Concert review: Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings

by Mike Orren

DALLAS — "You got to be gin-you-wine"

It's no secret that I was jonesing (pun intended) for tonight's Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings gig at the Granada. I'm a sucker for old-school R&B and funk, and sad to say, a tight band with a horn section is a rare enough thing in this day and age that the opportunity to catch this old nouveau old-school soulstress backed by a neo-Stax backing band is a Really Big Deal.

I missed opening act Ivan Milev Band due to a cheese-fry emergency at Snuffers next door, but CC told me that the house was rockin' hard to the accordion. (Maybe she can elaborate in the comments.)

The Dap-Kings took the stage at 9:15 and instantly settled into some sweet grooves. They played with youthful energy while fulfilling every sixties-era backing band stereotype you could dream up: The laconic, sunglasses and skinny-tied bassist who spent half his time with his back to the crowd while directing the band; the lead guitarist / hypeman; the ultra-cool horn section.

After a few instrumentals and a number led by the guitarist, Sharon Jones took the stage to much fanfare. Even though I'd seen her on video, I was taken aback by how short she was (4' 11", according to stage banter).

The early numbers were marred by sound trouble, an unusual state of affairs for the Granada. (I never know if it's the house or the band's mix that carries the night.) After a few numbers, including a slowed-down funkified cover of Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done For Me Lately," Jones made some noise about the sound and things righted themselves.

The early sound problems must have had her down, because not only did she mention them in later banter-preaching intervals, but she also went into a dancing frenzy once they passed.

And while Jones' range was impressive and the band ultra-tight, it was the passion and emotion of the stage show that carried the evening. Let's face it -- she's not a lithe chanteuse like the Dap-Kings' other well-known frontwoman, Amy Winehouse. She's a short, matronly 51 year-old who dances her ass off like she's an over-caffeinated fourteen year-old on goofballs -- alternating between West African and Native American dances hearkening to both sides of her family tree, while mixing in steps that look straight out of the musical numbers from Hairspray, sans the self-aware kitsch. And it is indeed a marvelous sight. This is a woman who holds nothing back in the vocals or the barefoot dancing, and the crowd is swept right along.

(Said ethnic dances accompanied a long testi-preachi-fying speech about oppressed and enslaved ancestors from both sides of her family tree -- Which was the one thing that caused me to notice that the crowd assembled was 98% comprised of descendants of said oppressors and enslavers. Which made it feel both redemptive and a little strange as the crowd jumped and hollered in approbation of the tale.)

The role of the Dap-Kings in the evening's proceedings can't be overstated -- They come off like a modern day Booker T & the MG's (sans organ, which is the only thing they were missing). You know a band is in the groove when the horn section dances in unison and it doesn't feel the least bit contrived. And it's a rare band where the guy taking turns playing the tambourine plays with the same verve as the guy soloing. It was almost like a talking stick, indicating who was next to go on a tear. Also rare to hear a song carried by a baritone sax solo. Very nice.

Jones knows how to work a crowd, repeatedly involving the hall in call-and-response and bringing people from the audience up on stage to dance -- to most impressive and dramatic effect on "You Got to Be Genuine."

Jones gets compared to a lot of old-school soulstresses. If I had to make a comparison, I'd say you should take equal parts Ike-led Tina Turner, mid-eighties Tina Turner (in the stage patois) and Gladys Knight, garnished with a dash of James Brown.

Speaking of James Brown, the night closed with a powerful JB-inspired one-two punch of "It's a Mans, Man's. Man's World" and "I Feel All Right." For a show that was part R&B review, part tent revival and part dance party, there was no more fitting finale.

• Staff
• Verified User
• Anonymous