Miss Sharon Jones! (2015) - full transcript

(music playing)

♪ 100 days, 100 nights ♪

♪ To know a man's heart ♪

♪ 100 days, 100 nights ♪

♪ To know a man's heart ♪

Narrator:
In the 1980s,
Sharon Jones was told

she was "too dark, too short"
to be a music star.

So she ended up
playing in a wedding band

and working in a series of jobs
that included a stint

as a corrections officer.

Correction officer at Rikers



to Sharon Jones
& The Dap-Kings, baby.

We are The Dap-Kings.

♪ I'm gonna whoop,
I come home ♪

♪ I'm gonna whoop... ♪

Woman: Took her more than
30 years to get there,

and singing is definitely
where she wants to be.

Sharon: You see,
when it comes to music,

I can't just come up here
and pretend I'm singing.

I got to sing for real,
you understand what I'm saying?

♪ The music got to get
all down in my bones... ♪

Man: You know,
she doesn't have a radio hit,

she doesn't have one of these
songs that everybody knows...

♪ Got to feel it
all down in my bones... ♪

...but she's established herself
as a great soul singer



with a huge audience of people
all over the world.

Narrator:
Some people have called Sharon
Jones a female James Brown.

♪ Here we go ♪

- ♪ Shout, shout, shout ♪
- ♪ Yeah, yeah, yeah ♪

- ♪ Shout, wait a minute ♪
- ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪

♪ Whoo ♪

♪ I've been laying ♪

♪ Alone for hours ♪

♪ But I haven't ♪

♪ Slept at all ♪

Sharon: Seems like everything
I've done in my life takes
a little longer.

So, now, I just feel
my day is coming.

You know, it's-- it's my time.
God is blessing, so...

And now, ladies and gentlemen,
without further ado,

the one and only,
super soul sister with
the magnetic je ne sais quoi...

Miss... Sharon...

Miss... Sharon...

Miss... Sharon... Jones!

(music continues)

Put your hands together for...

Sharon: Whoo!

- Hey!
- (cheering and applause)

- (music playing)
- This a new one, y'all.

And it's called "Retreat."

♪ I retreat ♪

Whoo!

♪ See you coming
from a mile away ♪

♪ And you're looking
real cocky... ♪

Alex Kadvan:
We were getting ready
for this last record,

but something
was clearly wrong.

Her eyes were yellow.

She was losing weight.

We don't really know
what's going on,

and I went in with Sharon
to the examination room

before they did the test
and the doctor was there.

And he right then said,

"This test will gauge
how big the cancer is."

Like, we hadn't been told
"cancer" at that point.

- One, two, three!
- ♪ Here I come ♪

- ♪ Retreat ♪
- ♪ Retreat, yeah ♪

♪ Retreat, hell hath no fury
like a woman scorn ♪

- ♪ Retreat ♪
- ♪ Retreat, retreat, yeah... ♪

Look at that.
(scoffs)

(crying)

Do you mind if I ask
what kind of cancer?

Stage II pancreatic cancer.

We put my next album on hold.

Now till next year,
probably--

What, January or something
like that, Alex?

If you get a chance, Google me--
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

and you'll get to see
what I'm into.

I do R&B, funk, soul.

- Ooh, that feels funny.
- (Alex chuckling)

No, just-- I'm the only--
My head, I'm just like whoo.

Wow.

You know, I always thought
I had a bad shaved head.

(Alex chuckles)

- Do I have a pivot in the back?
- Man: No.

- I got a pretty shaved head?
- Alex: Yeah, it looks good.

Man: I mean,
I wouldn't necessarily give up
singing, I just saying...

(laughing)

Woman:
What about this guy over here?

Listen, of course
that looks crazy, right?

- Alex: It's different.
- Okay, now, let's fix it.

Now I really like Tina.
♪ Rolling on a... ♪

- How about
the blonde one there?
- I'm trying spikey.

- Woman: You wanna see the back?
- No.

Right now,
I look like some old lady with
a Jheri curl wig on her head.

Oh, no.
This is-- eh--

I should get an Oprah look.

Yeah, this looks--
I think it's the best.

I think
it's about the best.

(blows raspberry)

I'm sorry.
I'm just not...

- Alex: It's a change.
- I know.

It's like another chapter,
you know?

Alex:
One our major concerns was,

"Okay, after the surgery,
where does she go?"

And then Megan Holken,
Sharon's friend, came to
the rescue with like,

"Well, she can stay with me
throughout her recovery."

Which I said to her, "Are you
sure you know what that means?

Like, we're talking
six-seven months."

And she said,
"That's not a problem."

Megan Holken: I just put it
out there as I would to
any one of my friends.

And, uh, I wanted her
to be in a place

where she she could
just focus on her.

Baby spinach.

Raw Vietnamese cinnamon.

Flaxseed.

Chlorella powder
and spirulina.

Frozen bananas.
Frozen grapes.

- (blender whirring)
- And I just hope she, uh,

keeps focusing on
her health,

'cause that's what's
really gonna help her
get through everything.

(phone rings)

- Sharon: What's up, Joe?
- How are you, Sharon?

Sharon: I'm doing all right.
Sitting here painting.

Paint-by-numbers.

- Paint-by-numbers?
- (Sharon laughs)

Why you laughing?

It takes skills.
It takes skills.

This chemo is killing every cell
in my body every day, you know?

And-and, you know this is
tough for me sitting here
not doing anything.

Yeah, man. I mean,
it's gotta be like 19 years,

you know,
we've been constantly going.

Like, look at Dave Guy,
you know.

He gon' definitely need the work
now with the second baby.

Everybody needs some money,
you know?

I-- It's like I'm responsible
for everybody's payroll.

We gotta get out there.

All right.
Love you much, too.

Talk to you later.

Okay.

(sighs)
All right.

This is the African room.

Everything you see
is from Africa.

These are like
the dreamcatchers.

Some witch doctor
put these porcupine spines

and little horns
from a ram or something.

This is my healing room,

and nobody bothers me.

I mean,
this is where I come.

- So I'll tell the girls
you're here.
- Okay. Okay.

And they'll come out and get you
and draw your labs.

Sharon:
All right.

(sighs)
Oh, boy.

Man: This is the second time
I'm going through this.

- Yeah?
- Yeah.

The majority of healing
yourself...

Sharon:
Is-- Thank you.

- It is here. It is.
- It is. It is true.

- That's how I'm handling it.
- 'Cause I said the first time--

'Cause they told me originally,
the first time...

- Uh-huh.
- ...that I had six months
to live.

- Oh.
- But then I says, "Yeah?"

I says, "You watch."
I've been five years.

Now I got it again.

I says,
"Let me tell you something.

I proved you wrong
the first time,

I'm gonna prove you wrong
the second time."

Good morning, y'all.

Time to do chemo.

Oh...
(smacking lips)

I can taste it.
Ahh...

Dr. James Leonardo:
Sharon has an ampullary cancer,

which is related to
the bile ducts and the pancreas.

She had a very good surgery
with a very good surgeon.

A Whipple procedure is--
it's a big surgery,

where you take the head
of the pancreas, part of
the small bowel,

and some of
the bile ducts and, um,

you remove them all as a block
and then you reconnect
everything.

Oh, man,
my nails is turning dark.

The whole inside of my hand is
black on the bottom of my foot.

Inside my mouth,
my tongue.

Dr. Leonardo:
So she's gonna get chemo therapy
for about six months

to hopefully eradicate

any residual tumor cells
that might be around.

This is a very...
frightening cancer,

because if you don't
eradicate it completely

and it comes back,
it's almost impossible to cure.

Sharon: I already got jobs
booked in February.

That scared me,
'cause I'm like,

I don't want them to cancel
any more gigs because
money's getting low.

Oh, man, my--
I gotta put my hand in--
I can't do it right now.

Hold on.

Austen Holman:
I think we all know
how scary pancreatic cancer is.

And, um, we'd have
conference calls,

and Alex would have to say,
you know,

"We all need to proceed
as if she's going to be fine,

but we have to...

we have to address the fact
that she might not come back."

(music playing)

Gabe Roth:
I remember the first winter here
being the hardest winter.

There was no heat,
and I was working the basement.

There's was no windows.
There was just like cold air
blowing in.

And Sharon and I did
all the electricity.

We actually took this wall out
and the kitchen started falling.

So I put this post in,
I jacked the ceiling back up,

broke the jack, but the ceiling
hasn't come down, so...

♪ Genuine ♪

♪ Is it gonna be mine,
mine, mine? ♪

♪ You got to be genuine... ♪

Sharon:
I was like 35, 36
when I met Gabe.

Little young, little Jewish
white boy with curly hair.

I'm like, "What do these
little young white boys
know about soul music?"

Man: Ladies and gentlemen,
The Dap-Kings.

Homer Steinweiss: I've been with
The Dap-Kings since I was 16.

