Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings

The gold standard in soul revivalism, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings made their name by grinding it out onstage—very often and for very long stretches of time. Their legacy could be said to trace back to the ’60s, but that’s just the sound of it: Jones and her band do little to differentiate themselves from the kind of old soul and funk records that thrived in, say, 1968. On 2010’s I Learned The Hard Way,Jones and the D-Ks smooth away some of the grit from their first three albums, approximating the lushness and musicality of prime-era Motown on songs like the finger-popping “Better Things.” It’s a rewarding (though slight) change of direction that likely won’t impact the live show, which is still as visceral and invigorating as ever.  

Updated 05/04/2011