Stand! – SLY & THE FAMILY STONE***

Stand/Don’t Call Me Nigger Whitey/I Want To Take You Higher/Somebody’s Watching You/Sing A Simple Song/Everyday People/Sex Machine/You Can Make It If You Try

Sly & The Family Stone played a key role in the development of a more funkier sound for soul music that became mainstream during the seventies. Alas, with its repetitive rhythm, this change of direction would have a seriously detrimental impact on the quality of popular music generally. Stand! includes the US No. 1 Everyday People. (US:13)

"Imagine how different music would've been without Sly and The Family Stone. There'd be no Prince, no Michael Jackson, and most of all no disco. The music changed the world as we know it, and put revolutionary politics into funk music. The music itself is some of the greatest dance music ever recorded. The band has incredible harmony. This is certainly a mixture of the music of the past and the future. Sly took R & B and soul, made it heavier and psychedelic with more random tempo changes, which paved the way for 70s funk and disco."

"For me the value of this funk masterpiece is really questionable. Sly turns almost every track into loose jam session just hoping that the power of musical craftsmanship alone will take these songs somewhere. But it doesn't. Sex Machine stands as a true momentum for failed ideas on how funk should sound. It is way too long without anything that could get the listener's attention."

"Stand! has a perfect opener with sweeping gospel vocals. Some parts feel a bit repetitive, and tracks like Whitey and Sex Machine leave me feeling bored near the end. Nevertheless, Stand! communicates some politically important messages still relevant today; it's moralising and also funky as hell."

"Sly & The Family Stone were one of the greatest bands of all time. Funky and hard, they played with a lot of soul as they mixed psychedelia, funk and melodic 60s rock together in a stew that was as appealing to Motown fans, black panthers and hippies alike. Packed with great tunes, smart production and incendiary playing the record goes for your heart and your feet in equal measure."

"Behind the funky sound and the catchy melodies, Sly Stone was writing songs with a cohesive social consciousness. Stand! is an overt effort to bridge the gap between black and white audiences, not to mention a precursor to the disco movement."