RIBS TPTD: Bonus Hours - Sly and the Family Stone, Part 2

February 28, 2008 by tgrundy
Filed under: Funk, General/Misc, RIBS, Triple Play Thurs-Day, music, podcasts/mixes, soul 

Part 2 of our look at Sly and the Family Stone here on RIBS.

When you take a look at the history of the group you find out that there were two distinct eras in their career, 1967-1971 and 1973-1983. In Part 1 last week we presented most of the classic hits that you normally think of when you hear the name Sly and the Family Stone: Dance to The Music, Stand!, I Want To Take You Higher, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), etc. This material was recorded during their heyday between the years 1967 and 1971.

The majority of today’s mix on the other hand is from the later decade of the group’s career, 1973-1983. This material, while still very good and bearing many of the distinctive characteristics of the SATFS sound, doesn’t quite match the output of their early years. The lone exceptions may be the songs from the 1973 release Fresh: If You Want Me To Stay, In Time, Let Me Have It All, Frisky, their cover of Doris Day’s Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) and Skin I’m In. This album has even been hailed by some “as one of the great funk albums of it’s era”.

Unfortunately, as we have witnessed with so many artists and groups, along with the success and fame that the group attained came many problems. Problems that would tear the group apart and lead to their downfall. The “transition years” between the group’s two eras, 1971-1972, were particularly troublesome and saw relationships among the band members deteriorate, demands from outside parties that the band’s music become more militant and calls to replace the white members of the group, Greg Errico and Jerry Martini with black instrumentalists. Additionally, Sly and the rest of the band became heavy users of illegal drugs. All of this eventually took its toll. Drummer Greg Errico left in 1971. Larry Graham, who had been having disagreements and issues with Sly and his brother Freddie for some time, left in 1972 after a post-concert brawl broke out between Graham’s entourage and Sly’s entourage. Sly’s sister, Rose Stone got married and eventually left the group in 1975.

Now, with all that being said, it is still important to make note of the fact that the latter work of Sly and the Family was just as important and influential in the world of music as their early work. During their career this group broke so many molds and spearheaded many changes in the way music was created and perceived. They were the first (or at least one of the first) major bands to be mixed in both race and gender. As a matter of fact, the first woman I recall seeing in a band who actually played an instrument (and trumpet at that) and wasn’t just a background singer or “eye-candy” was Cynthia Robinson.

Their sound was a mixture of RnB, Soul and Rock, not a common combination back in those days. And the bass… you had never heard the the bass guitar played before like Larry Graham played it in Sly and the Family Stone! He is credited with the invention of the slapping technique, which radically expanded the tonal palette of the bass, although he himself refers to the technique as Thumpin’ and Pluckin’. In addition to influencing an entire generation of bass players, the sound of Sly and the Family Stone influenced Herbie Hancock, resulting in his landmark Head Hunters release in 1973, and Miles Davis’ On The Corner, which heralded the era of Jazz fusion. Artists from Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder to Prince and Chuck D have all gained inspiration from SATFS.

So… this week, once again, I present to you my all-time favorite band…

Sly and The Family Stone

RIBS TPTD: Bonus Hours - Sly and The Family Stone, part 2
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Right-click here to download .MP3 file (109Mb, 1:17:53)
Download playlist .PDF file here (right-click)

Playlist:

  1. Fun [Life] 2:20
  2. I Get High On You [High On You] 3:15
  3. Loose Booty [Small Talk] 3:47
  4. Sexy Situation [Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back] 2:59
  5. If You Want Me To Stay [Fresh] 2:59
  6. Runnin’ Away [There's a Riot Goin' On] 2:56
  7. Let Me Have It All [Fresh] 2:56
  8. Africa Talks to You “The Asphalt Jungle” [There's a Riot Goin' On] 8:45
  9. Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) [Fresh] 6:44
  10. Everybody Is A Star [Greatest Hits] 3:05
  11. Frisky [Fresh] 3:13
  12. Mother Is A Hippie [Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back] 3:03
  13. You Really Got Me [Ain't But The One Way] 3:52
  14. Who In The Funk Do You Think You Are [Ain't But The One Way] 4:34
  15. Green Eyed Monster Girl [High On You] 3:55
  16. Luv N’ Haight [There's a Riot Goin' On] 4:01
  17. In Time [Fresh] 5:50
  18. If It’s Not Addin’ Up… [Back On The Right Track] 2:09
  19. Skin I’m In [Fresh] 2:55
  20. Remember Who You Are [Back On The Right Track] 3:17
  21. Don’t Call Me Nigger, Whitey [Stand!] 5:58

Enjoy!

And remember…

If you have the question: “Where are are the good Soul music sites on the ‘Net?
We have the answer: “Check out NetInfoWeb’s ‘SoulSites’ Aggregator Page!”


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One Comment on RIBS TPTD: Bonus Hours - Sly and the Family Stone, Part 2

  1. SlyStoneBio on Wed, 5th Mar 2008 11:10 pm

    2. Great article about Sly. You definitely covered all the hits but also included some real gems (”Mother Is a Hippie,” “Remember Who You Are”) that people often miss because they were recorded or released during Sly’s most difficult years. I go into depth about a lot of the these topics and more in my book about Sly. I hope you will check it out.
    http://slystonebio.blogspot.com
    http://www.lulu.com/content/1412956

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