I was just so into old soul
music and it was the only band
doing it at the time.

And then, not just doing it
but doing it right.

You know, I can really
look to her for a lot of what
we've built here at Daptone.

Every time we go on the road,
we play to more people.

Every record we do,
more and more people buy it.

♪ Dap-Kings,
break it down... ♪

We're able to just keep
getting stronger and stronger.

Sharon:
Whoo! Y'all know what?

I'm gonna show off
my Dap-Kings.

I'ma start over here with
my trumpet player,

Mr. Dave Guy.
Dave, hit it!

(trumpet playing)

Come on, Dave!

Whoo!

Do it, Dave!

Put your hands together
for Dave Guy!

Ow!

Whoo!
Go, baby.

Now, Mr. Neal Sugarman.
I call him "Sugs."

Hit it, Sugs!

Ow!

Neal Sugarman:
First and foremost,
we're a family.

This is, you know, someone
that we've lived with and...

my sister, you know?

I mean, we've spent
so many years on the road,

and, um, we were freaked out,
you know?

(music continues)

Now, keeping that rhythm,
keeping that groove,

Mr. Funky Foot,
Homer Steinweiss.

Hey, Funky Foot,
hit it on them drums.

Come on!

Whoo!

You feel?

Ow!

Hey, Boogaloo.
I want you.

Show 'em
what you workin' with.

Hit, it, Boogaloo,
Boogaloo, Booga--

Y'all, put your hands together
for Boogaloo!

I have to start off with--
I catch the news,

and then I get up
in the morning, of course,
put the TV on.

9:00, I must watch
Michael and Kelly.

10:00, I watch Wendy.

11:00, of course, "The View."
Gotta watch "The View."

Then "The View"
goes off at 12:00.

I think from 12:00 to 1:00,

I catch up on
a little bit of news,

see what's going on the world,
you know, find out stuff.

So 1:00 comes,
I watch "The Chew."

And after "The Chew"
goes off at 2:00,

I turn over to "The Talk."

Then I watch "The Talk,"
and "The Talk" goes off at 3:00.

And after 3:00,
I watch Queen Latifah.

You know, Queen Latifah go off
and then I turn to "Ellen."

And that's the last thing.
I'm in this room a lot.

If ever I was home-- me being
home in South Carolina--

I wouldn't be eating right.

Megan, nutritionist who
invited me into her own home

so I can eat well and she can
teach me how to eat well

so I can get back out there
on the road.

Megan: I was really terrified
in the very beginning,

but I was confident that
I could at least care for her.

In my early 20s,

Sharon's boyfriend
introduced me to Sharon.

And just right off the bat,
we just hit it off.

Okay, Megan.

Megan:
Sharon performed at my wedding.

Sang "Somewhere Over
the Rainbow," and it was
just beautiful.

It was the first time
I ever heard her sing.

♪ Somewhere ♪

♪ Over the rainbow... ♪

Megan:
Have always been great friends.

I really wanted her to be
content and happy

and comfortable.

- Woman: Good morning, Sharon.
- Sharon: Good morning.

- How are you?
- I'm a little excited.

We are going to
South Carolina.

Okay, here we go.

- Everything cool?
- Nurse: Perfect, perfect.

(beeps)

"Foods to enjoy.
Foods to avoid."

Pork--
guess which side that's on.

I mean, I love salt pork, you
know, but I'm not gonna eat any.

- (laughs)
- What the heck is
"salt pork" anyway?

- Fat back.
- Fat back.

That's why they call it
"salted pork."

- Fat back.
- (both laughing)

That's what happens
when you eat fat back.

Look.

- But, you know...
- It's 80/20.

If you deny yourself
the good stuff,

then you're gonna be
a miserable person.

Child, you're gonna
have me a pork chop
when I get down South.

I'm gonna have me a pork chop.
I gotta have a pork chop.

I'm sure you're gonna
have a pork chop.

- All right,
is this the last one?
- Last one. 90 minutes.

- Man: Mission accomplished.
- Got it.

- How you feeling?
- I'm feeling all right.

- I misspoke.
- So, what's going on?

- So, we will repeat this...
- One more time?

- No.
- No?

The very last time you would
get the IV chemotherapy

would be
New Year's Eve.

Come February,
we-- we are scheduled to...

we got gigs to play,
we got some stuff planned.

- Okay.
- Some tour's gonna start.

I'ma start singing
in February.

Whether I gotta sit on a chair
and I'll... (vocalizing)

- I gotta sing.
- That's okay.

- We got to.
- That's the goal here, right?

- Yeah.
- So...

I ain't going no hat.
I'll go bald.

Bam! Put some makeup on,
put some eye stuff,
I be looking cute.

(laughter)

Dr. Leonardo:
She's very eager
to get back to work,

but, um, you know,
she knows that, you know,
we're gonna be watching her.

- You're on The Dap-Kings album?
- Oh, yeah.

Dr. Leonardo:
I didn't know much about her,
and I Googled her.

And the first thing
I came up with was this picture
of this woman

kinda standing there in a short
dress in front of The Dap-Kings.

And I said, whoa, you know,
this is a big, strong woman,
you know?

But everybody tell me
that I look so big.

Like I carry myself tall.

And then I saw her, and she's
this little, petite, you know,

and very outgoing
and down-to-earth.

- You got all my stuff?
- We're pulling for ya.

We're gonna pull
for each other right now.

- That's right.
- Yeah, I'm trying to get ready,

get back out there
on that road, you know?

- You look great.
- Thank you.

Doing pretty good.
You know, I'm holding up.

- Good.
- You know.

And the new album should be...

- We're looking forward to it.
- ...should be releasing it.

- We'd buy the vinyl.
- (machine beeping)

- Sharon: Uh-oh. That's me?
- Nurse: Are you ready?

- Uh-huh.
- One, two, three.

Oh, God!

See what I'm saying?
Why does it burn me like that?

Why does it hurt like that?
(inhales sharply)

- Whoo!
- Megan: Take a deep breath.

All right.
Get out of this place.

- Have a safe trip, okay?
- All right, then.

- Okay, now.
- Bye.

Good night, y'all.
See y'all. Bye.

♪ Something told me inside ♪

♪ That your love was untrue ♪

♪ Something told me inside ♪

♪ Something told
me inside ♪

♪ You said,
"Girl, it's all right" ♪

♪ "I would never hurt you" ♪

♪ You said,
"Girl, it's all right" ♪

♪ You said, "Girl,
it's all right" ♪

- Woman: It's right up there.
- Sharon: Wow.

Yeah, that's nice.

Look at this.
All this is James Brown.

- This looks amazing.
- Mr. Brown was the first
African-American

that insisted on having
his face on his album.

- Thank you.
- And then we have one of
his Grammys.

- Right over here.
- Ooh, ooh.

Yeah, man, I wanna at least
have one of these one day.

- You'll get it.
- Something, some kind of award.

- You know, you see him--
- But you've met him.

I met him in Italy.

When I saw him,
I was like, "Mr. Brown,

I just want you to know that,
you know, you're a big
inspiration."

He looked me right in the eye,
he had his arm around me.

He said,
"God bless you, daughter."

And we took the picture.

And I was like--
You could see...

That was one of
the happiest days of my life.

James Brown,
really, that "Say It Loud-
I'm Black and I'm Proud."

I mean, that-that was
something that opened me up

and, um, made me aware
and proud of my blackness.

- Where Ike?
- (mutters)

Oh, look at that, look at that.
Come on.

(both laughing)

Dora Jones:
Sharon was a little younger.

So was in the play and she got
up and she made her testimony.

She said, "When I grow up,
I'm gonna be a writer,

I'm gonna be a singer,
and I'm gonna buy
my mother a house."

Sharon: My goal was to
get my mother out the projects,
and that happened.

It was tough,
you know, coming up.

Six kids,
I was the baby.

I was the only one
that finished high school

and I was the first one
that went to college.

Even as the youngest,
I've always been the one
that supported my family.

I either worked singing
with the wedding band

and all the way up until now.

Just the role I've been doing.

I got a bunch of nieces
and great-nieces

and great-great-nieces
and nephews.

At least I don't have kids,
so I make sure they have
a future.

College, get an education.

(music playing)

♪ When I was a child,
I believed what they told me ♪

♪ Every word ♪

♪ To each one shall come
what each one shall earn ♪

♪ Mm, mm... ♪

This is little north Augusta.

Cute little town.

Now, you that-- you see that
little thing right there?

Sno-Cap Drive-In.

Now, of course,
in the late '60s,

black people
wasn't allowed in here.

We paid the same money,

but we had to get our burger
from back here.

From the back door.

And this here,
that store,

you go in the store,

the owner had trained
his, um, parrot,

as soon as black people
came in the store,

the parrot would go,
"Nigga's stealing."

So he taught that parrot
to say this.

Right there.

