Sly Stone Reissues

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excited to hear some of that unreleased stuff, esp. the instrumentals from Riot.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:25 (eighteen years ago)

Nice. LONG overdue.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:26 (eighteen years ago)

!

f. scott baio (nate_patrin), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:26 (eighteen years ago)

sweeeeeeeeeet

David R. (popshots75`), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:26 (eighteen years ago)

I can't believe it took this long for someone to issue a proper CD of Riot. The one I have doesn't even have the fucking cover.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:28 (eighteen years ago)

Everybody seems to be excited about Riot but the one I want to hear is Fresh.

Jeff K (jeff k), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:30 (eighteen years ago)

Wait, so...what? Are they reissuing like ALL albums? Are they remastered? Were they simply rubbed up against Sly's new mohawk in some bizarre kosher funk Jew ritual?

stoked for the madness (nickalicious), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:37 (eighteen years ago)

I would really love a CD of Small Talk as my burn-of-a-burn-of-a-record is not exactly the most audiophilistic thing ever.

stoked for the madness (nickalicious), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:37 (eighteen years ago)

fresssssssh

Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:38 (eighteen years ago)

I think everything up through "Small Talk" is being re-mastered and reissued with bonus material.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:42 (eighteen years ago)

i am awaiting my review copies with baited breath

my teeth are horrible, I'm gaining weight, I don't understand twelve-tone (dubpl, Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:42 (eighteen years ago)

for some reason they aren't bothering with "Heard You Missed Me, Well I'm Back", or "High On You", "Back on the Right Track" (even though the last two are pretty great, imho)

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 22:44 (eighteen years ago)

Does anyone have the tracklisitngs handy?

Jeff K (jeff k), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:40 (eighteen years ago)

When are these supposed to be coming out?

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:45 (eighteen years ago)

March I think

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:46 (eighteen years ago)

(I'm sorry I had the press release in an e-mail which I seem to have um subsequently deleted by mistake)

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:50 (eighteen years ago)

SLY & THE FAMILY STONE REISSUES DUE IN MARCH

Fans of the genre-busting pop funk group Sly & the Family Stone can take heart. To mark the 40th anniversary of the band's first release, Sony Legacy is celebrating with a long-awaited upgrade of the Sly & the Family Stone catalog with a special re-release of seven classic albums in March 2007.

Each of the seven studio albums will be available in limited-edition, lavish digipaks with restored and expanded packaging that includes rare photos, memorabilia, and new liner notes. A number of bonus tracks, many of them previously unreleased, will be spread across all seven titles.

Being released throughout March will be their 1967 debut A Whole New Thing, 1968's Dance to the Music, 1968's Life, the 1969 smash Stand!, 1971's There's A Riot Going On, 1973's Fresh, and 1974's Small Talk.

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:58 (eighteen years ago)

"Lavish digipaks?"

Josh in Chicago (Josh in Chicago), Friday, 5 January 2007 01:51 (eighteen years ago)

High On You is a brilliant album.

Brigadier Lethbridge-Pfunkboy (Kerr), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:12 (eighteen years ago)

I got them a few days ago.

The bonus tracks on "Riot" are meh.

I'm excited about these reissues even though they were better when I was younger.

don weiner (don weiner), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:20 (eighteen years ago)

I got them a few days ago.

Questions are raised.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:20 (eighteen years ago)

"The bonus tracks on "Riot" are meh."

meh /= TRACK TITLES.

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:22 (eighteen years ago)

There are 3 instrumentals that are untitled.

don weiner (don weiner), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:30 (eighteen years ago)

Eh that does sound meh.

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 5 January 2007 02:37 (eighteen years ago)

How's the sound quality? Have they just jumped the compression/volume up or are they as sympathetically done as the 2-disc comp from a couple of years ago was?

Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Friday, 5 January 2007 09:25 (eighteen years ago)

I don't find the sound quality to be notably improved.

don weiner (don weiner), Friday, 5 January 2007 13:22 (eighteen years ago)

I think that's probably a good thing. The Essential comp sounds awesome to my ears (clearer and more spacious by far than, say the Funkadelic or Talking Heads remasters), and while Riot is a mess it's a mess because that's how it was made (whether deliberate or accidental) - wasn't Sly rerecording over the tapes constantly?

Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Friday, 5 January 2007 13:41 (eighteen years ago)

He was.

The Essential comp was awesome, yes. But High On You isn't brilliant.

Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 5 January 2007 14:29 (eighteen years ago)

why is 'high on you' not in the series? is that cos its sly solo?

i am not a nugget (stevie), Friday, 5 January 2007 14:49 (eighteen years ago)

To be clear, tho, there is no catalogue more mistreated than Sly's. So this is great news.

Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 5 January 2007 15:27 (eighteen years ago)

Got 'em this morning; will be reviewing them for Relix. Riot sounds like the Riot tracks included on the Essential comp; I haven't listened to the untitled instrumentals at the end of the disc yet, but they're in mono.

pdf (Phil Freeman), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:12 (eighteen years ago)

Re:Riot-They should have licencesed the Stone Flower stuff, like the 6ix single, which were cut during the sessions.

but anyway, HURRAH!

The Dusty Baker Selection (Charles McCain), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:13 (eighteen years ago)

Who do I contact to get 'em for Stylus?

Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:22 (eighteen years ago)

I don't have the Essential comp. How do the Riot tracks on that sound compared to the vinyl?

totph (Totph), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:23 (eighteen years ago)

"Re:Riot-They should have licencesed the Stone Flower stuff, like the 6ix single, which were cut during the sessions."

yeah, that's what I was hoping for too, but no luck. The Little Sister singles on Stone Flower are fantastic

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:37 (eighteen years ago)

Sony Legacy is handling the reissues. Hit them up for it.

don weiner (don weiner), Friday, 5 January 2007 16:55 (eighteen years ago)

One of those 6ix songs turned up on a comp recently (Funky 16 Corners...?)

I'd imagine the Stone Flower stuff isn't included cuz a) they were never credited as Sly & the Family Stone and b) there's probably licensing issues or some bullshit like that.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 5 January 2007 17:22 (eighteen years ago)

There's one 6ix song ("I'm Just Like You") and one Little Sister song ("Stanga") on Rhino's What It Is! box.

pdf (Phil Freeman), Friday, 5 January 2007 18:34 (eighteen years ago)

ah thx - yeah thats what I was thinking of

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 5 January 2007 18:44 (eighteen years ago)

I remember about 7 years ago reading that there was going to be some big 4-disc Sly box that Sony was putting out, and that among other things they'd found the original 10-minute version of "Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin." Which was NEVER HEARD FROM AGAIN. And of course it's not on this.

The "Riot" reissue does have an alternate version of "Running Away," and "Fresh" has five tracks from the alternate version that accidentally got released for about five minutes in the early '90s, so that's something.

Douglas (Douglas), Friday, 5 January 2007 21:17 (eighteen years ago)

There's one 6ix song ("I'm Just Like You") and one Little Sister song ("Stanga") on Rhino's What It Is! box.

oh wow, i have those mp3s and without any background info i was thinking "wow, it's amazing how close of an imitation of riot-era sly stone these are!"

so these were outside productions sly did?

Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Friday, 5 January 2007 22:02 (eighteen years ago)

not really, more like stuff he did under his own label imprint in his "spare time" - the Little Sister tracks (there were two singles) feature Sly playing everything with the girls from Little Sister doing the vocals. There was one 6ix single, but I believe that too was primarily just a psuedonym. Around that time I think he'd stopped doing outside production work - unless there's some Joe Tex or Bobby Womack stuff I don't know about.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 5 January 2007 22:05 (eighteen years ago)

I've received promos of these reissues, and was surprised the bonus tracks didn't include that 1968 Epic single that Sly and the Family recorded under the name "the French Fries," which was their attempt at doing a Chipmunks sped-up-voices novelty record.

Rev. Hoodoo (Rev. Hoodoo), Saturday, 6 January 2007 09:37 (eighteen years ago)

Holy crap. YSI!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Radio Picture (Rrrickey), Saturday, 6 January 2007 10:50 (eighteen years ago)

And one side is a French-language "Dance To The Music." As if the Chipmunk chorus wasn't enough!!

Rev. Hoodoo (Rev. Hoodoo), Saturday, 6 January 2007 16:41 (eighteen years ago)

Anyone care to supply me with publicist contact info for this? I'll send loads of good karma your way. Thanks!

Dave Segal (Da ve Segal), Saturday, 6 January 2007 21:13 (eighteen years ago)

about fuckin' time!

edd s hurt (ddduncan), Sunday, 7 January 2007 03:35 (eighteen years ago)

(Jay just sent this to me from the LA Times)

http://www.calendarlive.com/music/cl-et-sly9jan09,0,3883490.story?coll=cl-music-top-right

Stone is at work but he keeps it on the sly

By Jeff Kaliss
Special to The Times
January 9, 2007

NAPA VALLEY, Calif. — Living among the cool, sweet sloping vineyards here, Sly Stone is at least as secluded now as he was for three decades in the warm, celebrity-dotted Hollywood Hills. But he may be about to come down to his adoring fans for something more than his brief and elusive appearance at the Grammy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium last February.

