#5 on the 2017 Bacon Top 31

Soul of a Woman by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

Sharon Jones was an amazing woman who lived a hard life. As I wrote in my review of her and The Dap-Kings’ fantastic album Give the People What They Want (#12 in 2014):

Jones has a storied history herself, having been nothing more than a backup singer throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s. She spent her days as a corrections officer at Rikers Island and an armored car guard for Wells Fargo.

I’m sad to report that Ms. Jones passed away in November 2016, due to pancreatic cancer that she had been battling since 2013. But her music truly lives on, with this posthumously released eighth album, Soul of a Woman. Watch the video for Sail On! and you’ll see the shrouded in shadow Jones singing into a mic wearing a baseball cap over her chemo-therapy-induced bald head. But her voice never wavered. In the video for “Call on God” she is a little more prominent, so you can get a better feel for the woman behind the voice.

Bottom line, Sharon Jones was a powerhouse. Check out this performance by the band at the grand opening of KEXP’s new home, in April 2016 (just 7 months prior to her passing). What she and the Dap-Kings were able to create is the best, and that’s why I have their final album here in the Top 5.

I’m sure we’ll hear a lot more from the Dap-Kings — they’ve been the backup band for many different acts, including David Byrne and St. Vincent on their album Love This Giant, which was #15 in 2012. But there can be no more Sharon Jones to come, we’ve heard it all. She will be sorely missed, and I will thoroughly enjoy listening to her music for the rest of my life. May she rest in peace.

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6. Relaxer by Alt-J
7. Hot Thoughts by Spoon
8. Colors by Beck
9. Mental Illness by Aimee Mann
10. The Wild by The Rural Alberta Advantage
11. american dream by LCD Soundsystem
12. Crack-Up by Fleet Foxes
13. Famous Last Words by The True Loves
14. Cry Cry Cry by Wolf Parade
15. Pure Comedy by Father John Misty
16. Shake the Shudder by !!!
17. La La Land (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by La La Land
18. The Underside of Power by Algiers
19. What Now by Sylvan Esso
20. 50 Song Memoir by The Magnetic Fields
21. Plunge by Fever Ray
22. DAMN. by Kendrick Lamar
23. Capacity by Big Thief
24. The Tourist by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
25. CCFX EP by CCFX
26. Woodstock by Portugal. The Man
27. MASSEDUCTION by St. Vincent
28. On the Spot by Hot 8 Brass Band
29. A Deeper Understanding by The War on Drugs
30. Planetarium by Sufjan Stevens, Nico Muhly, Bryce Dessner, & James McAlister
31. A Moment Apart by Odesza

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2009-2016 Top 31s

#20 on the 2016 Bacon Top 31

★ by David Bowie

We lost quite a few great musicians in 2016. Prince. Leonard Cohen. Sharon Jones. Phife Dawg. And Bowie. David fucking Bowie. I can’t say his death was the hardest to take. They were all difficult. But it wasn’t easy, that’s for sure.

He presented himself to us as a pure entertainer, his life for the stage, and Bowie orchestrated his death in exactly that same way. He released ★ (aka Blackstar), his 25th album, on his 69th birthday, January 8, 2016. Two days later he died of complications from liver cancer, something he’d been secretly battling for a year and a half. From Tony Visconti, the coproducer of the album:

“He always did what he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it his way and he wanted to do it the best way. His death was no different from his life — a work of art. He made ★ for us, his parting gift. I knew for a year this was the way it would be. I wasn’t, however, prepared for it. He was an extraordinary man, full of love and life. He will always be with us. For now, it is appropriate to cry.”

This is a sad, exhausting album. The sadness comes from the overt lyrics, which Bowie wrote about the experience of cancer treatment and impending death. The exhaustion comes from knowing what Bowie must have been feeling, himself, as he wrote it, which comes through in every slow tempo, every bass beat. It’s the perfect counter to the previous album on the countdown, Farewell, Starlite! Sure, there are many albums I’d reach for to memorialize Bowie by before reaching for this one, but ★ is still the perfect swan song, and I can’t recommend it enough.