And this man was so nasty,
he used to call us
"little niglets"

and whatever all the black kids
whatever he wanted to call.

And we used to buy the candy.

And he would keep the candy
and he would give us bags
of candy.

And sometimes
we'd break the candy--

the candy's so old that
it'd have the little weavers
and worms in it--

that was the candy he used to
give to little black kids.

But this is the pond,
the famous pond.

Look at that.
Somebody-- Yes.

Fishing.

(geese honking)

Oh, can't fish
without a cigar.

All right, let's do this.

Ah!

And what's that boy name,
um, Roosevelt.

And he threw my line out there
and threw my fish back
in the water.

And I picked his bike up
and threw it in the water, too.

Pissed me off.

I wanted to throw him in the
water, but I threw his bike.

I wonder if his bike
is still in this pond.

(music playing)

♪ Slow down, love ♪

♪ I can't pick up
all you're putting down ♪

♪ Your words fall
all around me ♪

♪ See them laying here
on the ground ♪

♪ Don't be cross with me,
baby... ♪

Remember South Carolina?

I say, "Go ahead on, bro."

He shot around me,
cops got him.

He should've...
♪ Slowed down ♪

- (laughs)
- ♪ Slow down, love ♪

♪ He tread too fast ♪

♪ And the state trooper
pulled up behind over ♪

(laughs)
Let me stop.
That ain't funny.

All right,
let's go to the top.

- We're rolling.
- (music playing)

Whoo!

♪ I've been away too long ♪

♪ Our conversations
have been few... ♪

Gabe:
People ask about the process

of how we record records
here at Daptone.

There really aren't
that many magic tricks.

I mean, the idea is
the musicians make the music,

and we try to get
out of their way.

We use an 8-track tape machine.

And what that does,
is it forces us in the studio
while we're recording,

to make the decisions about
how the record's gonna sound.

If the trumpets too loud,

then the trumpet player
has to play quieter.

If the hi-hat's too loud,

then the drummer
has to hit the hi-hat quieter.

♪ Be right there... ♪

But at the end of it,
the idea is that when
we're done recording,

the record's on the tape.

'Cause I record over it.

You know, I'll tell 'em, you
know, "If you're going back in
there, the last one's gone."

And what that does,
it puts them in a state of mind
where they're performing.

♪ I really love you... ♪

Another thing that
has brought the last couple
records up a notch

is the Dapettes,
because they're just the
perfect support for Sharon.

Saundra Williams and
Starr Duncan and Sharon Jones

sang together in a wedding band
called "Good & Plenty."

They've been
singing together for years.

♪ You wanna be my lover,
wanna be my lover... ♪

Starr Duncan: I came in
at the lowest point in my life.

I kinda got into a situation

where money wasn't flowing
and I wasn't touring.

So I was literally going--
and back and forth

the subway train sleeping
in there.

- Let me see.
- Yeah, let's look at it.

Starr:
And it was 2010.

The Dap-Kings, they were
trying out background vocals.

So I said sure.

Record on six.

Starr: To have the opportunity
to do this was such an honor.

- (music playing)
- ♪ Why you don't like my man? ♪

♪ Whoa, Mama, Mama, Mama ♪

No, that wasn't it.
No, that wasn't it.

We was trying
to be too soft.

Saundra Williams:
Being that relationship
I have with Sharon and Starr,

when I look at them,
I feel like we're family.

I respect them for their honesty
and from where they come from.

They come from humble
beginnings, you know?

And we all share
that connection together.

So when I see
Sharon's personality,

I see how she responds to stuff,
and how things affect her.

I know where that comes from.

Where she lived,
her mom, all that.

♪ Mama, Mama, Mama ♪

♪ Why you don't like my man? ♪

♪ Oh, oh, Mama, Mama, Mama ♪

♪ Why can't you understand? ♪

Gabe: They've been
singing together for years,

so the bond that they have
as friends and musically,
it's real.

And they understand where they
are, just like the rest of us,

they're part of
a support system.

And all of them surrender
themselves to a greater cause

of making this one sound.

♪ Don't you know
he treats me right? ♪

Saundra:
It's crazy how our voices
blend together.

Starr's voice
is like a mother

singing a lullaby to a baby.

Sharon has a strong voice.
I call her "The Train."

Her voice is like a train
coming out the track.

You better get out
the way, right?

♪ She don't like
the way he dress ♪

♪ Or the cigarettes
he smokes...♪

Sharon:
All my life,
music just came to me.

I never took vocal lessons.

Never took any kind of
musical lessons.

I just listened and learned
and you watch and you do.

♪ Oh, she says he's rough
and he's lazy ♪

♪ But, Mama,
how can I explain? ♪

♪ How the way
he drives me crazy ♪

It's chilly, too.

Lookit,
I made it up the ramp.

- And do you
feel it in your legs?
- Yeah, right in the hip.

Good morning,
good morning.

- I got a video.
- Of?

Of my new song "Retreat."

Saundra,
after she saw the video,

she was like, you know,
"I got like the little black
figures are the cancer.

And you start chasing 'em back
and you overcame the cancer.

And you close your eyes and you
prayed and then you beat it.

Now you gonna get back out
in your music and conquer."

Gabe: "Retreat,"
I wrote that song about Sharon,

you know, and a lot of it
was coming from she can be
real tough.

You know,
it's one of those things

kind of I always told
Alex, our manager.

It's just like, you know,
don't try to figure it out.

Just don't get in her way,
you know, just do it.

- ♪ Retreat ♪
- ♪ Retreat, yeah ♪

♪ Retreat ♪

♪ Hell hath no fury
like a woman scorned ♪

- ♪ Retreat ♪
- ♪ Retreat ♪

♪ Retreat, I'll make you wish
that you was never, never born ♪

- ♪ Retreat ♪
- ♪ Retreat... ♪

Watch yourself.

Wait.

All right, you better run.

I haven't been to church
in so long.

(groans)

(exhales sharply)

(chatter)

(music playing)

♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪

♪ Hallelujah,
hallelujah ♪

♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪

Woman:
Hallelujah!

Sharon: Again, I just wanna
give my heart to God.

And right now, I'm just gonna
try to sing a little bit of

"His Eyes on a Sparrow."

♪ And I sing ♪

♪ Because ♪

- ♪ I'm happy ♪
- (cheering and applause)

♪ And I sing ♪

♪ Because ♪

♪ I'm free ♪

♪ And God's eye ♪

♪ Is on ♪

♪ A sparrow ♪

♪ And I know,
oh, yes, I know ♪

♪ He watches over me ♪

♪ Church, I sing ♪

♪ Because ♪

♪ I'm happy ♪

♪ And I sing ♪

♪ Because ♪

♪ I'm free ♪

♪ Whoa, His eye ♪

♪ God's eye ♪

♪ Is on a sparrow ♪

Whoo!

♪ And thank God,
thank God, thank God ♪

♪ Thank God,
thank God, thank God ♪

♪ Thank God ♪

♪ Thank God He watches ♪

♪ Over me, yeah ♪

- Whoo!
- (cheering and applause)

Whoo!

God! Thank you, Lord!

What I live for!
Whoo!

Whoo!

Lord, thank you!

What I live for!

Whoo!

- (music continues)
- Man: ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪

♪ Well, well,
when I think of Jesus ♪

♪ And what He's done for me ♪

♪ When I think of Jesus
and how He set me free ♪

♪ When I think of Jesus
and what He done for me ♪

♪ When I think of Jesus
and how He set me free ♪

♪ I want to dance, dance,
dance, dance, dance all day ♪

♪ All day ♪

♪ All day ♪

♪ All day, all day ♪

♪ All day ♪

♪ All day, all day ♪

♪ Say come on and shout ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Shout, shout ♪

♪ Shout, shout ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Shout, everybody,
shout out now ♪

♪ Shout out now,
shout out now ♪

♪ Shout out, shout out ♪

♪ Shout out ♪

♪ Shout ♪

Hallelujah!

Praise the Lord.

Man:
My God, my God, my God.

- Thank you, Lord.
- Man: Come on, let's give it

for this woman right here and
clap her praise of this place.

Yeah.

Ah, at it bright
and early, huh?

The crack of noon
for musicians.

Good to see you.
How you doing?

(speaking Spanish)

There's no other group
but musicians when you talk
about 11 people that,

you know, have been
rolling around in vans
together around the country

for years and years
and smell each other's sweat

and listening to the same
mixtapes,

you know, and doing show
after show together,

night after night on stage,

you just get to the point
where it's as natural
as breathing.

Binky Griptite: So it was,
uh, a really rough summer.

A lot of changes.

My wife and I
had just decided to split.

And then right after we spilt,

the whole tour got cancelled,
like, everything just blew up.

And so, it's like divorced,

laid off,
and my friend has cancer.

At the time that the band
got sidelined, I didn't have
enough money to pay rent.

I make my money
from performing.

And so if there's no shows,
there's just nothing.

