Sly Stone, the singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, who effortlessly transformed pop, funk, gospel, and psychedelic rock into one vibrant voice that created Sly & the Family Stone and influenced Miles Davis during his fusion movement, died on June 9 in Los Angeles, surrounded by his three children and extended family. He was 82.
His family announced the news “with profound sadness” and said in a statement, “After a prolonged battle with COPD and other underlying health issues, Sly passed away peacefully.”
Sly & the Family Stone was a double threat with Sly’s distinctive bass voice immediately recognized on his first note. The pulsating, explosive funk of the Family Stone, their hard-hittin’ repetitive lyrics, electrified your entire body. His music touched your soul like a Mahalia Jackson spiritual or a Ray Charles blues tune that just made your body tremble, but Sly’s style, with all that funk, made you jump up and “dance to the music.”
Having been fortunate enough to see Sly on many occasions, I have only one thing to say: It was an invigorating experience. We saw him once at the Dome, formerly in the East Village; the music was louder than a freight train rolling through your living room — the entire club vibrated as we danced like tomorrow would never come. We once waited two hours for him to show up at Central Park, and he was late to the Apollo Theater, but once he arrived, the party was on — it was a non-stop excursion that took you higher!
Sly was one of the first major musicians to play every instrument on many of his songs. His high-intensity live performances influenced Michael Jackson, Prince, and many high-voltage groups that followed.
With the 1960s–1970s band, Sly Stone combined inspirational anthems with dagger-sharp commentary on America’s ongoing injustices and racism, with penetrating lyrics, brilliant hooks, and high-flyin’ grooves. This magical blend made him one of the most sampled artists in history. His music elevated words into another realm.
His straight-up funk songs, like “I Want to Take You Higher” and “Fun,” lived up to their titles. A host of motivating songs became street anthems, like “Everybody is a Star”: “Everybody is a Star / Who would rain and chase the dust away / Everybody wants to shine / Who’ll come out on a cloudy day / Til the sun that loves you proud / When the system tries to beat you down.”
He comes back with the politically motivated “Stand”: “Stand / They will try to make you crawl / And they know what you’re saying makes sense and all / Stand / Don’t you know that you are free? / Well, at least in your mind if you want to be (Everybody).” His gospel blues saturated interpretation of “Que Sera Sera,” reflecting a deeper dimension to the well-traveled hit.
Sly was politically astute to the tumultuous times of his flower-power era and his genius lyrics were filled with political thoughts of everyday people. His lyrics remain inspirational and extremely relevant to these times.
Born Sylvester Stewart, the second of five children, Sly and his family moved from Denton, Texas, to Vallejo, California, when he was an adolescent. The family was heavily involved in the Pentecostal Church.
By age 8, Stone was recording gospel music with his siblings, Freddie, Rose, and Vaetta, as the Stewart Four; they released a gospel single, “On the Battlefield.” By age 11, Stone was adept on keyboards, guitar, bass, and drums. In high school, he formed a multi-racial doo-wop group, the Viscaynes, and made some recordings in Los Angeles.
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With his eclectic music taste, Stone decided to attend the Chris Borden School of Broadcasting in San Francisco. He went on to earn a reputation as a disc jockey at KSOL and KDIA, an R&B radio station in San Mateo. His playlist blended both R&B and pop music like Dylan, the Beatles, and Rolling Stones, who were part of the British rock invasion. At the same time, Stone was employed as a record producer for Autumn Records, producing San Francisco-area bands.
Stone and his brother Freddie merged their own bands together in 1966 to form Sly & the Family Stone. It was an integrated group that included both white and Black musicians, and women who played instruments — a very rare occurrence for that era. The band’s original lineup featured Freddie on guitar, and Sly on organ, along with bassist Lary Graham, Vaetta (later known as Vet Stone) on keyboards and vocals, and drummer Greg Errico. The lineup would later include trumpeter Cynthia Robinson, saxophonist Jerry Martini, and Rose on keyboards and vocals. The group was soon riding the charts with hits like “Everyday People,” “Family Affair,” and “Dance to the Music.”
The group recorded the albums “Fresh” in 1973 and “Small Talk” in 1974; its bluesy soul doo wop flavor should have done much better in sales. Due to Stone’s well-documented drug abuse, the Family Stone disbanded and Sly began recording solo.
His 1979 alum “Back on the Right Track” was an attempt to keep the Family Stone name in the limelight, but his personal issues remained a stumbling block. By the 1980s, Stone had slipped into seclusion. In the mid-2000s, though, he started to make sporadic public appearances, including performing with his daughter’s band, Baby Stone.
The Grammys gave him a lifetime achievement award in 2017.
Stones legacy was revitalized in the last few years with musician Questlove’s Academy Award-winning 2021 documentary “Summer of Soul,” which included a performance by Sly and the Family Stone during a Harlem cultural festival in 1969 at Marcus Garvey Park. That film was followed in 2023 by a memoir, “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin).” The memoir, wrote AP reviewer Christopher Weber, ”overflows with wit and wordplay.” “The call, the response. It felt like church,” Stone wrote. “The horns went up into the sky. When the show was over, we were wet and cold. I don’t remember how I left, maybe the same way I came in, but I wasn’t there to see Jimi [Hendrix] close the festival (Woodstock).”
Last year, Questlove released a documentary about Stone’s life, “Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius).”
Sly Stone, innovator, whose music will ignite generations to come., was a fashion trendsetter who could wear the craziest hat and make it look hip. His eyeglass frames were outrageous. His genius lyrics will always strike a chord. He resonated with Everyday People, letting us know Everybody Is a Star and we should always STAND!
In addition to his son, Stone is survived by two daughters, Sylvette Robinson and Novena Carmel, and six grandchildren.