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The Dap-Kings

Biography

The Dap-Kings are a Brooklyn-based soul and funk band best known as the longtime backing group and creative engine behind Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, one of the key acts in the late‑1990s and 2000s revival of classic 1960s–70s soul music. [2][4] Emerging around 2000 from the breakup of the earlier deep‑funk outfit the Soul Providers, bassist/producer Gabriel Roth (also known as Bosco Mann) and saxophonist Neal Sugarman pulled together a core lineup that included guitarist Binky Griptite, organist Earl Maxton, percussionist Fernando Velez, trumpeter Anda Szilagyi, tenor saxophonist Leon Michels, and drummer Homer Steinweiss, many of whom had already been active in New York’s underground funk scene. [2][4] Operating out of a modest Brooklyn basement studio, they became the house band for Roth’s newly founded Daptone Records, cutting raw, analog recordings that deliberately echoed the sonic character of vintage soul 45s. [2][4]

The group’s first major milestone came with the album “Dap Dippin’ with Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings,” initially pressed in small quantities for a club residency in Barcelona and officially released in 2002 as Daptone Records’ debut LP, helping establish both the band and the label as standard-bearers for the retro-soul movement. [2][4][5] Subsequent albums such as “Naturally,” “100 Days, 100 Nights,” and “I Learned the Hard Way” deepened their reputation for tight, horn‑driven arrangements, in‑the‑pocket grooves, and live‑in‑the‑studio production that stood in contrast to contemporary digital R&B, while their relentless touring made them a formidable live unit. [2][5] Beyond their own records, the Dap-Kings became highly sought-after session players, contributing to high‑profile projects and cementing their status as one of the defining bands of the modern soul revival. [3][5][6]

Stylistically, the Dap-Kings draw heavily from late‑1960s and early‑1970s soul, funk, and R&B, channeling the influence of James Brown’s bands, Stax and Motown rhythm sections, and classic deep‑funk 45s through a contemporary but historically informed lens. [2][4] Their legacy is twofold: as the core of Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, they helped bring traditional soul music back into mainstream consciousness, and as a stand‑alone ensemble and session band, they provided the instrumental blueprint for many later retro‑soul and neo‑soul productions. [2][3][6] Even after Sharon Jones’s death in 2016, members of the Dap-Kings and the wider Daptone family have continued to carry forward that sound, influencing a generation of artists and producers who seek the warmth, immediacy, and emotional punch of classic analog soul. [2][3][6]

Fun Facts

  • The Dap-Kings grew out of the earlier band the Soul Providers after label founders and bandleaders split and Gabriel Roth went on to start Daptone Records, effectively rebooting the project under a new name and label identity. [2][4]
  • Their debut album with Sharon Jones, “Dap Dippin’ with Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings,” was first pressed in a small run mainly to sell during a residency at a club in Barcelona, Spain, before it became the flagship release for Daptone Records. [2][4]
  • Daptone’s Brooklyn studio, where the Dap-Kings recorded, was outfitted with a sixteen‑track analog tape machine and built specifically to capture a raw, vintage sound, making it a sought‑after location for artists chasing classic soul tones. [2][4][5]
  • Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings’ album “Give the People What They Want,” powered instrumentally by the Dap-Kings, earned a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album, signaling mainstream recognition for their traditionally rooted soul approach. [5]

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

  • James Brown and his bands - Major stylistic template for the Dap-Kings’ tight funk rhythms, horn stabs, and emphasis on groove, particularly via the Soul Providers’ early James Brown–inspired instrumentals. (Early Soul Providers recordings; overall rhythmic and horn approach heard on “Dap Dippin’ with Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings.”) [Mid-1990s foundations through 2000s releases]
  • Classic 1960s–1970s soul and funk labels (Stax, Motown, and deep-funk 45 culture) - Provided the production, songwriting, and arrangement models that the band and Daptone Records consciously emulated, from horn voicings to drum sounds and vocal presentation. (Influence heard across albums such as “Naturally,” “100 Days, 100 Nights,” and “I Learned the Hard Way.”) [Referenced across the band’s catalog from the early 2000s onward]