And so it was very...

very big wake-up call.

(groaning)

Oh!

What is going...

What's happening, Sharon?

- How you feeling?
- I'm... I'm not feeling
too good.

Gabe:
It's rough. I can't imagine
what she's going through.

It's hard because
she wants to move forward,

but the way it is
in our business,

gigs are booked nine months
in advance record releases
are booked.

If she wants to be
rolling hard in February,

then we need to be committing to
a lot of heavy things right now,

which doesn't feel great.

It would feel a lot better
if we could-- if we could
just let her,

you know, take care of herself
and feel better before
we do that.

But obviously, this isn't
the end of her career, you know,
this is the middle.

(music playing)

♪ So many times
there was a man who met a girl
and took her hand ♪

♪ What the hell is wrong
with this mic? ♪

(music continues)

Whoo!

♪ So many times
there was a man ♪
(laughing)

Gabe: Everybody's geared up,
and it's kinda--

it's nice now to kinda be
back in action a little bit

and feel like we're starting
to get rolling again.

Even though it may be a couple
of, you know, some baby steps.

(music playing)

Whoo!

♪ Whoa ♪

I forgot the lyrics to it now.

♪ Now I'm here at last ♪

♪ Oh, and I'm here to stay ♪

♪ Just look into my eyes ♪

♪ And then you'll realize ♪

♪ There is only one thing
left to say ♪

- ♪ Oh, tell me ♪
- ♪ Tell me you care ♪

- ♪ Oh, come on ♪
- ♪ Tell me that you love me ♪

♪ Come on and tell me
that you love me ♪

- ♪ Tell me you care ♪
- ♪ Let me, let me hear it ♪

- ♪ Tell me that you love me ♪
- ♪ Come on and tell me
that you care ♪

♪ Tell me you care ♪

What else--
what else you got, Sharon?

- "Now I see"?
- "Now I see," yeah, yeah.

- "Now I see,"
I forgot about that one.
- Sing it.

Which one is that?
Which one is that?

(trumpet playing)

(laughter)

Gabe: Great, you got it.
What's next?

Alex: I just want to go over
some real just, uh, quick
nuts and bolts stuff.

- Sharon: Nuts and bolts.
- Alex: So Thanksgiving Day
Parade,

like, during the whole ride
down, you're not singing
or playing anything.

You're just waving
and smiling.

We're trying to block some time
to make a music video

for "Stranger to My Happiness."

- Sharon: What?
- To make a music video.

- The band, though, right?
- With you.

I don't know about all that.

I still tell y'all,
understand I'm taking chemo.

Do you understand I can't?

If I have to stand up
or lift or walk,

it's like, it's a whole
different thing, you know?

I really... I-I thought
that I was getting better,

but it's like it's really
breaking down on my white cells,

so I'm like weaker now.

I mean, you know.

I feel we just take it
as it goes.

All right, Gabe, Homer.
See y'all later.

- The 7:15 train
I'm catching, so...
- Okay.

- ...I'm leaving.
- You sound good.

Feel like I ran a marathon.
I feel so tired.

Oh, you worked harder
than most people work on a day.

- Oh, God.
- I mean, you did amazing.

Phew. Ah, man.

Alex:
So, real quick, finances.

Tracy had already said,
"Hey, here's how short we are

in having enough
for the health insurance."

To avoid some of this,
I did look

into business loans and lines of
credit for the band.

And I don't know.
Especially with Sharon's--

I mean, I'm guessing
hundreds of thousands of dollars

that Sharon probably...
I have no idea.

I just know what some
of the early stuff costs,
like the surgery and stuff.

Gabe:
I just refinanced my house.

And, like, the first couple
banks rejected me.

And apparently they read
about Sharon being sick,

and, like, rejected the loan
because they were like,

"Well, how are you gonna
make money if she's sick?"

And I was like,
"Jesus Christ."

Sharon will be better than
she is-- than she was today.

I mean, I thought
she sounded remarkable.

She's gonna get through
this and she'll be back
on her feet, man.

She's gonna be...
like she's...

Who's tougher
than that, really?

(music playing)

♪ Humble me ♪

♪ Humble me ♪

♪ Don't let me forget... ♪

Hey. Come on.

Let's do this.

♪ Humble me ♪

♪ Humble me... ♪

I'm glad I came up here.
This is so relaxing for me.

This so, you know,
so where I needed to be.

♪ When I start talking down ♪

♪ Like I'm hovering above,
oh, yeah ♪

♪ Like I'm made of
something better ♪

Ah. Man, the pond
is probably frozen.

They might be
a little soft over the--

from the frost, but... yeah.

- Sharon: Ain't a bug
or worm in that?
- Mm-mm.

Mm. Good.

(laughing)

- It's okay.
- Just throw it out.

One of the deer will eat it.

- (braying)
- Sharon: Look at her.

Can you sing?
(vocalizing)

(Megan laughs)

♪ La, la-la-la-la-la-la ♪

(vocalizing)

- Yeah, the water's frozen, Meg.
- Yeah.

Megan:
Nice. Oh, yeah.

- Come through the ice!
- (both laughing)

Come here.
Come on. Let's go.

Come on, come on.

Megan:
Watch out. Look out.

(both laughing)

I haven't seen you
move that fast...

This is where
William Beekman's family,

uh, is buried.

Sharon: They should have
a light switch in here.

(Sharon gasps)

- Megan: This one was Cornelius.
- Was killed by...

Megan:
By a sleigh.

Sharon: I'm-- I'm really
thinking about this.

Why should you
pay somebody every year

to keep your body
in some dirt in the ground.

- Yeah.
- To me, that don't make sense.

- So what do you want to do?
- I think I--

I don't know if my family
is gonna freak out

'cause nobody has ever said
they wanted to be cremated

and ashes spread out.

They gonna freak out.

Well, what do you care?
You're gonna be dead.

I'm gonna be dead.
What do I care?

- I'm gonna get cremated.
- I mean, because over
that laying

with my mother, my father--
my father over here,
my mother in this spot.

- Why?
- Grandparents.

Everybody spread around.
Nobody goes.

It's not like
the family gonna go,

"Oh, let's go to the gravesite
and have a memorial."

Get the... You know?

Nobody even go back
to that gravesite

till they maybe
at the church one day like,

"Sharon's buried here."
Why?

You could give a little bit
to each person in your family.

- You could tell them
to throw it where--
- There you go, there you go.

- The best memory of you was...
- That's right.

- Go throw some ashes
in the pond.
- Serious.

Sharon: Me, I just got up
this morning, you know,

and all of my eyebrows
are gone.

My lashes now are like-- I don't
wanna look in the mirror.

(phone rings)

- Hey, Gabe. What's up?
- Hey, Sharon, how you
feeling today?

Gabe, I got a bald
face spot right now.
I just hope it grow back.

I don't wanna be like Whoopi
Goldberg with no eyebrows, man.

I don't wanna be bald-faced
for the rest of my life.

Gabe: You coming down
Monday or Tuesday or what?

- We'll get there Tuesday.
- Okay.

- All right, Gabe.
- All right, I'll talk to you.

All right now.

Woman:
Can we put the coat back on?

- I know you're probably hot.
- Sharon: Uh-huh.

Put the coat back on
and try some scarves with it.

- Well...
- If this is, yeah.

This is
a little overflowing.

You know who I feel like?

Remember Fester
in "The Addams Family"?

(laughter)

Right? All I need now is the
black rings around my eyes...

(growls)

Woman:
And that's so pretty.

- Sharon Jones.
- (phone ringing)

- This is cool, too.
- Hold on one second.

- Hey, Sharon?
- Huh?

It's Alex and Judy.
They want to talk to you
really quick.

Better be something important
to stop me from what I'm doing.

Said it better be something
important to stop her
from trying on jackets.

- Judy: Um, "Ellen" for you.
- Who?

You're gonna do "Ellen."

- All right.
- You there?

- Yeah, I'm still here.
- Speechless?

- Yeah, that's cool, man.
- Did you hear that?

I think I don't--
That's-- I don't wanna,
like, get too excited.

- But, um...
- No, get excited.

That's like being
on "Oprah," man.

Do I get to dance with her?

- I wanna dance with her.
- We'll make sure to put
that request in.

Wow!

(music playing)

- ♪ I got some new shoes ♪
- (mumbles)

♪ I said it's time to move ♪

♪ Yes, I'm finished
talking to you ♪

♪ Lots of new shoes ♪

- ♪ I'm going walking ♪
- ♪ I said it's time to move...♪

Hey...

(groaning)

All right, here I come.
(groaning)

- Oh, you got those, um...
- Hey, Sharon.

Whoo. Ugh.

Oh, man, this is the worst.

- Hey!
- Woman: Here we go.

- What?
- We're sitting.

We gonna be doing
"The Ellen Show."

- (cheering)
- Woman: Shut the front door.

