ACL 2008 Artist: Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

Sharon Jones was born in Georgia in 1956. According to one bio, she sang gospel in church and funk with local bands, and earned back-up vocal credits (often as "Lafaye" Jones). She also supported herself as, among other things, a corrections officer and armored car guard. Jones received a late break in 1996 after she appeared on a session backing Lee Fields, "a soul and deep funk legend."

The Dap-Kings, a funky soul band. They formed some time shortly after 2000, backing Sharon Jones, although many members have deeper roots as musicians in the industry. The band plays in the Austin area pretty frequently. Good press has been building. If Rolling Stone's take on the recent performance at Bonnaroo is any indiciation, ACL 2008 should be a great show:

New York-based outfit Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings ripped up the Which Stage. They might not have been the most suavely-dressed of the three groups – former corrections officer Jones was decked out in a ruffled get-up she called her “Tina Turner dress,” and her band sported stifling black suits – but they were by sure the funkiest. Over sexed-up riff-driven funk and retro-style big-band soul, Jones unleashed her firey pipes on tunes about broken and breaking hearts.

Here are a recent performance and interview from Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings: