Sly and The Family Stone Music Discussion

[MichaelSherry59]

Anyone here a fan of Sly and The Family Stone? I'm a big fan of theirs and have been since 1968, "saw" them live in 1973 but Sly didn't show up!!!

Anyways, what did you all think of them back in their heyday throughout the 60s and early 70s? Any favourites from theirs, any... "Concert" memories etc?

Share your thoughts.

[Graham Jarvis]

He has done some great songs but for me I think his best ever is "Help Me With My Broken Heart" on 45 G&P 901 1962

Link gives you both sides:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxuLzAEypCY

[MichaelSherry59]

He has done some great songs but for me I think his best ever is "Help Me With My Broken Heart" on 45 G&P 901 1962

Link gives you both sides:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxuLzAEypCY


My lord, his vocals on those two tracks are incredible, I always felt he was underrated vocally, I'll take it over anything from the overrated Fresh record...

Check this one out

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3XU92iVpAs

[Motown Eddie]

Anyone here a fan of Sly and The Family Stone? I'm a big fan of theirs and have been since 1968, "saw" them live in 1973 but Sly didn't show up!!!

Anyways, what did you all think of them back in their heyday throughout the 60s and early 70s? Any favourites from theirs, any... "Concert" memories etc?

Share your thoughts.

Hey, I'll Always Love Sly & The Family Stone. I say their peak years were from 1968 thru 1973. While I never got to see the group live, my favorite performances by them are the shows in 1969 that were featured in both the Woodstock & The Summer of Soul documentaries. Favorite songs by them include "Dance To The Music', "Everyday People", "Thank You [Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin]", "Everyone Is A Star" & favorite albums are Stand! & There's A Riot Going On.

[MichaelSherry59]

Hey, I'll Always Love Sly & The Family Stone. I say their peak years were from 1968 thru 1973. While I never got to see the group live, my favorite performances by them are the shows in 1969 that were featured in both the Woodstock & The Summer of Soul documentaries. Favorite songs by them include "Dance To The Music', "Everyday People", "Thank You [Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin]", "Everyone Is A Star" & favorite albums are Stand! & There's A Riot Going On.


I'd say their peak was from 1968-1971, it was too obvious the magic was long done by the time 1973 happened, oh man... I can remember being so disappointed with Fresh back then lol [[I was 14). Trust me, feel thankful you didn't see them live, I "saw" them live in 73, didn't show up...

[sansradio]

I adore Sly & The Family Stone. I recently scored a copy of their 4- CD LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST set and partied my buns off all by my lonesome at home with it a couple of Saturday nights ago.

[Motown Eddie]

I'd say their peak was from 1968-1971, it was too obvious the magic was long done by the time 1973 happened, oh man... I can remember being so disappointed with Fresh back then lol [ after Sly & other members of the group started using hard drugs. And [I]Fresh was the last album that I liked by Sly & Co [Small Talk, the follow up was the end of the line for me].

[Motown Eddie]

I adore Sly & The Family Stone. I recently scored a copy of their 4- CD LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST set and partied my buns off all by my lonesome at home with it a couple of Saturday nights ago.

Same Here! I picked up that Live At The Fillmore East 4CD set when it came out and I truly enjoyed it. Sly & The Family Stone were long overdue for a live album [beside 2009's The Woodstock Experience which included their classic show from the 1969 Woodstock Festival along with the Stand! LP] and they finally got it with that Fillmore East collection.

[Motown Eddie]

Here's an article marking the 50th Anniversary of the release of Sly & The Family Stone's "Family Affair" from Ultimate Classic Rock.

50 Years Ago: Sly and Family Stone Splinter on 'Family Affair' [ultimateclassicrock.com [[https://ultimateclassicrock.com/sly-and-the-family-stone-family-affair/)]

[splanky]

Sly messed up his own career and legacy. He wasn't alone in how he did it but he did
crash exceptionally fast and hard for someone who showed so much promise earlier. Even
still I loved Sly's music including the Fresh album and some of the Small Talk release.
Particularly Loose Booty and the doo wop throw back This Is Love. Sly vanished and when
he returned it was a soldier in George Clinton's Parliament Funkadelic. Some might say one drug addict recruiting another but the group as a whole did create a dominant
influence on American music for more than a minute. Aware of his dalliances, others,
including even Earth Wind and Fire wanted to work with Sly. Unfortunately, because he
was still SLY, those ventures, even if they were successful like Jesse Johnson's co-labb
Crazay, were one offs. It's too bad because Sly was one of the most talented musicians
of our lifetimes...

[MichaelSherry59]

Sly messed up his own career and legacy. He wasn't alone in how he did it but he did
crash exceptionally fast and hard for someone who showed so much promise earlier. Even
still I loved Sly's music including the Fresh album and some of the Small Talk release.
Particularly Loose Booty and the doo wop throw back This Is Love. Sly vanished and when
he returned it was a soldier in George Clinton's Parliament Funkadelic. Some might say one drug addict recruiting another but the group as a whole did create a dominant
influence on American music for more than a minute. Aware of his dalliances, others,
including even Earth Wind and Fire wanted to work with Sly. Unfortunately, because he
was still SLY, those ventures, even if they were successful like Jesse Johnson's co-labb
Crazay, were one offs. It's too bad because Sly was one of the most talented musicians
of our lifetimes...