The new Family Stone band, so named by Stone, will appear Saturday at the House of Blues in Anaheim. This is not the group Stone piloted through a string of hit singles and albums from 1968 to '73. That legendary group began to implode even before its final hit at least in part because of Stone's erratic behavior, both public and private.

Still singing the songs of the old, the new Family Stone is headed by Sly's youngest sister, Vet Stone. It includes Cynthia Robinson, trumpet player from the original group; Lisa Stone, daughter of Sly and Vet's older sister Rose; and seven other young players. Sly himself is not in the band's lineup. But he's planning on attending the Anaheim performance.

"I've been writing songs, new songs," Stone, 62, said in an instantly familiar bass-baritone, relaxing in a seat beside his kitchen table.
"Some are on tape, some on paper, and some on tape and paper."

It's been more than two decades since Sly has allowed the media to visit him, and almost as long since the last time he performed more than a song fragment in public. On a crisp New Year's Day, he sat down for an interview at his large country home. After a handshake and a shared holiday greeting, he responded warmly and casually to a dozen or so questions. Wearing a knit cap and loose, comfortable clothing, he looked much mellower than the flashy, Mohawked specter who showed up at the Grammys. Asked whether he might join the new Family Stone on stage this weekend, he leaned his head on his hand and smiled suggestively.

Sly's intimates, few in number, report that he rarely leaves his isolated property, except for the occasional shopping trip. Although he is said to be taking good care of his health, he hasn't much availed himself of the equipment in his exercise room, instead working late into the night on his Korg Oasys keyboard synthesizer, in his studio.

Some of those labors may be showcased at the House of Blues on Saturday, and more completely on an album due this summer on Sly's own PhattaDatta record label. (In the meantime, Sony BMG plans to begin reissuing the original Sly & the Family Stone catalog on CD in March.)

Years of reclusiveness were part of his response to negative media attention three decades ago. His reputation for missing performances also damaged his standing with fans and concert presenters, as did his cocaine-related convictions in the 1980s. Stone opted to retreat within the walls of his Hollywood Hills mansion, work on his music and let the world go by.

Sister Vet had in mind Stone's unstoppable and prolific love affair with music when she helped him move north last year, after the Grammy salute to Sly. She positioned him not far from her own place in Vallejo, the small city where she was raised in the 1950s as Vaetta Stewart, along with Sylvester (Sly) and their three music-making siblings, Loretta, Rose and Freddie.

"I was taking him on the walk-through," Vet recounted about Sly's first visit to the house in Napa County, "and there's this lake by the side.... And he pointed to it and said, 'I could write a song right here.' And I thought, 'Whew! Wow! This is right, this is his home.' "

For both siblings, and others of the Stewarts, the move has been a family affair. "Before my mom and dad [died], they told me, 'Go and get your brother,' and that's exactly what I did," said Vet.

"I went to L.A., and told him what Mom and Dad told me, and he thought about it and said, 'Find me a house. I'm ready to come home.' "

Does Vet consider the wine country an improvement over the Southland?
"Oh, yes. The area, for one thing, is just beautiful. He's got more privacy, it's larger.... And he has space to put all of what I call his toys, his bikes [motorcycles] and things."

"I see a lot of them now," said Sly about the members of the extended Stewart family, "and they always have music on their minds. It takes more of the time up than conversation."

Among his visitors for the New Year's weekend was daughter Phun, a tall, graceful young woman resembling her mother, Cynthia Robinson.
Phun, the mother of two of Sly's grandchildren, sings urban contemporary music.

Her father has been credited (and his band extensively sampled) as a potent influence on hip-hop, as well as on funk, soul, jazz fusion and rock. The diverse artists who sought him out included Miles Davis, Bobby Womack and George Clinton. Contemporary R&B stars John Legend and Joss Stone (no relation) are up for a Grammy this year for their recording (with Van Hunt) of Sly's "Family Affair." They performed the song on one of two albums of Sly & the Family Stone material recently distributed by Starbucks, and were among the medley of young artists who dominated the Grammy tribute. Of that performance, Vet said, "I didn't think it was necessarily his platform. I thought it made stars of other people."

Aside from reviving his own recorded output, Sly now wants to disseminate his new songs through his family. "My daughter, maybe my son, my nieces, and a grand-niece [are] all willing to do what it takes." His sister Vet had considerable experience with his classic material, as a backup singer for the original Family Stone and later as part of the trio Little Sister, which Sly produced and wrote for.

