Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings have come a long way since their humble beginnings nearly a decade ago. Steeped within the gilded and gritty sounds of gospel, soul and funk, this nine-piece Brooklyn collective has continued to electrify fans, disc jockeys, critics, record collectors, and bloggers the world-over with their authentic, heart-felt sound. The authenticity clearly demonstrated on the band’s four critically-acclaimed albums Dap Dippin’, Naturally, 100 Days, 100 Nights, I Learned The Hard Way captured and released by the independent Daptone Records. Their albums recall an analog era led by iconic studios like those at Motown and Stax Records, and have thrust the fifty-three-year-old Augusta, GA native and crew into the multimedia limelight. Tickets are $30 general and $25 for HSU students. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office and at humboldt.edu/aspresents.
As distinguished as their recordings may be, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings have become truly renowned thanks to their incredible live show and relentless touring. Although it’s no easy task to keep such a vast ensemble on the road, the band continues to pack hundreds of clubs worldwide, including two consecutive sold out shows last year at New York’s legendary Apollo Theatre, a historical evening at Celebrate Brooklyn! at the Prospect Park Band Shell that brought a reported crowd of nearly 20,000 people and show-stopping sets at SXSW, Coachella, Lollapalooza, Roskilde, Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits, North Sea Jazz Festival, and WOMAD. Most recently, the band has been invited by fellow soul enthusiast, Prince, to open for him at his shows in New York City, Paris, and Ghent. At each show, Ms. Jones and the Dap-Kings have been asked to join Prince on stage for collaborations during his set.
But, besides the adoration they receive from fans across the globe, they’ve also grabbed the ears of a diverse range of producers, musicians, and Hollywood execs, leading to a number of exciting collaborative projects with many different artists. Ms. Jones celebrated her silver screen debut in the Denzel Washington film, The Great Debaters, in which she was called upon to act, sing, and record the majority of the film’s soundtrack; the band’s version of Shuggie Otis’s “Inspiration Information” was a favorite on the celebrated Dark Was The Night benefit album; and their cover of “This Land Is Your Land” was prominently featured in the Golden Globe and Oscar winning Up in the Air. In addition, Ms. Jones has hit the studio and stage with the likes of David Byrne, They Might Be Giants, Rufus Wainwright, and Lou Reed. Not to be outdone, the Dap-Kings’ musical chops have also been in high demand. Legendary soul icon Al Green tapped their services for his Grammy winning Blue Note release, Lay It Down; Public Enemy producer Hank Shocklee used them for the soundtrack to the feature film American Gangster; and Mark Ronson utilized them for much of Amy Winehouse’s Grammy winning Back to Black.
I Learned The Hard Way was produced by Bosco Mann and recorded in its entirety on an old Ampex eight-track tape machine at Daptone Records’ “House of Soul Studios.” The record drips with warmth and spontaneity rarely found since the golden days of Muscle Shoals and Stax Records. Ms. Jones’s voice, never stronger, evokes at once the raw power of Tina Turner, the moaning soulfulness of Mavis Staples, the rhythmic swagger of James Brown, and the melodic command of Aretha Franklin. From the lush Philly-soul fanfare that ushers in the top of the album with “The Game Gets Old,” to the stripped down Sam Cooke style that closes it with “Mama Don’t Like My Man,” the band dances seamlessly through the most simple, crafted arrangements with subtlety and discipline. This is the “Daptone Sound” at its finest and is a welcome breath of fresh air.
For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928 or at humboldt.edu/aspresents.