uncovered a voice from an earlier era when he and Sharon worked on several tracks for his Soul Mosaic album. Sharon and the San Diego producer share a birthdate, but some 20 years apart. ‘We met in the studio he was turning 26, I was 46… He was asking me about songs that he thought I’d recorded when I was like 19, we’d recorded them last year! He was like, “no way!” Sharon laughingly recalls. It’s a collaboration that was clearly important for Sharon, her voice brimming with pride as she notes that she helped to write some of the material for the album. It’s something that she’s keen to do more often; her lyrics will soon be heard on a gospel album she’s recording for Daptone. She’s also lending her vocals to a children’s story-album for the legendary jazz label Verve. The album of children’s songs will also teach kids how to scat. ‘I’m playing the elephant character’ Sharon laughs and throws a quick verse of The Wheels on the Bus down the line. It’s immediately clear that this will be no ordinary kids’ record.

The gospel record is a project that she’s been keen to record for some time as she started her singing career, when she was 14, in the church choir at the Universal Church of God in Queens. She’s sung with them for well over thirty years now. While recording success has only come in the last few years Sharon has always been making a living singing—until touring commitments with the Dap-Kings demanded her time last year she’d been leading a wedding party band through covers of Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson for seventeen years. Not that success with Daptone has changed her life – ‘It’s not about the money y’know, I’m still driving a ‘88 Honda Civic.’ The Dap-Kings don’t just sound like a band from the 60s and 70s ‘we’re actually touring the circuit like bands did then, in a broken down bus.’ Perhaps Kanye can throw them some cash.

Sharon is excited to be bringing her live show to Australia for the first time. Not that making it out here hasn’t been on the agenda for some time. Offers had been made to bring out a smaller band but Sharon didn’t see the point—she’s loyal to her band and if she’s going to tour it has be the full experience. Now the tour’s going ahead with the whole Dap-King line-up Sharon’s just got one question for Australian audiences – ‘You ready for all of us?’

The Dap-Kings are:

Binky Griptite, Guitar, Emcee
David Guy, Trumpet
Bosco “Bass” Mann, Bass, Bandleader
Neal Sugarman, Tenor Saxophone
Tommy “TNT” Brenneck, Guitar
Fernando “Bugaloo” Velez, Congas, tambourine
Homer “Funky-Foot” Steiweiss, Drums
Ian Hendrickson, Baritone and Tenor Saxophone

Touring Australia for the first time, you can catch them:

Fri 14 Apr - East Coast Blues & Roots, Byron Bay
Sat 15 Apr - East Coast Blues & Roots, Byron Bay
Sun 16 Apr – The Forum, Melbourne (w/ the Black Keys)
Mon 17 Apr – Rocket Bar, Adelaide
Thu 20 Apr – Gaelic Club, Sydney
Fri 21 Apr – Belvoir Grand Ballroom, Perth (w/ Greyboy)
Sun 23 Apr – Prince of Wales, Melbourne