Sly & the Family Stone: An Oral History

by Joel Selvin

Their music changed pop history, but we've never known much about the people who made it...until now.

"...the musical trajectory of Sly & The Family Stone, and especially its namesake and leader, Sly Stone (born Sylvester Stewart), makes even the most shocking episode of Behind the Music look like Nickelodeon programming. Esteemed music journo Joel Selvin chronicles the good, the bad, the ugly (and the really ugly),...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1637585020
• ISBN13: 9781637585023
• Release Date: October 2022
• Publisher: Permuted Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.6" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

This Book Wants to Take You Higher

Sure it might take a little getting used to -- reading through this oral history; the different quotes by those associated with Sylvester Stewart -- but ultimately it's an effective and easy read. Missing are any quotes -- however superficial -- by the man himself. There are other gaps in the narratives also. There's a picture being painted that suggests, by the early '70s, that Stewart had turned into an almost non-functioning kind of vegetable who missed tons of shows because of a major drug addiction, but yet he still released a handful of albums (of varying quality) after 1974, when his Family Stone pretty much broke up. I would have also preferred to read about the music: the making of the albums; what some of the big tunes were about. What some of the titles were about. More of that stuff. Overall this book is an easy and insightful read from the perspectives of those around Sly, and not directly from a 3rd party writer. (Reviewers note: It was also cool to read that he hung out often (in the early days) at his parents house, which was not more than 4 or 5 blocks away from the house I grew up in SF. As a kid I had heard that it was Syl's parents house, that he had bought it for them. I rode by the house on my bike often to see a fancy car or 3 parked in front, but never realized Syl was inside often making music, and not just visiting.)

fascinating mayhem

This book is an oral history, so yes sometimes it skips around some. For the people who have panned it for that reason: get over it. This is more than made up for by the fact that a lot of the people who were there are interviewed and they give an ground level acct of what it was like. It is fascinating and terribly sad. Highly recommended if you like oral histories and soul and funk. . . .

Insight into the Man

If you have an interest in Sly Stone, the man, then this book is a must read. It is a compilation of thoughts by many of the people who worked for him and with him, and a few observers. It is a masterpiece, for what it is. If you are interested in the creation of his music, there is a little of that, too, but that is not the emphasis of the book. It is an Oral History by everyone else; Sly made no contribution to the book. I had been curious about his "disappearance" from the world of music. This book documents, through the words of others, the collapse of a creative, innovative musical genius, as he surrendered to the dark world of narcotics. This is all spoken about by many of the individuals interviewed for the book. It seems as if he didn't appreciate his great creations in music, so he never acquired an authentic sense of self esteem. From a hard-working, apparently happy maker-of-music and performer-of-music to an unreliable, physically abusive, withdrawn addict... It is all very,very sad.

Decent book.

I thought this was a decent book with some good anecdotes and stories. One thing to consider--even though it may not be a literary masterpiece, it IS a book about Sly, and it does cover a lot of his activities, both as a DJ and then as the perenially F*d up bandleader for probably the funkiest band in history. That fact, in and of itself, makes it worth reading. To me, an average book about Sly is always better than a great book on lesser topics.By the way, isn't Sly still alive? Doesn't that exempt him from technically being a "drug casualty?"