From 1967-1971 they could do no wrong, they were incredible, especially during their peak from 1969-1971, unfortunately around the 1970s it was the beginning of the end for them, drugs, sleeping with their band mates, his issues with Larry Graham, no showing in concerts, the original bandmates leaving etc etc were really what caused Sly Stone's decline throughout the 1970s and other members too.

Is a shame, because their peak lasted for 2 seconds in comparison to someone like P-Funk who's peaked lasted from 1970 - 1980.

I feel Sly and The Family Stone are a generational thing in a sense that "you had to be there" in the 60s to get it...

[Jerry Oz]

I agree with you about seeing Sly & The Family Stone live. They had become notorious for cancelling a lot of concerts at the last minute [and they showed up late a lot of the time] after Sly & other members of the group started using hard drugs. And Fresh was the last album that I liked by Sly & Co [Small Talk, the follow up was the end of the line for me]. I was too young to see them but I clearly remember the third {or fourth} time they cancelled a show in my hometown. People were ready to tear the place up.

Musically, he's probably the most "post-modern" artist ever. The band's songs were so unique and straddled so many genres, they may as well have been their own. So many different emotions in their music. I told someone on Twitter recently that I believe that Bob Marley set the bar so high for musical excellence in reggae, artists are still trying to reach it 40 years later. Marley never passed the torch because it was too hot for somebody else to handle in his wake.

Sly & The Family Stone were the pop/soul/funk/rock equivalent of that. Sometimes, it's hard to stand on the shoulders of giants because it's impossible to climb up there in the first place. The demons that made him a musical genius {not overused here} torture him to this day.

[splanky]

Is a shame, because their peak lasted for 2 seconds in comparison to someone like P-Funk who's peaked lasted from 1970 - 1980.

I feel Sly and The Family Stone are a generational thing in a sense that "you had to be there" in the 60s to get it...

I might be able to see the generational accusation if it were not for the fact that Sly
music influenced and continues to influence scores of musicians and listeners that came
after him. Switch on youtube and in the comment section you will come across in 2020
a bunch of folks listening backwards to 1973 Sly...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZFabOuF4Ps

Or listen to 1980 Funkadelic and let them tell you who they gave it up for.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xo8rY4TdqU

BTW, Funkadelic didn't start out at peak in 1970; they were a cult band for the longest
time....

[MichaelSherry59]

I might be able to see the generational accusation if it were not for the fact that Sly
music influenced and continues to influence scores of musicians and listeners that came
after him. Switch on youtube and in the comment section you will come across in 2020
a bunch of folks listening backwards to 1973 Sly...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZFabOuF4Ps

Or listen to 1980 Funkadelic and let them tell you who they gave it up for.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xo8rY4TdqU

BTW, Funkadelic didn't start out at peak in 1970; they were a cult band for the longest
time....

Ah, fair enough. I'm not the most knowledgeable guy when it comes to P Funk. Not really fan of theirs...

I'll check out the comments then. What's your favourite Sly and The Family Stone album?

[MichaelSherry59]

]I was too young to see the[/B]m but I clearly remember the third {or fourth} time they cancelled a show in my hometown. People were ready to tear the place up.

Musically, he's probably the most "post-modern" artist ever. The band's songs were so unique and straddled so many genres, they may as well have been their own. So many different emotions in their music. I told someone on Twitter recently that I believe that Bob Marley set the bar so high for musical excellence in reggae, artists are still trying to reach it 40 years later. Marley never passed the torch because it was too hot for somebody else to handle in his wake.

Sly & The Family Stone were the pop/soul/funk/rock equivalent of that. Sometimes, it's hard to stand on the shoulders of giants because it's impossible to climb up there in the first place. The demons that made him a musical genius {not overused here} torture him to this day.

You didn't miss anything, trust me, I "saw" them live in 73, didn't show up.

[splanky]

I was too young to see them but I clearly remember the third {or fourth} time they cancelled a show in my hometown. People were ready to tear the place up.

Musically, he's probably the most "post-modern" artist ever. The band's songs were so unique and straddled so many genres, they may as well have been their own. So many different emotions in their music. I told someone on Twitter recently that I believe that Bob Marley set the bar so high for musical excellence in reggae, artists are still trying to reach it 40 years later. Marley never passed the torch because it was too hot for somebody else to handle in his wake.

Sly & The Family Stone were the pop/soul/funk/rock equivalent of that. Sometimes, it's hard to stand on the shoulders of giants because it's impossible to climb up there in the first place. The demons that made him a musical genius {not overused here} torture him to this day.