What-what you say?
What you think I said to Judy?

"Well, could you make sure
I dance with Ellen, please?

Let her know
I wanna dance with her."

It's just overwhelming
'cause I know how long
you wanted to be on there.

- That's all I got to say.
- (laughter)

Yeah, I know, but we were
talking about just going out
to dinner together.

My mother-in-law, she was gonna
pick me up and then we're
driving up in her car.

Gabe: We're-- we're doing it
in California, is that the plan?

I second that motion.

Sharon:
Okay, let's go.

Y'all having fun without me
and I don't like it.

- (laughter)
- Ain't we gonna eat?

Why would they--
I will kick his ass
about right now

not having eaten
all damn day long.

I'm gonna call Alex
and curse his ass out.

Austen, let's go.
Fuck these Dap-fucking-Kings
right now.

- What? What's going on?
- Because dinner cancelled
and I'm pissed.

- Let's go.
- We'll go get dinner.

- We'll go get dinner.
- It's not the same.

(chatter)

To celebrate "Ellen."

We're gonna go in L.A.
We're postponing it for L.A.

It's not the fucking same.

Let's go. I'm ready to go
now 'cause I'm pissed.

Don't be pissed.
We'll get some...

- we'll get some, uh...
- It's not the same.

The guys is not eating.
I'm not with them.

We're not hanging out.
We're not eating.

We haven't had a dinner
and hung out in a while.

Before the holidays.
Before Thanksgiving.

We could've had
a fucking dinner--
our Thanksgiving dinner--

We're not gonna see
each other for Thanksgiving,
that's for the parade.

(whining)
Wave to the people.

And then everybody
gonna go home and eat dinner
with their family.

Y'all the only family I got.

I thought we were gonna have
a family dinner tonight,

- and it's been cancelled.
- Man: Call Ellen.

- God!
- Let's go eat dinner.

- Let's go eat steak, Sharon.
- Man!

We'll go to dinner.
I've got to go eat dinner.

We gotta eat dinner anyway.

Alex, how dare you
stop dinner for us.

This was our dinner.
I thought it was gonna be like
our Thanksgiving dinner.

- He didn't stop it.
- Who stopped it?

- The guys didn't wanna do it.
- No "guys." Only one guy.

That was Dave Guy.

Fucking...

I'm not mad.
I'm all right now.

It's over with. It's over with.
I had to say what I had to say.

I'm done! I'm done.

- Happy Thanksgiving!
- (music playing)

Happy holidays!

♪ When I was a child,
I used to wonder ♪

♪ How Santa put my toys
under the tree ♪

♪ I said, "Mama, can you tell me
how this can be ♪

♪ When there ain't no chimneys
in the projects?" ♪

- ♪ Ain't no chimneys
in the projects ♪
- ♪ In the ghetto ♪

- ♪ Not in the projects ♪
- ♪ Ain't no chimneys in
the projects ♪

Look at this.

I wish my mother
could've seen this.

It's like, all these years,

me and Dap-Kings,
you know, the hardship
that we go through...

I-I mean-- In church,
we used to sing this song.

I mean, um, Sister Bullock,
and she used to always sing
this song.

♪ May the works I've done
speak for me ♪

♪ May the work I've done
speak for me ♪

And-and this just,
you know, when--

She like...
♪ When I've done
the best I can ♪

♪ I want my friends
to understand ♪

♪ May the works I've done ♪
You know...

And it just that--
I just believe that now
what I'm doing, it--

all this hard work is
finally paying off, you know?

And that's-- that's my goal.
That was my goal
all these years.

Just to do good music and to get
out here and be recognized.

I mean, of course,
you gotta become a star
and all that kind of stuff.

I'm not-- I never had in my head
that I wanted to be a star.

I think all the time when I had
in my head I wanted to be
a star, nothing happened.

And when I just said,
"You know what? I just wanna
sing and use this gift

and people love me,
you know, for my voice,

not the way I look,
and enjoy my music."

And that seems to be
happening right now.

To see my-- me.

The same woman that--
the guy from Sony

said I was "too fat, too black,
too short, and too old."

And look at me now, you know?

I'm still... I lost a little
weight since the chemo.

Cancer,
but I'm still black.

And I'm-- I'm short.
I'm not gonna change.

I'm still 4'11 1/4",
you know,

but, um, I'm just
a better person than--

than I-- I'm a better person
than when that man told me that,

because I felt bad,

and I looked at myself
and saw ugliness.

I saw, you know--
And that's when I said--

I came home to my mother,
and my mother said, you know,

"You don't listen to that man,"
you know,

"You just realize you're
a beautiful, black young woman,

and God blessed you with a gift,
and use your gift."

And so, that's-- that's all--

Looking at this,
you know, that's--
that makes me think about...

You know... my mother...
(choking up)

is not here to share
some of this joy with me.

But I know she's...

she's watching over me.

So, that's all.

(dialing)

Hey, Alex--
Austen here.

Alex on phone:
I'm just trying to balance
a very delicate situation

of Sharon's health, first and
foremost, her mental health,

and then how that effects
everything moving forward

from February 1st on.

You know, once we hit...

Austen: We're kinda
coming into high-speed time.

And with the record coming out
the second week of January,

she gets started
doing a lot of promotion.

For example, "Late Night
Fallon," photoshoots,
interviews, you know,

because she's been sick, we've
had to make some adjustments

in terms of not piling
too much on,

and being very cognoscente of,
you know, how she's feeling,

and what three or four months
is gonna look like from now.

Which is not
the easiest thing to predict.

Where my pickle?
Where my pickle?

Let me see if it's the right
pickle. I don't think
it's the right pickle.

Oh! It's the right pickle!
Oh, man!

I am so happy!
Y'all have no idea!

- I'm so glad.
- Don't talk to me right now.

Mm! Oh, my God!

Mm!

So what have you been
thinking about clothing?

I can't even talk right now
about how I feel.

This-- this is
the most important thing
right here-- right here!

(grunts) Mm!
I enjoy that meal.

It makes me happy
to see you so happy.

Mm.

Sharon:
Wait, what am I doing now?

Alex: Okay, so this is for
Johnathan, who's a dear.

- "Dear"?
- Yeah, D-E-A-R.

- That's so stupid.
- Okay, then don't do...

"Dear, Johnathan,"
what?

You know, "Thanks for your
support. See you next month."

Austen: Did you see the back
where it's dedicated to
your mom, Sharon?

That's nice. Aw.

- What's next?
- Write one to Barack
and Michelle.

'Cause you gave her a record
last time, didn't you?

Yeah, that's right.
"Dear, First Lady."
There you go.

Then he gonna
get mad like,

(imitating President Obama)
"Well, she sent it to you
and not me.

I'm the President,
baby."

She be like, "Well, honey,
I went to see her show.

You didn't go to the show, so
now you need to get up here...

White House so she can sing,
so you can see who she is."

Okay.
"Dear, First Lady.

- I hope you enjoy"...
- Alex: My new record.

And get with it and get me up
there at the White House soon.

Okay. What's next?

Remember we talked about
getting the assistant
tour manager kinda be

- the person
who takes care of you.
- Uh-huh.

- What's that "uh-huh"?
- I'm really getting scared.

I'm just looking at everything
and it's freaking me out
a little bit.

If you want us--
if it's important to you
that we have that time off,

- then we'll take it off.
- I'ma need some down time.

I wanna, like, maybe
get away and go somewhere

for, you know...

maybe Africa or back to
Hawaii or something.

- Africa?
- I don't know, Alex.

I'm going for it now.

Like, I got a bucket list now.

When you die,
you gonna do everything.

(laughing)

I thought about that
on my deathbed, so, yeah.

- You weren't on your deathbed.
- Yes, I was, Alex, y'all
don't even know.

When that doctor was sitting in
there, and he came in that room.

- I remember.
- You know what I thought?

"Give the People
What They Want."

I was gonna be dead
and they gonna be like,
"Ooh, look at Sharon."

(muttering)

"This her last album."
I thought it was gonna be.

I thought that
was my last album.

- I really did.
- Well, it's not gonna be,

- so let's not talk about it.
- Okay.

Sharon: Alex, I think one time,
I think I made him cry.

And I said to 'em all, I said,
"That's all I am to y'all?

Y'all don't give a shit about my
sickness? Y'all don't care
nothing about me?

All y'all worried about
is I'm on this road

and y'all keep putting
these jobs and you keep
sending me out"--

I said, "That's all it is.

So that seems what this seems
like, that's all I am to you
y'all is money.

I'm making y'all money.
Money got in your pocket.

Y'all don't give a shit
about me.

If I, you know"...

Alex like,
"Don't even say that."

I saw him get so...

and I never said that
to him again.

Alex: She didn't want to do
much business talk.

She wanted to focus
on just getting better.

But I wanted to always make sure
she was aware, like,

"Hey, we didn't stop working and
planning. Things are happening."

