Track Listing

1. How Do You Let A Good Man Down
2. Natural Born Lover
3. Stranded In Your Love - Jones, Sharon & The Dap-Kings/Lee Fields
4. My Man Is A Mean Man
5. You're Gonna Get It
6. How Long Do I Have To Wait For You
7. This Land Is Your Land
8. Your Thing Is A Drag
9. Fish In The Dish
10. All Over Again

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #189018 in Music
• Released on: 2008-01-21
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .70 pounds

CD Description
NATURALLY was released in 2008, but from Sharon Jones's deeply soulful vocal performances to the Dap-Kings lean, air-tight funk, this album (the follow-up to Jones's equally excellent debut, DAP DIPPIN') sounds vintage enough to come straight from the glory days. On cuts such as "My Man Is a Mean Man" and "Your Thing Is a Drag," Jones & Co. churn out snappy, get-on-up riffs and rhythms that recall the JB's in their heyday. But NATURALLY also points elsewhere in the history of R&B, with the smooth soul-pop of "How Long Do I Have to Wait for You?" and the smoldering ballad "You're Gonna Get It"leaning more toward the sounds of Motown and Stax/Volt (to say nothing of her soul-fried version of "This Land is Your Land"). Jones is a singer of emotional substance with the pipes to match, and her band never misses a lick. Old-school fans of funk-fueled soul should rejoice: the music is alive and well.

Customer Reviews

The most Genuine & Soulful music being created at the moment
What you get with any Daptone, Truth and Soul, Soul Fire or Desco release is serious no punches pulled gritty soul and funk with the same feel and sound as classic late 60's and early 70's soul.

This music is not a gimmick.

Nor is it like a cheesy 70's Blaxploitation soundtrack or a misjudged pseudo-soul acid jazz sounding record. There is quality and depth to these performances and heart and soul that goes as deep as anything you have ever heard.

It is being created and listened to by people who are sick and tired of the sterile mass marketed soul-less dross that the music industry continues to spew forth nowadays. People like Sharon Jones, Lee Fields, Charles Bradley, Joseph Henry, Naomi Davis and the NYC collective of musicians is doing us a great service by creating sounds of such organic beauty and raw funkiness.

What is great about this album is that, unlike Dap-Dippin', the music is way more varied; there are more ideas and more scope for lyrics with meaning. The biggest success of this album is that it proves to the critics that Sharon and the Daps are no one-trick ponies.

Here's a quick breakdown of the tracks in order;

How Do You Let A Good Man Down
This is my favourite new track by Sharon Jones. Firstly the groove is way different from anything off of the first album and it's more of a medium paced tempo. Great little horn riffs. The lyric is great too. We've all been in a similar position, but the band has got the feeling and groove nailed down tight!

Natural Born Lover
This one is a real late 60's stomper in the vein of the slew of 45's that came out around Mr Big Stuff (similar geetar in places) and has backing vocals. Over the drum breaks there's a chant 'An N.B.L. and a T.B.C.' which is very kitsch. It doesn't ruin the song but a lot of DJ's would have preferred an open drum break. I can take it or leave the little chant but it's a mighty fine Groove as always.

Stranded In Your Love
Is a duet with Lee Fields (check out his 2 albums, Problems and Lets Get A Groove On). This is a funny, jokey but heart-warming song. Despite this the general groove is just great. Sure it's a ballad, and it's not going to get many plays out, but it's bound to win you over with oodles of charm. All I can say is; 'Thank god Lee's car got stolen, cause otherwise he would never have slipped into Sharon's bed...'

Hang on, did his car ever actually get stolen, or was it a dodgy scheme to get in her pants?... I'll let you decide!

My Man Is A Mean Man
Has the BEST groove on the whole album. It's frenetic like the first album, but it's even better than anything on there as it sounds significantly different (some of the tracks on the first were very similar to each other). This a real body shaking floor-stomper, with bass drums and conga played at a breakneck speed! I don't know how these guys play such dense, frenetic- yet tight grooves so effortlessly. Totally thrilling.

You're Gonna Get It
Side one finishes with You're Gonna Get It which is another ballad, but this time much slower. This sounds so like an old 60's tune that it's unbelievably authentic. A nice tune, not funk, just soul. The horn players manage to sound a bit like a Yorkshire Colliery Brass Band at about 3.00mins in too. Get your whippets and flat caps out!

How Long Do I Have To Wait For You?
Side 2 starts with How Long Do I Have To Wait For You?. This is another highlight. Middish tempo and sufficiently different from their first album to feel that the band are moving forwards with the 'sound'. Fat Drums and Sharon in form, topped of with a sprinkle of trumpet.

This Land Is Your Land
You'll already know this if you buy the singles direct from the website. Again another highlight for me. An old Woody Guthrie tune (he was a folk singer who inspired Bob Dylan) that pushes the band out a bit further with their sound than Dap Dippin' did.

Your Thing Is A Drag
Is a vamp based on Papas Got A Brand New Bag and is typical of reply songs that that came out in the sixties (a la It's My Thing, It's Your Thing, It's Our Thing etc). Bass is the highlight on this one. Great party tune.

Fish In The Dish
Is a New Orleans type of track, done at a slow-mid tempo. It's a nice track, but not my favourite, despite impeccable playing as always (it's ok to like some songs more than others, even if it's Sharon, right?).

At 1.40 min there's a great bit of piano. and the tune gets into a nice groove. There's even a little whistling (a la Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay) right at the end!

All Over Again
Is a massively good tune, made unbelievable by Earl Maxton's soaring Hammond. One of the best things Sharon and the band have done so far. This is another ballad, with a nice guitar lead too. This is nicely produced and may not satisfy the 'funk heads' but the 'soul' crowd will dig it.

You'll notice that there's a few new names in the band, but the core- bass and drums (and bugaloo velez) are intact. These two are, to me, what makes the Dap Kings so impressive.

Negatives?

It's too short.

I wanted Paying Taxes, Genuine, and What Condition on there, so that was disappointing. Perhaps they'll go on a Daptone CD comp of their singles later in the year?

Destined to become an all-time cult classic
Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings - even the name conjours up a vision of the 1970s. Mind you, this is no retro album. The funky riffs and rythyms might take you back in time but the feel of this album is of an artist that knows the sound that works best for them, and works it relentlessly.

This is as relevent to today's music scene as Al Green's recent efforts - and no less good.

Whilst containing a slection of outrageously good dance tunes the killer track is the smoochy ballad All Over Again. Brilliant.

Got the old funk sound but lacking in amount and scope.
Some truely excellent tunes on here, but too many slow songs that feel like they have been added onto the album to fill it out. still worth buying though if you are into funk like me. I've not heard the other dap/sharon jones albums but will be getting them so take that as a recommendation to buy this one.
Lee.