Sly Stone, groundbreaking '60s funk rock musician, dies at 82
By the end of the decade, Sly and the Family Stone had broken up and Sly was releasing solo records with such unmet promises as 'Heard You Missed Me, Well I'm Back' and 'Back On the Right Track.' Most of the news he made over the following decades was of drug busts, financial troubles and mishaps on stage. Sly and the Family Stone was inducted into the Rock & Roll of Fame in 1993 and honored in 2006 at the Grammy Awards, but Sly released just one album after the early '80s, 'I'm Back! Family & Friends,' much of it updated recordings of his old hits.
He was born Sylvester Stewart in Denton, Texas, and raised in Vallejo, California, the second of five children in a close, religious family. Sylvester became 'Sly' by accident, when a teacher mistakenly spelled his name 'Slyvester.'
He loved performing so much that his mother alleged he would cry if the congregation in church didn't respond when he sang before it. He was so gifted and ambitious that by age 4 he had sung on stage at a Sam Cooke show and by age 11 had mastered several instruments and recorded a gospel song with his siblings. He was so committed to the races working together that in his teens and early 20s he was playing in local bands that included Black and white members and was becoming known around the Bay Area as a deejay equally willing to play the Beatles and rhythm and blues acts.
'A Whole New Thing' came out in 1967, soon followed by the single 'Dance to the Music,' in which each member was granted a moment of introduction as the song rightly proclaimed a 'brand new beat.' In December 1968, the group appeared on 'The Ed Sullivan Show' and performed a medley that included 'Dance to the Music' and 'Everyday People.' Before the set began, Sly turned to the audience and recited a brief passage from his song 'Are You Ready':
'Don't hate the Black,
don't hate the white,
if you get bitten,
just hate the bite.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
4 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Movie Review: Spike Lee's ‘Highest 2 Lowest' finds its groove in New York's streets
Spike Lee's 'Highest 2 Lowest' takes some time to find its groove. But once it does, when the film leaves the high rises and puts its feet on the New York pavement, it really sings. A reimagining of Akira Kurosawa's 1963 crime thriller 'High and Low,' Lee brings the story to a modern-day New York where a music mogul, played by Denzel Washington, is faced with a moral dilemma: Save a kidnapped kid or his flagging empire. Both will cost nearly everything he has. We toss around the term 'auteur' pretty casually these days. It's become almost a shorthand for any filmmaker with an ounce of style. But 'Highest 2 Lowest' is a film that has Lee's DNA in every frame — a symphonic blend of his influences and passions: cinema, New York City, sports, Black stories, great needle drops and, of course, Washington. It's easy enough to just go along for the ride, trusting that it will end up somewhere worthwhile, even when the green screen is a little off, the score a little distracting or the dialogue a little unnatural. But it will require some audience patience nonetheless. In its first half, 'Highest 2 Lowest' plays a bit like a melodrama crossed with a sitcom, where the beats are stilted and the dialogue feels like dialogue. There's an awkward artificiality to the whole thing, which is likely more metaphor than accident, but it's also not the most engaging stretch. Washington's character David King is a music executive and founder of a record label whose biggest days are behind him. You wouldn't necessarily know it to look at his palatial apartment with its panoramic views of the Brooklyn Bridge and the Manhattan skyline, but the money isn't exactly coming in like it used to. The realities of the music business, social media and the attention economy have muddled the plot. The guy who once had the 'best ears in the business' can't seem to get a handle on what works anymore. He has the chance to cash out and sell the business, but against the wishes of everyone around him, decides he wants to take back ownership of the thing he created. When his beautiful wife Pam (Ilfenesh Hadera, either miscast or terribly underwritten) says she's going to pledge half a million dollars to an arts organization, he asks her to hold off. 'But we've always supported young Black artists,' she replies, though you suspect part of the worry is about keeping up appearances. Things come into focus quickly, however, when David learns that his son Trey (Aubrey Joseph) has been kidnapped. The ransom is $17.5 million. There is a twist, which perhaps shouldn't be spoiled, but it soon becomes less obvious to the Kings whether they should pay up. It's an interesting conundrum, and a potent one for these greedy times, but also difficult to empathize with on a certain level. This is a guy with a lot of assets to his name and the ability to get his hands on $17.5 million. For the audience, the choice will seem obvious. It's never quite clear what his life will look like if that money disappears, but the bottom doesn't seem like a possibility. But this is all just a lead up to the more exciting and compelling cat-and-mouse portion of