I wanted her to make sure she
had a reason to-- to get better.

(sighs)

How are you?
You ready?
Last one.

- All right.
- Party time.

All right.

Here we go.

- Four, 56.
- That's right.

- Okay.
- 75 minutes, one hour.

- Okay?
- Okay. All right.

- Hey.
- Hey, Alex.

- You never met Dr. Leonardo?
- No.

- Alex, that's my manager.
- Oh, this is... Oh, hi.

- That's the Kad-man.
- Pleasure to meet you.

- Hi. How are you?
- (Sharon laughing)

Thanks for everything.

See, she's always laughing in
here, but her pictures,

she always looks like, you know,
"I dare you," you know?

- Yeah, they put those
mean pictures up.
- I know, I know.

The white coat, she tends
to be really friendly around.

(laughter)

At some point, is there
a follow-up, like, scan?

Yeah, we should do
a baseline scan
at some point.

Because the reason
you want that

is you wanna have something
to compare to

in case you have problems
in the future.

And, you know, lots of reason
to be optimistic about it.

Sharon: Yeah. Dr. Shabode
told me at the hospital,

he said,
"I got everything."

That's the thing. Okay.

- Good to meet you.
- Alex: Yeah, you, too.

- Thanks so much for everything.
- Okay.

How's everyone at home?
You talk to your...

I'ma tell you, Alex.

Everyone that called me up
and asked for something,

and I just said, "Yo, don't call
me and ask me for nothing.

I can't pay your mortgage.
I can't pay your credit bills.

When I get, I'll call you up
and give you.

Don't call me
and ask me for anything."

Everyone I had to do that.

It's gonna be tough for me,
but it's just crazy down there.

I'm sorta glad--
That's why I came up here.

- It's the best thing ever.
- Yeah.

- (machine beeping)
- You did need a distraction.

Nurse: Okay, you want me
to disconnect ya?

Ow!
(sighs)

- Sorry.
- That's the last one, right?

- Yepper.
- Yes.

- Congratulations.
- Thank you.

- Happy New Year.
- Happy New Year.

Happy New Year.

Midnight, my brother died.

And I remember, we were was in
New Year, we were somewhere,

and I was backstage

and the tears
just started coming down
and I almost started--

I said, "I can't do this.
I can't go on."

And I could hear my brother,
"Go on, Sharon.

You know this is what you do.
You better be strong.

Get on our there and sing."

Pfft.
Right into the song.

And the night when my mother
died, and the band was there.

Then when we on that stage
and that music is out there...

I have no worries in the world.

I don't think about anything,
any pain.

Sure, there's death,
but people came to see us.

And the show must go on.

- (cheering and applause)
- Happy New Year!

(music playing)

Your first New Year kiss.

Yeah! Whoo!

Man: Graced by the presence of
Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings

live in studio this morning.

"Give the People What They Want"
is out this week.

Sharon Jones
and The Dap-Kings live.

(music playing)

Give a huge welcome to
Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings.

- (cheering and applause)
- Woman: Give it up
for Sharon Jones

and The Dap-Kings!

Please welcome back to our show
Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings.

Whoo!

♪ Long time since
I've seen your face... ♪

Hi. Hey!

- (chatter)
- All right.

♪ Long time since
you said good-bye ♪

♪ I'm coming home,
honey, don't you cry ♪

- Thank you so much
and God bless you.
- Thank you so much.

Embodied everything
that I loved about the '60s,

- and you brought it into today.
- Thank you.

(vocalizing)

- I love this song.
- Yeah?

I like this one.

I can't wait till I get hair
so I can shake it.

(laughs)

(music playing)

♪ There was a time ♪

♪ We were friends ♪

♪ Or was it all in my mind? ♪

♪ Or was it just pretend? ♪

(cheering)

- There goes Ellen right there.
- I don't wanna keep Ellen
waiting.

Here to perform,
from their new CD, "Give
the People What They Want,"

please welcome Sharon Jones
and The Dap-Kings.

♪ I'm feeling ♪

♪ I'm feeling,
I'm feeling... ♪

Look at Joe,
look at Joe.

♪ Hey, ow ♪

- (cheering and applause)
- (Sharon laughing)

I'm Sharon Jones...

Oh, go on!
I danced with Ellen.

I danced with... ah!

That was nice.

- Oh, that was good.
- Wow.

So how long have you been
cutting hair, Starr?

- Over 20 years.
- Wow.

And I'm not gonna lie.
This is the God's honest truth.

- Before I started doing hair...
- Uh-huh.

...I was a phone sex operator.

- Oh, what?
- You were?

Yes, I was a dominatrix
on the phone.

This is the way it goes.
"What do you want, slave?"

(laughing)

And of course, they were like,
"Your phone voice is so sexy."

Like you know, you pervert,
I'm saying to myself.

But then,
at the same token, I'm like,

"Okay, I'ma need you
to pin yourself, now!"

And they would literally
be in their office taking off
their pants.

Literally pleasuring themselves
listening to someone
talk dirty to them.

Wow.

(cheering and applause)

I just really wanna be truthful.
Thank you, guys.

Um, especially all of the
management, all of the work.

And Dap-Kings, man,
thank you, guys.

I don't wanna start crying.

But I really didn't think
I was gonna be here.

Felt so good seeing y'all on
that stage last night, you know?

But I'm gonna tell y'all,
Alex, man...

I mean, for these years,
I mean, he came in my life.

My life as a musician,
as an artist began

because he took control
and he brought out stuff.

He got me gigs,
and, I mean, just things that

to the point I trusted him
with my life.

And y'all don't know
what it was like when
I was in that hospital.

And I turned around
and looked and Alex was in
the room right there, you know?

And then when I woke up,
came out of that,

you know, he was right there.

And when my tears fall,

to see his tears fall
along with my sister,

I mean, that's like family.

And I was telling you, man,
I love you and thank God
you're in my life.

You know,
and I really appreciate you.

You know?
(crying)

- I really do.
- (applause)

- It's not gonna make up
for the bills.
- (laughter)

Cheers to a great record.

(cheering and applause)

That's gorgeous.

Binky: Everybody's just happy
to be back and happy that
she's still healthy

and able to do
what she needs to do.

When I say "what she needs
to do," it's not that doing
the show for us

so that we can have a job,
but, like, she needs the show.

That's her therapy. That's like
the best therapy she could have.

- Sharon: Good morning.
- What can I help you
with today?

- I'm scheduled for a CAT scan.
- Okay. What's your last name?

- Jones.
- And your first name?

Sharon.

Machine: Breathe.

You guys can come back in
if you want now.

It's all safe.

(line ringing)

- Hello?
- Hey, Dr. Leonardo,
this is Sharon.

- So, the CT scan
I think is all good.
- Mm-hmm.

Um, there was one area
of the stomach

that the radiologist said,
you know, he couldn't tell.

It was kinda thickened,
and on the CT scan you had
back in July,

it was also kinda thickened.

But he-he thought
that it's probably something

that they should look at it
with what they call
an endoscopy.

Sharon:
Mm-hmm.

You know, this is sort of
a baseline,

so that if anything happens
in the future,

we can, um, have something
to compare it to.

All right, so what do you
think about that--

What about--
When can I--

Let me make a couple phone
calls and see if I can
get this done

- sooner rather than later.
- All right.

- Take care.
- All right, Dr. Leonardo.

- Bye.
- Bye.

Ugh.

Well, I'm just looking at
the scar tissue.

- Yeah.
- Because, remember,
they went in...

- There's a lot that
happens in there.
- Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah.

- That's not what
I wanted to hear.
- Yeah.

- But I-I still think
everything's okay.
- Yeah, I do, too.

I don't think
it's anything crazy.

(music playing)

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ That's how I live ♪

♪ The more I get,
the more I got to give ♪

♪ 50 years of soul gone by ♪

♪ And 50 more to come ♪

♪ You think
you've seen something ♪

♪ But, Lord,
I've just begun... ♪

- Slow down now.
- Oh, oh, oh.

Slow down. Slow it--
What I tell you?

I do it every time.

Sharon, we're gonna turn off
the TV really quick.

- I wanted to say good-bye.
- All right, I was gonna
come down.

- I love you.
- Okay.

Mm, talk to you later,
all right?

Call me when you get
your results tomorrow.

Okay, I will.
I'll let you know
everything okay.

- All right?
- Okay.

- Okay.
- Okay.

I just feel like...

everything-- everything
just kind of caught up with me.

Scary.

It was the first time in a while
that it kinda got scary again.

So...

You know, it's hard.
She's so strong.

So you can't even really...

let yourself
get too worked up,

because you have to
be strong for her.

So...

yeah.

And you're here for an upper
endoscopy with Dr. Raymond.

Sharon: Mm-hmm.

Megan:
Sharon...

Nurse: Yeah, it'll take her
a little bit to wake up,

and then she'll just
go home and sleep.

