Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings + Black Joe Lewis and The Honeybears @ Metropolis

Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings is kicking off a new tour and her first stop is Montreal at Metropolis. This meant the crowd had the pleasure of getting her fresh and excited.

The show began on time. The openers for Sharon Jones were Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears. I never heard of these guys before, but I was in for a treat. Their sound has a bluegrass, rock and roll vibe. These guys had a lot of energy. They played as if they were feeling the Holy Spirit, and they even had the moves to go with it. They were playing the guitar with their mouth, on the ground, and even in the crowd. By the time they got off stage they had the crowd energized for Sharon Jones!

After a short wait to set up the stage and a minute for Binky Griptite to tune his guitar, the Dap Kings made their way to the stage. Binky introduced himself and the Dapettes, two soulful sisters with powerful voices. They played one of their new songs, and then the one and only Sharon Jones came to the stage in a sparkling silver dress with black fringes that captured every hip shake as she danced throughout the night.

She sang songs from her latest album I Learned the Hard Way. She sang us songs about a child grown up with an abusive past, getting her mama to accept her man, and love songs about the good and bad that we love to hear. She taught us the boogaloo, the funky chicken, the swim, and had the crowd dancing with her the whole time.

The show ended with "100 Days, 100 Nights" and they graciously came back to give us an encore. Sharon saw these B-Boys dancing in the crowd and invited them to dance on stage with her. There were four of them and they each took their turn showing the crowd their moves. When they were done she showed us moves from her African and Indian heritage and her version of both of them combined. She was bare foot and killing it.

After the show, she graciously came out back to greet her fans, take pictures, and autograph merchandise.

This is my third time seeing her and for me this was her biggest show and her best. Sharon Jones captures the essence of funk and soul, and even though she does it with a modern twist. When you see her perform with the Dap Kings, you feel as though you stepped back in time when music was good. She is James Brown, Millie Jackson, Isaac Hayes, and Tina Turner rolled up into one tiny package! She is a superstar!

-Lady Oracle co-hosts The Limelight on Saturdays from 6-8pm