the film, where the kidnapper, an aspiring, down-on-his-luck rapper named Yung Felon (played by a magnetic A$AP Rocky ) is finally introduced. His showdown with King is fun, tense and even includes a rap battle. A$AP Rocky more than holds his own with Washington. In a different timeline, in a world where King listened to as many new artists as he did when he was starting out, their stories might have been different. Yung Felon might have been discovered, instead of just being one of the aggrieved talents languishing in obscurity and plotting violent revenge. There is a lot going on in Alan Fox's script for 'Highest 2 Lowest,' which attempts to present a realistic picture of New York and all its contradictions, from the billionaire boardrooms to the Puerto Rican festivals in the Bronx to the lively Yankees fans on the subway. Jeffrey Wright, who also gets some great scenes with Washington, plays King's friend and driver, Paul. He too is looking for his son Kyle (real-life son Elijah Wright) but gets far less respect and attention from the cops. The inequalities and prejudices run deep, and at a certain point David and Paul set off on their own to solve the case, vigilantes in a Rolls-Royce. 'Highest 2 Lowest' may not reach the heights of some of Lee's best films, but it's the kind film that makes you hope Lee and Washington have more to make together. 'Highest 2 Lowest,' an A24 release in theaters Friday and streaming on Apple TV+ on Sept. 5, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for 'language throughout and brief drug use.' Running time: 133 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.
Vancouver Sun
4 days ago
- Vancouver Sun
The End charts a new beginning for Wolfgang Van Halen and Mammoth
Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. The End is another hit for Wolfgang Van Halen. The third album by his band Mammoth is one of the summer's hot rock records. Propelled by the title track and its accompanying video, which is directed by Robert Rodriguez and stars Danny Trejo, the album is also something of a new beginning for the one-man band launched in 2015 by the son of the late guitar hero Eddie Van Halen. Previously known as Mammoth WVH, the group has dropped the last three letters and now has two No. 1 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Airplay charting releases to its credit. Get top headlines and gossip from the world of celebrity and entertainment. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sun Spots will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Having started his professional career playing bass in his father and uncle's namesake group, the younger Van Halen made Mammoth his main focus after Van Halen disbanded in 2020. The name was taken in honour of his dad's pre-Van Halen band, where he was both lead guitarist and singer. Multi-instrumentalist Wolfgang holds down all duties on all three Mammoth releases, hiring touring musicians for the concert combo. The End video is one of the few where the other players appear, as most Mammoth clips present several Wolfgang's playing everything. The recently released new single the Spell returns to this format. 'The End was a whirlwind two-day shoot and a lot of work, but I think music videos are an important part of the business and, maybe, something of a lost art that we should be doing,' said Van Halen. 'The new album is all parts me again, as that is how I really feel that I can fully express my ideas in the studio, fighting creatively with myself all the while. The band, it's all about bringing their own playing styles to the music and making the live show something powerful and all its own. Because I'm no stickler to doing it just like the recording.' Recording at Van Halen's 5150 studio, where his only collaborator is producer and friend Michael 'Elvis' Baskette, Van Halen meticulously constructs modern rock in line with groups such as Foo Fighters or Creed. Mammoth will open for Creed on the band's Summer of '99 tour, which comes to Vancouver's Rogers Arena on Aug. 16. Tickets are on sale at . Wolfgang briefly played in Creed guitarist Mark Tremonti's group, Tremonti, from 2012-2016. Mammoth has previously toured with Guns N Roses and Metallica, among others. 'I'm very much looking forward to the dates, as I'm excited to be exposed to their fans,' he said. 'Big Wreck is on the tour, too, and I've never seen them live but really like what I've heard. I kind of like the introductory audition-ary approach of being first of three on a bill.' Having the last name he does means there is pretty relentless trolling around his career and questions about his talent. This seems unfair given the musicianship on Mammoth WVH, Mammoth II and the End, which showcases a style of rock that is very different from Van Halen's sound. Wolfgang says you just have to deal with it as part of the package. 'It would be different if I was out there playing Panama every night, which is an important distinction, that unabashedly doing my own thing instead,' he said. 