Today would have been the great Sharon Jones‘ 65th birthday. I had the pleasure of seeing her three times — once in Williamsburg Park with the Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens, another time at Afropunk (which I photographed) and the last time at The Apollo Theater as part of the Daptone Records Soul Revue. Despite her small stature, Jones was a larger-than-life stage presence, who could make you laugh or cry within a turn of a phrase or a look: At the Apollo, Jones turned a song about a kicking a bad man out of her life into a survival story about kicking cancer — and at the time, I had lost a job and needed to a bit of joy.
Sharon is dearly missed. Happy birthday, Sharon! Happy birthday, wherever you are!
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