Dap dappin'
Whether you know it or not there is a revolution going on and it is one which you should consider hitching yourself to with the utmost haste. If you are yet to discover the funk and soul gold of Daptone Records' Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, as I was until relatively recently, then time is even more of the essence. Music this good deserves to be unearthed and revelled in. I had been aware of the group for some time but, as is sometimes the way in my world of lethargy, I had neglected to look into them properly. And this despite the fact that what I knew of them already I liked immensely. Dripping in the retro sound of the best of 1960s and 1970s soul and funk, one of my favourite places to dwell, the group eschew digital recordings and stick to an analogue technique, also limiting themselves to the other instruments and recording styles of the era. No pro-tools wizardry for this outfit.
When I discovered that they contributed significantly to Amy Winehouse's much heralded Back to Black LP, itself at one, albeit mainstream, vanguard of this retro renaissance, I didn't bite. Mooted current projects with Questlove, Jay-Z and Kanye didn't up my priorities any. Recommendations from trusted acquaintances did not even move this lazy old lump to investigate further. It wasn't disinterest, just a lame inability to get around to it, and in my defence there is a hell of a lot of worthy music out there. But now, dear reader, I have finally seen the light. And what a bright light it has proven to be. A chance inclusion on a free compilation and then, wham, I'm hooked in. And like a Depeche Mode addict, now I just can't get enough.
The song that I first heard was a modest opening gambit but carried an element of fate, 2005's cover of Kenny Rogers and The First Edition's "I Just Dropped In (to see what condition my condition was in)". A great start for any Lebowski fan I'm sure you'll agree. But when I found their original work it really clicked for me. Their three full length LPs have the feel of instant classics. They really do evoke the era that inspires them, to the extent that it is almost impossible to believe that they are not reissues from some vault of precious musical gems at Stax or Curtom. But original is what they are and if you think that borrowing heavily from your influences is some kind of short-term gimmick then you couldn't be more wrong.
This is no Acid Jazz scene and in my opinion the time is coming for a more populist conversion to their cause. For though they wear their influences on their sleeves, and indeed their record sleeves (with even cover design taking on the appearance of old classics) their music is innovative, crazily soulful and downright funky. It might hark back to the good old days, but is also somehow definitively modern in its sound and sentiments, a stunning feat if you can pull it off. It is helped by the fact that the Dap Kings are no average house band but rather made up of some of the best funk and jazz musicians from the New York scene, and especially the Deep Funk movement that has coalesced around Daptone Records (and previous incarnation Desco Records), including such key players as Neal Sugarman on saxophone and Bosco Mann on bass.
And then there is Sharon Jones herself, a heaven-sent voice of such sweetness and power as to be almost improper. Jones's own career has been a story of ups and downs, the fickle music industry over-looking her major talent because she did not fit their aesthetic. And now, in her early 50s, Jones's own renaissance is at full tilt, where she seems to make up for the forgotten years with every vocal performance, live or on disk. Jones brings raw fire to the microphone, and sings with a soul voice drenched in passion, heartbreak, commitment and sometimes pure sex, some of the finest ingredients of any soul stew. Pick anyone of their three LPs, 2002's "Dap Dappin' with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings", 2005's "Naturally" and 2006's "100 Days, 100 Nights", and I challenge you to find a weak track.
From all out funk jams to mellower sultry soul, this band have it all in abundance, and the soul resurgence may just see them get the recognition they deserve. For these are no hipsters, catching a ride on a wave of faddish enthusiasm. They are the real deal, and if ever the old adage was true it is when applied to the new hardest working band in show business. Form is temporary, but class is permanent.
When I discovered that they contributed significantly to Amy Winehouse's much heralded Back to Black LP, itself at one, albeit mainstream, vanguard of this retro renaissance, I didn't bite. Mooted current projects with Questlove, Jay-Z and Kanye didn't up my priorities any. Recommendations from trusted acquaintances did not even move this lazy old lump to investigate further. It wasn't disinterest, just a lame inability to get around to it, and in my defence there is a hell of a lot of worthy music out there. But now, dear reader, I have finally seen the light. And what a bright light it has proven to be. A chance inclusion on a free compilation and then, wham, I'm hooked in. And like a Depeche Mode addict, now I just can't get enough.
The song that I first heard was a modest opening gambit but carried an element of fate, 2005's cover of Kenny Rogers and The First Edition's "I Just Dropped In (to see what condition my condition was in)". A great start for any Lebowski fan I'm sure you'll agree. But when I found their original work it really clicked for me. Their three full length LPs have the feel of instant classics. They really do evoke the era that inspires them, to the extent that it is almost impossible to believe that they are not reissues from some vault of precious musical gems at Stax or Curtom. But original is what they are and if you think that borrowing heavily from your influences is some kind of short-term gimmick then you couldn't be more wrong.
This is no Acid Jazz scene and in my opinion the time is coming for a more populist conversion to their cause. For though they wear their influences on their sleeves, and indeed their record sleeves (with even cover design taking on the appearance of old classics) their music is innovative, crazily soulful and downright funky. It might hark back to the good old days, but is also somehow definitively modern in its sound and sentiments, a stunning feat if you can pull it off. It is helped by the fact that the Dap Kings are no average house band but rather made up of some of the best funk and jazz musicians from the New York scene, and especially the Deep Funk movement that has coalesced around Daptone Records (and previous incarnation Desco Records), including such key players as Neal Sugarman on saxophone and Bosco Mann on bass.
And then there is Sharon Jones herself, a heaven-sent voice of such sweetness and power as to be almost improper. Jones's own career has been a story of ups and downs, the fickle music industry over-looking her major talent because she did not fit their aesthetic. And now, in her early 50s, Jones's own renaissance is at full tilt, where she seems to make up for the forgotten years with every vocal performance, live or on disk. Jones brings raw fire to the microphone, and sings with a soul voice drenched in passion, heartbreak, commitment and sometimes pure sex, some of the finest ingredients of any soul stew. Pick anyone of their three LPs, 2002's "Dap Dappin' with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings", 2005's "Naturally" and 2006's "100 Days, 100 Nights", and I challenge you to find a weak track.
From all out funk jams to mellower sultry soul, this band have it all in abundance, and the soul resurgence may just see them get the recognition they deserve. For these are no hipsters, catching a ride on a wave of faddish enthusiasm. They are the real deal, and if ever the old adage was true it is when applied to the new hardest working band in show business. Form is temporary, but class is permanent.
posted by Twelve Bar at 9:13 AM
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