20th November - Sly and the Family Stone's There's a Riot Goin' On

Artist – Album: Sly & The Family Stone – There’s a Riot Goin’ On

Released: 20^th November 1971

Sounds Like: The death of the Sixties

In 1967, Sly and the Family Stone partied, jamming to ‘Dance to the Music’. In 1968, Sly condemned racism on ‘Everyday People’, blissfully proclaiming “I love everyday people”. In 1969, they were having ‘Hot Fun in the Summertime’ and they wanted to ‘Take You Higher’. But then the milk soured; the drugs got harder; and the positive love-in of the Sixties gave way to the cynical, paranoid Seventies.

Like Daniel Plainview in the final acts of 2007’s There Will Be Blood, Sly may have set out with the best intentions but somehow all that he achieved changed him completely and he became depressed and mean. There’s a Riot Goin’ On is at once mesmerising and unpleasant; its twelve songs the equivalent of Sly beating you with a bowling pin and yelling “DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE!”

It’ is undoubtedly a tough listen, but, like There Will Be Blood, it rewards, especially on repeated listens. The singles ‘Family Affair’ and ‘Runnin’ Away’ barely passed as pop songs but they are proto-funk landmarks, and, whilst its difficult to pick out further songs for special mention, they all work together to create a dark, heavy, negative masterpiece.  

And now I want to watch There Will Be Blood again…

Albumaday... rating: 9/10

1.       Luv n’ Haight – 4:01

2.       Just Like a Baby – 5:12

3.       Poet – 3:01

4.       Family Affair – 3:06

5.       Africa Talks to You ‘The Asphalt Jungle’ – 8:45

6.       There’s a Riot Goin’ On – 0:00

7.       Brave & Strong – 3:28

8.       (You Caught Me) Smilin’ – 2:53

9.       Time – 3:03

10.   Spaced Cowboy – 3:57

11.   Runnin’ Away – 2:51

12.   Thank You for Talkin’ to Me Africa – 7:14

Listen to ‘Runnin’ Away’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQmCBOc8ICw

3rd May - Sly and the Family Stone's Stand!

Artist – Album: Sly & the Family Stone – Stand!

Released:  3^rd May 1969

Sounds Like: What’chu talkin’ ‘bout, Sly?

Having grown up in England in the 90’s/00’s, there’s a whole raft of cheesy American family-orientated sitcoms that I know next to nothing about. Sure, the Fresh Prince of Bel Air continued the legacy of blatantly obvious jokes and riotous canned laughter, woops and uh-ohs right up to the end of the millennium (should that be willennium?), and unfortunately I couldn’t avoid the repeats of Married With Children that my Dad enjoyed inflicting upon us, but these were just the tip of the cosy and mostly unfunny iceberg.

One of the best loved was Diff’rent Strokes, the show that made a star out of Gary Coleman and was apparently quite funny (or so I’m told by countdowns like Channel 4’s Greatest Comedies Ever and E! Entertainments Greatest Child Stars – Where Are They Now?). Anyway, the point of this totally overly lengthy introduction is that that show has connections with this album – the brilliantly harmonious pop of ‘Everyday People’ introduced the phrase “different strokes for different folks” to the world at large. Throughout the album the group tackles issues such as racism and prejudice (notably in the aforementioned ‘Everyday People’, the title track ‘Stand!’ and on the no holds barred ‘Don’t Call Me Nigger, Whitey’) with the same basic but incontestable logic of one of the shows ‘very special episodes’. Finally, in the stirring funk of ‘I Want to Take You Higher’ the high pitched contributions from the band remind me of little Arnold and Willis – of “What’chu talkin’ ‘bout, Willis” fame.

Funky and uplifting, this album is a great introduction to Sly & the Family Stone’s sound before delving deeper into their more rewarding but dark and paranoid later works. ‘Sex Machine’ is a pointless long jam, and to be honest, ‘Don’t Call Me Nigger, Whitey’ is rubbish, but the rest – those that I’ve mentioned plus ‘Sing a Simple Song’ and ‘You Can Make It If You Try’ – are absolute gems.

Albumaday... rating:  7/10

1.       Stand! – 3:08

2.       Don’t Call Me Nigger, Whitey – 5:58

3.       I Want to Take You Higher – 5:22

4.       Somebody’s Watching You – 3:20

5.       Sing a Simple Song – 3:56

6.       Everyday People – 2:21

7.       Sex Machine – 13:45

8.       You Can Make It If You Try – 3:37

Listen to ‘I Want to Take You Higher’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDjnB_61k58

Also released on the 3^rd May:

2005: The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday

Also released on the 3^rd May:

2011: Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues