After the tragic death last week of Sharon Jones, many in the music community have shared their personal memories and anecdotes of the soul singer and human dynamo. This afternoon, the organizers of weekly Cambridge dance party Soulelujah have shared a recent DJ set from Jones’ band, the Dap-Kings, who dropped some heavy sounds in Central Square about two and a half years ago.
Soulelujah writes on Mixcloud: “A throwback to a more positive time. On March 31 2014, the Dap-Kings breezed through Soulelujah to play some of their favorite records after a blistering show at the House Of Blues with Sharon Jones. Conga man Fernando ‘Bugaloo’ Velez takes over the DJ duties after about 20 minutes and after a few drinks, the rest of the band started throwing on some of their favorites as well. Take a listen and you will hear not only their influences, but positive vibes.”
The DJ set of all 45s and vinyl features tracks from the Droptones, Saun & Starr, Jeanne & The Darlings, Barbara Acklin, and, of course, the Dap-Kings, in addition to several other lost or hidden jams. It clocks in at nearly three hours (Soulelujah resident Claude Money fills the first 20 minutes), so fire it up, stretch it out a bit, and raise a glass to the band that knew Jones the best.
Featured photo by Jacob Blickenstaff.