Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings Give the People What They Want

Sharon Jones and her backing band do nothing new but they do it to such a phenomenal standard it’s impossible not to be taken by the charm, the beauty and the total soul of the short journey across these ten gorgeous songs. If people were often capable of revisiting past eras with such aplomb then we would not see it with such value and Sharon Jones would not have such an important role in popular music.

It’s impossible to ignore that the original release of Give The People What They Want and its accompanying tour was delayed due to Jones’ treatment for cancer, and the way her voice hurtles out of the speakers makes you feel you should beware of trying to take her down. It’s great to have her back, and we can only hope she may continue for a long time.

There are few dips here but the standard of the whole record is remarkably high, and her voice and each of the members of her band do what they are designed to with wonderful effect. The sucker-punch opening of Retreat! is almost an order to the cancer to depart, and the following lead single Stranger To My Happiness is a near classic. What follows are eight other pearls, some more fragile than others, altogether making a strong, effortless and grandiose album, and a wonderfully well spent thirty four minutes of anybody’s time.

It’s a strong start to the month of January with such songs coming from the speakers. If you are seeking something original then this is not it; if you are a fan of good music and your ears need their medicine, this is exactly what the doctor ordered. A prescription of this would surely make those January blues go away!