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Charles Bradley, Live In Concert: Newport Folk 2012

By Stephen Thompson
Published July 29, 2012 at 5:21 PM CDT
Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires perform at the Fort Stage at the Newport Folk Festival.
Erik Jacobs
/
Erik Jacobs for NPR
Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires perform at the Fort Stage at the Newport Folk Festival.

Charles Bradley's road to fame took him through a childhood inspired by James Brown and a long life of day jobs and family tragedies — and then, in his early 60s, his life took a glorious turn. While Bradley was performing his James Brown tribute act a few years ago, Daptone Records co-founder Gabriel Roth saw something in him and ultimately signed him to record his own songs for an album called No Time for Dreaming.

As much as Bradley exudes funky, live-wire energy — his years impersonating Brown weren't wasted — what really fuels his music is perspective: Real-deal experience, and an understanding of hardship, infuses every note he sings. There's authenticity to Bradley's music, but also the sort of appreciation that can only feed the joy of performance. Charles Bradley performs here as part of the 2012 Newport Folk Festival, recorded live on Sunday, July 29 in Newport, R.I.

Set List:

  • "Mighty Mighty"

  • "Heartaches and Pain"

  • "No Time For Dreaming"

  • "Lovin' You"

  • "The World"

  • "How Long"

  • "Slip Away"

  • "The Budos"

  • "Heart of Gold"

  • "Funky Funky"

  • "Strictly Reserved For You"

  • "Golden Rule"

  • "Why Is It So Hard?"

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    NPR Music
    Stephen Thompson
    Stephen Thompson is a writer, editor and reviewer for NPR Music, where he speaks into any microphone that will have him and appears as a frequent panelist on All Songs Considered. Since 2010, Thompson has been a fixture on the NPR roundtable podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, which he created and developed with NPR correspondent Linda Holmes. In 2008, he and Bob Boilen created the NPR Music video series Tiny Desk Concerts, in which musicians perform at Boilen's desk. (To be more specific, Thompson had the idea, which took seconds, while Boilen created the series, which took years. Thompson will insist upon equal billing until the day he dies.)
    See stories by Stephen Thompson