In what is becoming a streak of Friday song tragic protagonists, stretching to four today, it had to be Sly Stone who passed away Monday, as this Friday’s pick – until Brian Wilson passed on Wednesday and many on the group messaged me about him and suggested or asked about a post. But I’ve been listening to Sly, and one can’t click on a website without reading everything one needs to know or should think about Wilson, so it’s Sly today and The Beach Boys will be some other time.
Born Sylvester Stewart, Sly had started a career in production, but soon developed a fresh sound as bandleader, joining a new carriage to the funk train stoked by James Brown and adding soul, rock and psychedelia to the mix. Sly & The Family Stone was joy, power and punch, horns, rhythm and fun. It was a band where women and men both sang and played.
The Family Stone was an inter-racial, pace-setting collective during the period of political and social upheaval of the late 1960s and early 1970s, which dovetailed perfectly with The Family’s golden age.
Sly’s leadership, musicality and talent, combined with Larry Graham’s driving, supple bass, invented a sound without which arguably, there would be no Prince, no Stevie Wonder, no Talking Heads and possibly no funked up Miles Davis either.
Sly’s influence was seminal in the development of modern American music. Then, after a string of hits, his tragic fall began. Addled by drugs, increasingly unreliable, missing concerts and losing his cash pile, Sly and the band’s star fell faster than his post-Woodstock rise to fame. After Fresh, his 1973 album, the influence and power was pretty much gone.
Take a close listen today to Family Affair, from the dark, slowed down, unexpected number one album, There’s A Riot Goin’ On, named as a response to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Goin’ On?
No one could quite remember, given the excesses of the time, who played what on which tracks, but mostly because of the bass style, it’s known that Sly himself played most of the bass parts that made up the version of Family Affair that made it to vinyl. The sound is gloopy and the “party up” tone of Riot’s predecessors had seemingly gone “underwater”, indicative of so much more.
Drums were replaced by machine and Sly’s generally dominant guitar was largely mixed back in favour of Billy Preston’s electric piano. Probably by default rather than design, the new sound went to number one, and Sly’s importance was cemented. From the wild, crazed, disruptive funkmaster to well, very little after 1973 other than attempted comebacks and retreats, Sly hung on and hung out for another 50-plus years, passing on aged 82 this week.
RIP Sly and the rest of you, have a good Sunday – and public holiday Monday!
I started a music WhatsApp group in 2023. I send one song a week on a Friday, with links to both Apple and Spotify, and an accompanying narrative/capsule piece. You’ll read it here on a Sunday. If you want to engage about a song, get a playlist or just get in touch, email me on [email protected].
Listen to Family Affair on Spotify here.
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