While she was in her final battle with cancer, Sharon Jones made a career milestone
At the onset of “Sail On,” the second track on “Soul of a Woman,” the posthumously released final album by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, you hear an eruption — a vocal wail sent straight from the gut to awaken the world outside. It’s a succinct reminder of the kind of tireless drive that Jones could summon, not to mention how efficient, effective and commanding her voice could be, because the brassy Dap-Kings click to immediate attention by circling around her with a huge, brassy groove that creates an immediate big-beat hullabaloo.
It would be easy to look upon “Soul of a Woman” with sentimental favor, seeing as Jones died a year ago this month after a battle with pancreatic cancer. It would be almost expected to admire its brave spirit, given that Jones recorded and continued touring between periods of treatment and remission. To be sure, such sentiments can’t be fully denied as you listen to the record. But the bottom line is simple and direct. Regardless of life’s circumstances, “Soul of a Woman” is a career milestone. It stands as the culmination — in terms of composition, arrangement, production, band performance and, above all, vocal command — of 15 years’ worth of recordings of Jones and the Dap-Kings. During that collaborative tenure, the alliance triggered the rebirth of a vintage soul tradition fueled with a vigor and immediacy that made it sound like anything but a retro exercise.
One marked difference between “Soul of a Woman” and Jones’ preceding albums is simple variety, which speaks as much for its production as it does for its repertoire. “Rumors,” for instance, is one of the most playful tunes Jones has ever cut. Blending brassy soul smarts with a modest Latin accent, kind of like the Bar-Keys meeting the Champs, with a touch of Marvelettes-inspired girl-group harmonies thrown in, the tune encapsulates the soul charge that has always been a Dap-Kings specialty but with a respectful leaning toward vintage pop.
“When I Saw Your Face,” however, adjusts the time machine to roughly 1970 with a sweeping orchestral sway, a generous dose of reverb and a lusciously enraptured vocal performance from Jones that takes “Soul of a Woman” to epic status.
The album ends Jones’ landmark soul music journey by going back to church. For “Call on God,” the Dap-Kings combine an unreleased 2007 vocal recording by Jones with new backup from the Gospel Wonders, the New York choir with ties to the singer dating to the ’70s. The group performed “Call on God” at Jones’ memorial service. That it has the last word on her last album only confirms what an extraordinary affirmation “Soul of a Woman” truly is.
This story was originally published November 21, 2017 at 11:28 AM with the headline "While she was in her final battle with cancer, Sharon Jones made a career milestone."