This is probably the most accurate assessment I've heard anyone make about Sly's career on this forum. True too, your comments about what happened with Bob Marley
and reggae are a whole different thread of their own. It's weird. It wasn't supposed to be like that. Neither Bob nor his producer, the recently passed legend Lee "Scratch" Perry
intended it but he didn't as much as cross over the music as become virtually a genre
of his own. Nobody else working in the music achieved the notoriety of Bob Marley and
the Wailers, not even Wailers independent of him. Can you say Peter Tosh? The history
of Jamaican music is long and complicated, encompassing several genres with various
"stars" but no one, not Gregory Issacs, not Third World or Dennis Brown [[RIP) shades
Bob....Pardon the rant...

[Boogiedown]

Can't pinpoint the year , but I know my dad drove my brother and I and friends the two hour trip to a music festival at the LA coliseum [thanks Dad!!:cool:] so I was either too young to drive or over sixteen but he didn't want me making the drive. so 1970-1973.
If anyone has any idea what concert I'm talking about ,:cool: it would be greatly appreciated.

It was an all day , act after act concert put on by a radio station. We were sitting freestyle, on the lawn. It is now a blur, but I believe the Bee Gees were there and I'm pretty sure The Supremes. I feel like Stevie Wonder too, but maybe wishful thinking ...
Of this, I remember most: Sly Stone was the last act. The show was running late and Sly came out and farted around. I recall him saying "I feel goooood" loudly into the mic ,the comment reverberating above the crowd. But by the time his band was ready to play, the time to end the concert had come, 10:00?? The lights to the stadium came on and Sly was insisting they turn them off. He protested for awhile, "Turn off those lights!" , but it was clear the night was over , and before he could sing a note, the sound system went off and everyone began filing out. lol!

Anyone else there for this ??:confused:

[Motown Eddie]

Can't pinpoint the year , but I know my dad drove my brother and I and friends the two hour trip to a music festival at the LA coliseum [thanks Dad!!:cool:] so I was either too young to drive or over sixteen but he didn't want me making the drive. so 1970-1973.
If anyone has any idea what concert I'm talking about ,:cool: it would be greatly appreciated.

It was an all day , act after act concert put on by a radio station. We were sitting freestyle, on the lawn. It is now a blur, but I believe the Bee Gees were there and I'm pretty sure The Supremes. I feel like Stevie Wonder too, but maybe wishful thinking ...
Of this, I remember most: Sly Stone was the last act. The show was running late and Sly came out and farted around. I recall him saying "I feel goooood" loudly into the mic ,the comment reverberating above the crowd. But by the time his band was ready to play, the time to end the concert had come, 10:00?? The lights to the stadium came on and Sly was insisting they turn them off. He protested for awhile, "Turn off those lights!" , but it was clear the night was over , and before he could sing a note, the sound system went off and everyone began filing out. lol!

Anyone else there for this ??:confused:

Great story boogiedown! I wasn't there for that show but, there were many stories about Sly & The Family Stone showing up late for concerts, cancelling concerts at the last minute or playing poorly when they did show up. It sounds like one or more of the band members were either too high to play or didn't show up in time for the concert. Anyway, they got what they deserved when the end of the concert came and Sly & Co. could not perform that night.

[lockhartgary]

Found this on Facebook:
19376

[MichaelSherry59]

Found this on Facebook:
19376

1972... not only a brilliant year to be a teenager and a soul music fan but the price range is only $3 back then, Man I miss the golden years of soul circa of the late 60s early 70s.

[Boogiedown]

Found this on Facebook:
19376

This is fantastic!! Thank you lockhartgary for going through the trouble. I've thought about this concert many times over the years....not quite remembering the details [no, no pot smoking, etc..... lol!]. I knew I'd seen the Bee Gees but wasn't sure if it was part of this line -up or some other event. I also remember there was some oldies element to to it ....maybe The Supremes because I thought there had been a girl group as part of the show, but now I see it was The Four Seasons and Chuck Berry. I could never confirm this concert ever happening and I knew I hadn't made it up ! lol!
I'll pass this on to my brother and see what memories it conjures up for him.
How in the world we met my Dad afterwards ???? Obviously no cell phones then ...

I'll ponder it some more .
Thank you again Gary !!:cool::)


boogiedown

[MichaelSherry59]

This is fantastic!! Thank you lockhartgary for going through the trouble. I've thought about this concert many times over the years....not quite remembering the details [no, no pot smoking, etc..... lol!]. I knew I'd seen the Bee Gees but wasn't sure if it was part of this line -up or some other event. I also remember there was some oldies element to to it ....maybe The Supremes because I thought there had been a girl group as part of the show, but now I see it was The Four Seasons and Chuck Berry. I could never confirm this concert ever happening and I knew I hadn't made it up ! lol!
I'll pass this on to my brother and see what memories it conjures up for him.
How in the world we met my Dad afterwards ???? Obviously no cell phones then ...

I'll ponder it some more .
Thank you again Gary !!:cool::)


boogiedown

Did you go to that show ?