One of the smoothest labels in all the land is turning 20 years old this year and to celebrate they are releasing a whopping three-LP live set captured at the famed Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York City. The Daptone Super Soul Revue Live at the Apollo was recorded during a three-night, sold-out run at the famed venue in 2014. Captured here are the labels best, showing off their immense talents to an extremely receptive New York City crowd.
Built around the two vocal pillars of the label, Sharon Jones and Charles Bradley Jr. this live album is awash in tight get-down workouts, funky asides, and muscular horn arrangements. Jones and Bradley Jr. show up a bit later in the proceedings as things kick off with The Dap-Kings getting fired up via an old school medley way during the “Introduction” workout, which sets the tone from the beginning that things are going to be cooking.
Saun & Starr come on out to join the Dap-Kings for a soulfully drenched “In The Night” before The Sugarman 3 boil up the boogaloo during “Love Went Away” and Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens bring the church to the Apollo stage for the funky “Thank You Lord” and a spiritually fulfilling “Higher Ground”. The Menahan Street Band delivers their cinematic funk for “Make The Road By Walking” while The Budos Band blast heavy and hard on “The Sticks”; these outfits may be lesser-known, but both put in excellent work here.
Bradley Jr., with his Extraordinaires backing him, shines brilliantly on a set of stout retro-soul cuts. Charles knocks them dead on “Heartaches and Pain” while “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)” is a laid-back bass groove with brass pops. It is his “Let Love Stand A Chance” performance that brings down the house as his ‘screaming eagle of soul’ vocals soar around the smooth sounds.
After an Afrobeat break with the dynamic Antibalas, it is time for the biggest name on the Daptone label Sharon Jones. The deep funk pumps out from the Dap-Kings as Jones pushes her pain outward for “He Said I Can”, showing the true talent that flowed through her. “If You Call”, “Tell Me” “I’m Not Gonna Cry” as well as the hyper-fast fury of “Calamity” are all powerhouse performances as Jones commands the famous stage.
“Get Up and Get Out” just maybe the best of the set as her vocal flourishes and dramatic playing from the Kings brings the sound back to the genre’s late 60’s heyday before an extraordinarily high energy rave to wrap up. The finale finds the whole crew out on stage delivering a cover of Sly and the Family Stones “Family Affair” to end The Daptone Super Soul Revue Live at the Apollo.
The thirty-two-track behemoth is a lot of funky retro soul to dig into, but the great performances from Jones, Bradley, and the whole Daptone label, make it a joy to relive these three nights from 2014. With the unfortunate deaths of Jones and Bradley, this capturing of a live career peak from both is a must-have for any retro-soul fans.
Photo by Isaac Sterling,