Megan: That's the most relaxed
I've seen her in a long time.

(laughs)

Can I, um, her manager
on the phone as well

so that he can hear
what you're gonna say?

- Sure.
- Austen and Alex.

Everything looks
pristine clean.

- Beautiful.
- Megan: Yay.

- It's clean?
- Yes.

(cheering on phone)

There is no prob--

no evidence of
tumors or cancer.

Megan:
Good news, yeah.

Okay.

Megan: She doesn't know
how to be happy yet.

- But she will be
in a little while.
- I don't know.

I'll give you guys
a call back later, okay?

The bell.
"Ring this bell three times.

Its toll to clearly say,
'My treatments are done!'"

(bell ringing)

One more.

(cheering and applause)

Bye. See y'all.

Megan: One thing,
you know you realize

that this cancer
that you had

is something that you always
have to respect that you have.

- Yeah.
- I mean, it's nothing

that you can just say,
"Oh, now I'm in remission.

- I can...
- Nope.

...do whatever the hell
I want now,"

- 'cause you can't.
- Nope.

Let me tell y'all,
like, I got friends.

People I've known for years.

But nobody have never
been as friendly

and as giving as you have
in a lifetime,

you know, you literally
nursed me back to health.

I gotta tell you
something.

- You know I never
wear jewelry, right?
- Yeah.

And I put
my grandmother's ring on.

And I wanted to have
as much strength...

- to be there for you because...
- I was so scared.

I don't know what I would've
done if they would've told me
they found cancer

and I would have to go through
some other stuff.

It would've freaked me out.

You know, I think
I would've just--

- I don't know.
- You don't have to worry
about that now.

- Right?
- I know it. That's why--

that's why--
that's why I didn't do it.

And I was saying
a hymn to myself.

Thanks, man.

(sighs)

Sharon: Been in here
for like seven months,

so now it's the last day here.

You know, gotta go back now
to the hustle and bustle.

And you know what, Megan?

Like I said, if you can
remember the picture.

- How far did you get on it?
- Only that little--

- over where her fingers are at.
- Only.

- There's just
like eight zillion--
- That's a lot.

That's-- that's gonna take me
a while to do that, so...

That's it.

I'm packed.

- Megan: Alex is here.
- Oh, man. Okay.

- (car door shuts)
- All right, y'all.
I gotta chill out now.

- Alex is here. Damn.
- (Megan laughs)

Okay.

- Thanks for everything.
- Oh, of course.

You know this is
your home away from home.

Thanks, man.

- Bye.
- See you later, Alex.

Thank you so much.

- Alex: You feeling okay?
- Yep.

And how's everything else
coming? You're ready, right?

- Yeah.
- That doesn't sound
very reassuring.

Yeah, I'm not--
I'm just being truthful.

I'm just not, you know...

I'm just-- I'm not comfortable,
you know, yet.

I know how my legs
are feeling still, you know?

- Austen: Is it getting better?
- Yeah, it's better.

But I'm just saying,
you know...

I'm not as enthused
as I should be, you know?

Getting ready to get back
out there and I'm not that...

Like, "Yeah, I'm ready,"
you know?

- We'll get there.
- Yeah.

(music playing)

♪ I've been laying with you
night after night ♪

♪ You leave before I see
the morning light ♪

♪ I always say that
you're welcome no more ♪

♪ But when you knock,
I open up my door ♪

(music playing)

Gabe: Okay, okay. You gotta
play another pattern, man.

- That's what I just said.
- I know... (vocalizing)

Yeah, don't play the gallop,
because he's playing the gallop.

- I listened to
"People Don't"-- 50 times.
- Oh, yeah?

I just let it play,
I let it play, and then I
keep doing what I'm doing.

And I sing along, every once
and while, I miss a word or two.

It's all in my nerves,
you know, I'm just like--

- I just--
With everything going...
- Yeah, it's a lot.

...from the sickness,
it's just like I--

And then I start freaking out
when I think about it,
they go away.

I know 'em, but then when I
think about 'em, they disappear.

Miss... Sharon... Jones.

You guys, stop.
We gotta stop.

We're gonna stop, right?

Austen: You know,
for months, she just didn't
listen to the music.

(music playing)

But we're kinda like--

You know, for us,
it was a little bit harder
to understand.

You know, you have all
this free time, like,
listen to your record

and get to know it,
but she very much separated

her musical self

with her illness
and her sick self.

Binky: She stronger than she
thinks she is at this point.

But, you know, she'll get it.

Once we get back on the stage,
it'll all be much more apparent.

Like where we really are,
you know?

- You got all the stuff?
- I got your stuff.

Binky:
One, two. Check. All right.

You wanna run "People Don't Get
What They Deserve," Sharon?

- Oh, please do.
- Okay.

Let's run-- let's run "People"--
let's run "People" for Sharon.

Sharon: So even if
I mess it up right now,
don't worry about it, y'all.

If she messes it up, please
don't worry about it, y'all.

Got you, Sharon.

(music playing)

What had me in these moods
the last few days

is 'cause things
just haven't been working
for me like I wanted it.

♪ When I was a child,
I believed what they told me ♪

♪ Every word... ♪

I really wanted to get
my strength back in my legs.

I wanna move.
I wanna have energy.
I wanna dance.

But I have to have
that confidence in myself,

and I have no confidence
right now.

I can't concentrate
on sound and sing, too,

so I gotta
get the sound right.

Sharon: Because I don't know
if I'm gonna have the energy.

So, tonight is my first night
to get back out

and hopefully be able
to find myself.

Find not the old Sharon
but another Sharon.

That's my concern--
getting in front of my fans

looking the way I'm looking.

I know how my mother's hair
was falling out and how
she looked.

So, when I see that,
I see myself, I see my mother.

And I think that's what
bothered me, too.

In all this stuff that
I'm trying to, you know,

hold it in,
and it keep going.

And it's just,
you know, it's a lot.

Oh, that stuff stinks.

You gotta massage the leather,
that's the thing.

- Right.
- (laughs)

Alex: Did you hear about this
guy? Did you hear the news?

- No.
- Tonight's show trumpet player.

- He's leaving.
- Really?

- Yeah. Sad.
- Wait, for Fallon?

- Yeah.
- Congratulations, man.

(saxophone playing scales)

It's all about
the beginning of the show
and the end of the show.

What happens in the middle--
What does my friend
Bosco Man say?

- Nobody remembers the middle.
- Groove.

And did you figure out
the shoes?

Sharon: I already decided
my feet is what it is.

I gotta have some time to
myself, get my nervous together.

- Okay.
- All right.

- Bye.
- See you later.

- Did she put any lipstick on...
- No.

(laughing)

(chatter)

Okay.
You ready to go in?

- You ready?
- Mm-hmm.

Saundra: We're really grateful
and we just thank you
so much, God.

And we just wanna say
thank you, thank you,
thank you.

- Thank you.
- Bless Sharon from
the top of her head

to the soles of
her feet, Lord God.

Let her remember her
lyrics and everything.

- Thank you, Lord. Amen.
- Amen.

Gabe: Tonight, we got Dave,
we got everybody tonight.

- All: Yes.
- Let's enjoy it.

All: Dap-Kings!

(cheering and applause)

Ready?

Here we go. Hit it.

Binky: And now,
ladies and gentlemen...

New York, are you ready?

I said, Beacon Theatre,
are you ready?!

(cheering
and applause continues)

Because, ladies and gentlemen,
in our entire career,

The Dap-Kings have just
taken the longest time off

that we have ever taken.

But it had to be taken

in order for Sharon Jones
to kick cancer in the ass.

(crowd roaring)

But now that she's taken care of
that, ladies and gentlemen,
she's back.

We're gonna welcome
this young lady to the stage.

Please welcome...

Miss... Sharon... Jones!

New York!

Wake up, y'all!

How y'all feel?

Y'all feel all right?
Hey!

How y'all doing up there
in the balcony?

What?!

Hey!

I'm back! Whoo!

Guess what.
I'm feeling good.

I'm back,
and I'm feeling good.

Hey, hey, hey!

Whoo!

Let me get to singing.

♪ There was a man
who had a plan-- ♪

Uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh.
Hold up. Hold up.

I got excited.
I forgot the words.

Uh, what's the words
about a man?

Don't worry, y'all.
Give me time.

So many times there were a man.
There you go.

Got you. Here we go.
All right.

I'm gonna do this a lot tonight.
Now, listen.

