To say Sharon Jones has had to travel a long way to get to the release of 'Give The People What They Want', her sixth full-length, would be an incredible understatement.
It would be one thing to note that the esteemed soul singer did not release her first solo record until the age of 46. That fact would serve as testament enough to the drive Jones has employed throughout her career to keep her dreams alive. Yet when the now 57-year-old singer was diagnosed with bile duct cancer midway through 2013, many believed Jones had sung her last note onstage.
Even Jones herself believed she could not be saved after receiving the original diagnosis. “There was no music on my mind,” she says of the time. “I didn’t sing throughout the summer while I was going through treatment.”
While 'Give The People What They Want' was nearly complete at the time of the diagnosis, the release was delayed to accommodate Jones and her health. With the record now set to be released, Jones says she feels great and admits it was “upsetting” when the record was postponed. Still, Jones has a long road ahead of her before she begins touring confidently full-time again and delivering the legendarily energetic live show she’s built a name for herself upon.
“It’s going to be a happy new year,” she says, “but I think I’ll only be really happy when my hair starts coming back and when my hands, face and nose stop showing the effects of the chemo. But until then it’ll be a struggle. Every time I look at myself I feel a little better, though. It is what it is.”
Jones sounds tired throughout our conversation and speaks often of the continuing treatment she’ll have to endure to beat the cancer and return to the stage. She speaks softly and answered questions in short bursts, as if parcelling the little energy she did have.
For a woman whose power onstage emerges from a seemingly endless supply of raw soul, it is at times terrifying to hear Jones sound so close to defeat. I ask Jones if the new record and possible touring has afforded her a “new lease on life”, but she isn’t ready to agree with any grand, affirming statements.
“I’m not excited just yet,” she replies. “In January when I’m able to start working out again and get back on the treadmill and start working my arms then I’ll know if I’m ready or not. But right now, honestly, it’s pretty scary. It is what it is. I have to be truthful to myself.” She repeated this phrase often throughout our conversation: “It is what it is,” as if she came to terms with the cancer long ago.
Coming to terms with the cancer and actually beating it before continuing to sing are two different scenarios altogether. So much so that it became difficult for Jones herself to imagine getting back onstage. “What had to be done to my body, from my lungs to my gall bladder, it made it impossible to sing. It took months for me to even be able to eat right. I felt such pain trying to digest food.”
Still, Jones sees hope. “But now I’ve got just three more treatments and then I’ll be done,” she says, and the smile she likely has on the other end of the line is near palpable.
Considering how long it took for the world to be turned onto the ferocious power of Sharon Jones, it should come as no surprise that the drive she used to succeed has also helped her through her difficult struggles with cancer. No part of her wanted 'Give The People What They Want' to be the last Sharon Jones offered the world.
“I actually thought this was going to be my last record,” she says frankly. “I thought I was going to die and I thought people would be sad about this record because it would be my last one. People might say, ‘This is her last album, blahblahblah,’ and I didn’t want that.” And so, with a will as strong as the performances she’s become renowned for, Sharon Jones came to terms with the cancer and became determined to defeat it. And 'Give The People What They Want' was waiting in the wings all along. It will serve as a powerful reminder of just how strong that will is. “For me, it’s a reminder that I’m not gone, I’m not dead.”
‘Give The People What They Want’ will be released on January 10.