'Dave Grohl formed the Foo Fighters and didn't go out playing Nirvana songs, and I think I'm doing the same thing and will continue to do so. It seems to be working out well so far.' With three albums and a host of solid singles to Mammoth's credit, putting together the opening slot set list has been pretty easy. But once this tour is done, the band will embark on its first headlining tour in the fall. Planning what to play in a longer show is interesting and presents opportunities to do things differently. 'With three records to choose from, it's easier to tailor a full experience, but it's never an easy thing for me to play live,' he said. 'I'm a shy introvert by nature, but need to force myself out of my comfort zone to be out there representing what I'm putting out. I think after five years, I'm starting to get the hang of it, but the headlining tour will be a challenge.' One song that isn't planned for the set at the moment is I'm Just Ken. Wolfgang plays guitar on the Ryan Gosling-sung piece from director Greta Gerwig's Oscar-winning hit film Barbie. Van Halen joined Mark Ronson and Slash as a member of the backing band of Kens at the 2024 Academy Awards broadcast. 'I wasn't in on the award at all, as that was all Mark and his co-writer, Andrew Wyatt, that got the Oscar,' he said. 'I just dropped in the guitar and some extended tapping stuff for the longer version in the film. It was a lot of fun, though.' 'Tapping stuff' refers to the playing technique of striking the guitar strings between frets with your finger to create a sound that is almost keyboard-like in its fluidity. While there are many examples of tapping recorded long before Eddie Van Halen showcased it on his legendary solo titled Eruption, the guitarist brought the style to prominence in hard rock and today it is commonplace. For his part, Wolfgang doesn't see the flashier elements of his late father's approach to guitar as his greatest musical accomplishment. 'Honestly, I don't think he gets nearly enough credit for his rhythm playing,' he said. 'Solos are all fun and flashy, but you don't have a song without rhythm, and his efforts as that kind of player and overall song creation is more important than anything else. His songs could exist without solos.' As to which of the many instruments he displays the most command over on Mammoth recordings, Wolfgang says guitar was the one he had the most trouble finding an individual voice with. Part of this was due to the inevitable comparisons that came with his name, but more so with finding his own style to go along with his singing voice. 'Singing has always come to me really naturally, easily even,' he said. 'But, from the inception of Mammoth, I wanted to find my own sound to go with that. I think that was when I started to fall in love with the sound of semi-hollow body guitars like the EVH SA-126 signature model I play now.' The Mammoth headline tour starts in November. Look for updates at . sderdeyn@ Love concerts, but can't make it to the venue? Stream live shows and events from your couch with VEEPS, a music-first streaming service now operating in Canada. Click here for an introductory offer of 30% off. Explore upcoming concerts and the extensive archive of past performances.
Calgary Herald
4 days ago
- Calgary Herald
The End charts a new beginning for Wolfgang Van Halen and Mammoth
Article content Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. Article content The End is another hit for Wolfgang Van Halen. The third album by his band Mammoth is one of the summer's hot rock records. Article content Propelled by the title track and its accompanying video, which is directed by Robert Rodriguez and stars Danny Trejo, the album is also something of a new beginning for the one-man band launched in 2015 by the son of the late guitar hero Eddie Van Halen. Article content Previously known as Mammoth WVH, the group has dropped the last three letters and now has two No. 1 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Airplay charting releases to its credit. Article content Having started his professional career playing bass in his father and uncle's namesake group, the younger Van Halen made Mammoth his main focus after Van Halen disbanded in 2020. The name was taken in honour of his dad's pre-Van Halen band, where he was both lead guitarist and singer. Multi-instrumentalist Wolfgang holds down all duties on all three Mammoth releases, hiring touring musicians for the concert combo. Article content The End video is one of the few where the other players appear, as most Mammoth clips present several Wolfgang's playing everything. The recently released new single the Spell returns to this format. Article content 'The End was a whirlwind two-day shoot and a lot of work, but I think music videos are an important part of the business and, maybe, something of a lost art that we should be doing,' said Van Halen. Article content Article content 'The new album is all parts me again, as that is how I really feel that I can fully express my ideas in the studio, fighting creatively with myself all the while. The band, it's all about bringing their own playing styles to the music and making the live show something powerful and all its own. Because I'm no stickler to doing it just like the recording.' Article content Recording at Van Halen's 5150 studio, where his only collaborator is producer and friend Michael 'Elvis' Baskette, Van Halen meticulously constructs modern rock in line with groups such as Foo Fighters or Creed.