♪ So many times there was a man,
he met a girl, who met a man ♪

♪ He told her, "Never will
I leave you, my love" ♪

♪ But just as soon
as he gone again,
she's flapping in the wind ♪

♪ Wondering what she must
have been thinking of ♪

♪ She's said, darling ♪

♪ I've been in and out
so many doors ♪

♪ And I've always tried
to keep my head ♪

♪ From all the men
I've known before ♪

♪ Hey, oh, yeah ♪

♪ But it's a mystery ♪

♪ Just how you came right in ♪

♪ You-you stole my heart away ♪

♪ And left me there again,
I'm feeling ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger
to my happiness ♪

♪ I feel like a stranger to
my happiness ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger
to my happiness ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger ♪

♪ Ooh, yeah ♪

- ♪ I'm feeling ♪
- ♪ Feeling ♪

- ♪ I'm feeling ♪
- ♪ Feelin' ♪

- ♪ I'm feeling ♪
- ♪ Feeling ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger
to my happiness, yeah ♪

- ♪ Whoa, and I'm feeling ♪
- ♪ Feeling ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger
to my happiness ♪

♪ Hey ♪

♪ Feeling like a stranger
to my happiness ♪

(vocalizing)

- Whoo!
- (cheering and applause)

I haven't been this
short-winded in a long time.

Oh, my goodness.
Whoo.

All right, y'all.

You know, I wanna take
a little time out right now

to thank a few of my friends.

Everyone from Sharon Spring,

that group is what got me back
up here on this stage right now.

(cheering and applause)

Thank God for Megan
for being my guardian angel.

And most of all, I'd like to
thank Dr. Leonardo.

My doctor.

When I thought
I wasn't gonna make it,

he assured me that everything
was gonna be all right.

Dr. Leonardo, I thank you!

Whoo.

Y'all, our trumpet player,
Mr. Dave Guy...

Tonight is one of
his last nights with us.

Look at my face.
I don't want him to see it.

But I just wanna say I really--

Dave, just so you know,

I do love you,
I'm gonna miss you.

I'm not mad at you.

He's gonna believe in us.
He's gonna be on the new...

- with Jimmy Fallon
and The Roots.
- (cheering and applause)

Each night, he can stay
in New York and be home
with his family.

I'm just happy for him.

But if it don't work out...
he'll be back.

Mr. Dave Guy.

(music playing)

Now, this song is called
"Longer and Stronger."

I'm a little short-winded
right now, but I feel good.

It feels good to be
on this stage

and tonight is
my first night.

I gotta see how much I can do,
how far I can go.

So I'm glad to be testing
this out on y'all tonight here.

Testing out my energy.

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ That's how I live ♪

♪ The more I get ♪

♪ The more I got to give ♪

♪ 50 years of souls gone by ♪

♪ 50 more to come ♪

♪ You think
you've seen something ♪

♪ I said,
"Lord, I've just begun" ♪

♪ Pretty young things,
how they come and they go ♪

♪ Ain't nothing lasting
but no girl is sure ♪

♪ You see a woman like me ♪

♪ I can stand the test of time ♪

♪ Day after day,
year after year ♪

♪ You know that I'm ♪

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ That's how I live ♪

♪ I said the more I get ♪

♪ The more got to give ♪

♪ Hey, 50 years of
souls gone by ♪

♪ 50 more to come ♪

♪ And you think
you've seen something ♪

♪ I said, "Lord, Lord" ♪

♪ "I just begun" ♪

♪ Whoa ♪

♪ Come on home,
let me hear it ♪

♪ Hey ♪

♪ Longer and stronger now ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ That's how I live ♪

♪ Whoa ♪

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ I've got to keep moving ♪

♪ I've too much to give, yeah ♪

♪ I've got something
I want to give to you ♪

♪ I got to give the people
what they want ♪

♪ Longer ♪

♪ Longer and stronger ♪

♪ Whoa ♪

Binky:
Miss Sharon Jones.

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Whoa ♪

Whoo!

Announcer: On your side.
This is News 12 at 6:00.

Singer Sharon Jones
is recovering after a procedure

to remove a small mass
from her liver.

I just spoke with the singer,
who is still in New York
right now,

where doctors removed
that small tumor.

It's all thumbs up from her,
by the way.

She says her voice is strong.
She feels good.

She'll be heading home
to Augusta soon.

Right now,
my attitude is, um...

cancer is in your body
and it never leaves.

Sometimes it never flare-up
again, and it could be
another 10-20 years.

Whatever I go in,
whatever they say,

I just have to
deal with it.

And that's the way
I'm thinking for the rest of
my life right now.

Now we just need to sell
millions of records.

I wanna sell
a million records.

I mean, that's not easy
to do nowadays, but...

Yo, you gotta
be positive,

and you gotta say we gonna sell
a million records.

- We're gonna sell
a million records.
- There you go.

- Done.
- Done.

Claim it.

- I believe it.
- Okay.

- I believe it if you do.
- There you go.

All right.

♪ I've been laying with you
night after night ♪

♪ Uh, uh, oh, yeah... ♪

- Hey, Neal.
- Hey.

- How are you?
- Good.

- Hello.
- Hello.

♪ Oh, I say you're not
welcome no more ♪

♪ No, no, no, no, no, no-no ♪

♪ No more ♪

♪ But when you knock,
I open up the door ♪

- ♪ I say, "Get up" ♪
- ♪ Get up, get up ♪

♪ "And get on out" ♪

- ♪ And get up ♪
- ♪ Get up, get up ♪

♪ And get on out, whoo ♪

♪ No one can know ♪

♪ No one, no one can know
that you are here ♪

♪ For you,
I've shed so many tears ♪

♪ I said that no one can know ♪

♪ No one, no one can know
that you are here, yeah, yeah ♪

♪ That you are here ♪

♪ Come on now ♪

♪ Get up ♪

♪ Come on, y'all, time for
my shoes to come off, y'all ♪

♪ 'Cause right now ♪

♪ I got something
to shout about ♪

♪ I feel like I--
I got to ♪

♪ Feel like I gotta shout ♪

♪ Let me shout ♪

♪ Got something in my bones ♪

♪ Hey, go on ♪

♪ Let me shout ♪

♪ I feel it in my bones ♪

(shouting)

♪ I gots to ♪

♪ You know ♪

♪ You see ♪

♪ Let me tell y'all something ♪

♪ For those of y'all
who don't know ♪

♪ What I'm shouting about ♪

♪ I got something
to shout about ♪

♪ I didn't know
that I would be alive ♪

♪ Here tonight in Augusta ♪

♪ Giving you, the people ♪

♪ What, what, what ♪

♪ What you want ♪

Whoo!

♪ You see, a few months ago ♪

♪ I looked in the mirror ♪

♪ And when I saw myself ♪

♪ I did not like the person
that I saw in that mirror ♪

♪ It was me,
and I was bald ♪

♪ I didn't have one string
of hair on my head ♪

♪ I didn't have eyebrows ♪

♪ And you, my fans ♪

♪ My friends,
y'all said, "Sharon" ♪

♪ "You look beautiful without
hair" ♪

♪ You said, "Sharon,
take your time" ♪

♪ And guess what ♪

♪ By me,
by you inspiring me ♪

♪ That's why,
that's why I'm here ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

♪ You see, I'm alive ♪

♪ Cancer-free right now ♪

♪ And I'ma keep on ♪

♪ Keep on shouting ♪

♪ Keep on my faith ♪

♪ Keep on believing ♪

♪ 'Cause I know God got it ♪

♪ God got it,
He got me, y'all ♪

♪ He's my doctor,
He's my lawyer ♪

♪ Whoo,
I say He's a healer ♪

♪ That's why I got to shout ♪

♪ Yeah, shout ♪

♪ Whoa, I feel it ♪

♪ In my bones... ♪

♪ Shout, yeah ♪

♪ Ah ♪

Whoo!

Whoo!

I got something
to shout about.

(cheering and applause)

(music playing)

♪ All the things
I've been through ♪

♪ Just to sing this song ♪

♪ All the people
I've seen come and go ♪

♪ As I kept pushing on ♪

♪ I had to work
as a prison guard ♪

♪ Tell the men to do
what they're told ♪

♪ 'Cause some record label told
me I was "too fat, too short,
black, and old" ♪

♪ I had to direct a choir ♪

♪ To lift my voice out ♪

♪ 'Cause that's the only place
that I can sing and be proud ♪

♪ 'Cause I'm still here ♪

♪ I said I'm still here ♪

♪ From the ghetto
to the garden ♪

♪ From the boardrooms
to the bowl ♪

♪ From Down Under
to Great Britain ♪

♪ I've played
so many drinking holes ♪

♪ Then the big "C"
crashed down on me ♪

♪ Tried to take it all away ♪

♪ And I didn't know
if I would live ♪

♪ Live to see another day ♪

♪ But I'm still here, yeah ♪

♪ Said I'm still here ♪

♪ I'm still here ♪

♪ I'm still here ♪

♪ I'm still here ♪

- ♪ I'm still here ♪
- ♪ I'm still here ♪

♪ Whoa, yeah ♪

♪ I'm still here ♪

- ♪ Mm ♪
- ♪ I'm still here ♪

♪ I'm still here ♪