Key Collaborators

  • Sharon Jones - Primary vocalist and frontwoman; the Dap-Kings served as her backing and recording band, jointly billed as Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. (Albums including “Dap Dippin’ with Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings,” “Naturally,” “100 Days, 100 Nights,” “I Learned the Hard Way,” “Give the People What They Want,” and “It’s a Holiday Soul Party.”) [Circa 2000–2016]
  • Amy Winehouse - The Dap-Kings provided much of the band sound on her breakthrough album, helping define its retro‑soul aesthetic. (Significant contributions to the album “Back to Black.”) [Mid‑2000s]
  • Mark Ronson - Producer who brought the Dap-Kings into mainstream pop sessions, notably for Amy Winehouse and other artists requiring a vintage soul backing band. (Production work on “Back to Black” and related sessions featuring the Dap-Kings’ rhythm and horn sections.) [Mid‑2000s onward]
  • Core band members (Gabriel Roth/Bosco Mann, Neal Sugarman, Binky Griptite, Homer Steinweiss, Leon Michels, Fernando Velez, and others) - Songwriting, arranging, and performing partners who shaped the band’s sound as both a live and studio unit. (All Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings studio albums; numerous Daptone singles and side projects.) [Approximately 2000–2010s]

Artists Influenced

  • Contemporary retro‑soul and neo‑soul artists (e.g., later Daptone-associated acts and bands embracing analog soul production) - The Dap-Kings’ success and sound encouraged a wave of artists and producers to pursue live‑band, tape‑based soul and funk recordings rather than purely digital production. (Subsequent Daptone releases and broader retro‑soul catalogs that adopt similar horn charts, drum sounds, and recording methods.) [Mid‑2000s onward]

Connection Network

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Discography

Albums

Title Release Date Type
Great Vengeance and Furious Fire 2007-10-29 Album
Rainbow 2017-08-11 Album
Great Vengeance and Furious Fire 2007-01-01 Album

Top Tracks

  1. Woman (feat. The Dap-Kings Horns) (Rainbow)
  2. Coleen (Great Vengeance and Furious Fire)
  3. Coleen (Great Vengeance and Furious Fire)
  4. Coleen (How You Like Me Now EP)
  5. How You Like Me Now? (How You Like Me Now EP)
  6. Woman (feat. The Dap-Kings Horns) (Rainbow)
  7. Coleen (How You Like Me Now EP)
  8. Coleen feat. The Dap-Kings Horns (That Kind Of Man)
  9. Coleen (That Kind Of Man)
  10. How You Like Me Now? (How You Like Me Now EP)

References

  1. last.fm
  2. sharonjonesandthedapkings.com
  3. radiofreebrooklyn.org
  4. dapkings.com

Heard on WWOZ

The Dap-Kings has been played 11 times on WWOZ 90.7 FM, New Orleans' jazz and heritage station. Showing the 10 most recent plays.

DateTimeTitleShowSpotify
Dec 31, 202514:03100 Days, 100 Nightsfrom Daptone Records Singles CollectionSittin' at the Crossroadw/ Big D
Dec 18, 202523:59Funky Little Drummer Boyfrom It's a Holiday PartyKitchen Sinkw/ Jennifer Brady
Dec 18, 202519:48ain't no chimney's in the projectsR&Bw/ Your Cousin Dimitri
Dec 15, 202520:42AIN'T NO CHIMNEYS IN THE PROJECTSBlues and R&Bw/ Gentilly Jr.
Dec 4, 202519:25Thunderclapfrom Daptone Gold IIR&Bw/ Your Cousin Dimitri
Nov 25, 202514:25What Have You Done For Me Latefrom Just Dropped In (To See What CSoul Serenadew/ Marc Stone
Nov 21, 202502:32Signed, Sealed, Delivered I`mfrom Just Dropped In (To See What COvernight Music - Friday
Nov 13, 202522:04Midnight RiderKitchen Sinkw/ Jennifer Brady
Nov 6, 202522:21Just Dropped Infrom Just Dropped in to See What Condition our Rendition is InKitchen Sinkw/ Jennifer Brady
Sep 29, 202504:34It Hurts To Be Alonefrom Just Dropped In (To See What COvernight Music - Monday

View all 11 plays