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21. Farewell, Starlite! by Francis and the Lights
22. This Unruly Mess I’ve Made by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
23. LNZNDRF by LNZNDRF
24. Puberty 2 by Mitski
25. Light Upon the Lake by Whitney
26. A Corpse Wired for Sound by Merchandise
27. Away by Okkervil River
28. case/lang/veirs by case/lang/veirs
29. Love Letter for Fire by Sam Beam & Jesca Hoop
30. Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future by Underworld
31. Preoccupations by Preoccupations

#14 on the 2015 Bacon Top 31

Grace Love & the True Loves by Grace Love & the True Loves

And now for the first Seattle band on the countdown, and it’s a doozy. Grace Love and the True Loves don’t sound like what you’d imagine is “the Seattle sound,” but as a city we’re not new to the soul scene.

This band has it all, across eight members. Powerful, room-filling vocals from the one and only Grace Love herself; a tight, three-piece horn section; perfect guitar and bass; and drums and percussion holding it all together. This is emotion-inducing, life fulfilling music. They don’t call it soul for nothing.

If you’re a fan of Aretha, or more recently, Sharon Jones (whose own album was #12 on the countdown last year), then you’ll definitely like Grace Love and the True Loves. Get it, now.

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15. Shake Shook Shaken by The dø
16. La Di Da Di by Battles
17. Sky City by Amason
18. What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World by The Decemberists
19. Untethered Moon by Built to Spill
20. Viet Cong by Viet Cong
21. The Magic Whip by Blur
22. Savage Hills Ballroom by Youth Lagoon
23. Not Real by Stealing Sheep
24. Beat the Champ by The Mountain Goats
25. Gliss Riffer by Dan Deacon
26. Dark Bird is Home by The Tallest Man on Earth
27. Gunnera by Pfarmers
28. Swimmer to a Liquid Armchair by Ricked Wickey
29. To Pimp a Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar
30. Live in Seattle by Moufang / Czamanski
31. High by Royal Headache

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Past years’ Top 31s

#12 on the 2014 Bacon Top 31

Give the People What They Want by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings

Whereas The War On Drugs’ sound harkened back to 80s classic rock (as discussed at #13), the band at #12 goes back even further, to the 60s and 70s. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings are a product that sounds so familiar, you could be excused if you thought the songs on Give the People What They Want were all covers. But you’d also be wrong — these songs are all from the new millennium, written and recorded in 2013.

A fantastic blend of horns, backup singers, and powerful lead vocals by Sharon Jones, you can’t help but happily bounce in your seat when listening to them play. Jones has a storied history herself, having been nothing more than a backup singer throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s. She spent her days as a corrections officer at Rikers Island and an armored car guard for Wells Fargo. Knowing this information lends credibility to her words. When she wails “Get Up and Get Out,” you really feel compelled to do so.

The Dap-Kings have their own storied history, having been playing together as a group since the turn of the millennium. You’ve heard them many times over, although you might not have been aware of it. They were Amy Winehouse’s backing band on most of her amazing 2006 album Back to Black. They also appeared (uncredited) right here in the Top 31 of 2012, as the backing and pervasive horn section for David Byrne and St. Vincent’s collaboration Love This Giant.

In a normal year, this album would be in the top 10 for sure. It will certainly stand the test of time. I may regret putting it at #12. Either way, it’s fantastic, and you should be putting it into your ear holes right this minute.

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13. Lost in the Dream by The War On Drugs
14. Warpaint by Warpaint
15. Heal by Strand of Oaks
16. Stay Gold by First Aid Kit
17. This is All Yours by ∆
18. Brill Bruisers by The New Pornographers
19. Only Run by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
20. Augustines by Augustines
21. El Pintor by Interpol
22. I Never Learn by Lykke Li
23. Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes by Thom Yorke
24. The Voyager by Jenny Lewis
25. Voices by Phantogram
26. Morning Phase by Beck
27. Hungry Ghosts by OK Go
28. Run the Jewels 2 by Run the Jewels
29. Cosmos by Yellow Ostrich
30. Teeth Dreams by The Hold Steady
31. With Light & With Love by Woods

2009-2013 Top 31s