Her new Family Stone is the only performing ensemble which Sly has authorized to present his music, and he assures that "they do it perfect." He witnessed them in 2005 at L.A.'s Knitting Factory, for which he outfitted his sister in leather and transported her on the back of one of his motorcycles.

Longtime fans "tell me that [the older material] brings back memories that they thought they'd lost," said Vet.

"It brings back clarity to them.... They tell me all types of stories.
'I was getting engaged when this song came out,' or 'When I was getting divorced, Sly was singing, "For me to stay here/I gotta be me." ' "

The new Family Stone also plans to introduce some of Sly's latest creations. "Before, my songs had a lot to do with dealing with unnecessary fighting, and that's still the case," said Sly, offering a sample from one of his new lyrics: "When you wind up/ Making your mind up/ That's when you find up/ Instead of down."

He hopes to give the public, including those who turn out to see Vet's group this weekend, tangible proof that "I'm still doing music [that's] still representative of the truth."


Bay Area writer Jeff Kaliss is working on a biography of Sly & the Family Stone.

Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 10 January 2007 00:04 (eighteen years ago)

two weeks pass...
holy shit. all my life, i have been listening to the 'wrong' version of Fresh!

i am not a nugget (stevie), Friday, 2 February 2007 20:16 (eighteen years ago)

got 'em. haven't listened to 'em yet.

acid waffle house (dubplatestyle), Friday, 2 February 2007 20:18 (eighteen years ago)

lucky mothergrabbers, i'm gonna have to buy these

Haikunym (Haikunym), Friday, 2 February 2007 20:22 (eighteen years ago)

Joss Stone (no relation)

Andy_K (Andy_K), Friday, 2 February 2007 20:28 (eighteen years ago)

haha not what i heard

Haikunym (Haikunym), Friday, 2 February 2007 20:32 (eighteen years ago)

I hope the limited edition digipak silliness is followed by a regular jewelcase version.

Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 2 February 2007 21:13 (eighteen years ago)

As linked on Pitchfork, I gather:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzE9KWz89B4

Now that's something.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 4 February 2007 18:10 (eighteen years ago)

two weeks pass...
Any more news on these? Sony's Sly page seems woefully slow on their updates and Amazon has no listings for the reissues. Usually stuff like this would pop up by now since it's about a month away from the supposed March release. Yet all I've read is press releases and the like. What's doin?

Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe, Friday, 23 February 2007 02:24 (eighteen years ago)

They're up on amazon, though they have a release date of April 10. Links for:

fresh

stand

riot

jam, Friday, 23 February 2007 17:10 (eighteen years ago)

three months pass...

http://www.mercurynews.com/shayquillen/ci_5607063

After two decades out of the spotlight, reclusive Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Sly Stone has decided to return to the concert stage. His first confirmed booking? An outdoor show in downtown San Jose.

Milton Parker, Thursday, 24 May 2007 21:20 (eighteen years ago)

yeah

Milton Parker, Thursday, 24 May 2007 21:20 (eighteen years ago)

haha you know I still haven't heard any of these

Shakey Mo Collier, Thursday, 24 May 2007 21:27 (eighteen years ago)

the bonus tracks on Riot initially struck me as light, but I've actually been listening to them a lot, like a lot

the bonus tracks on Fresh are basically earlier work mixes of the home studio tracks before they were built up with the other musicians, you can hear sly's voice more clearly

packaging is great

Milton Parker, Thursday, 24 May 2007 21:30 (eighteen years ago)

two years pass...

soo good.
oh, and if you live in bristol, the full set are going for a couple of quid each in the relaunched head.
so despite having the original cd of riot .., and hating digipacks, i still got the lot.
miles of smiles.

mark e, Friday, 14 May 2010 08:14 (fifteen years ago)

one year passes...

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/goingson/2011/08/quick-pick-17.html
has anyone heard this, the extra things on this, the archive stuff on this
y/n thumbs up/thumbs down &c

sweatpants life trajectory (schlump), Wednesday, 17 August 2011 12:41 (thirteen years ago)

samples :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Back-Family-Friends-Sly-Stone/dp/B0057JWWFU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1313585546&sr=8-1

umm .. dubstep mix anyone ?

mark e, Wednesday, 17 August 2011 12:53 (thirteen years ago)

seven months pass...

http://devonrecordclub.wordpress.com/2012/04/12/sly-and-the-family-stone-greatest-hits-round-25-nicks-choice/

Sick Mouthy (Scik Mouthy), Thursday, 12 April 2012 12:40 (thirteen years ago)

I've always meant to pick up the pre-Riot stuff--would you recommend just getting the GH or all the albums?

rob, Thursday, 12 April 2012 17:18 (thirteen years ago)

get the GH AND all the albums. incredibly key non-LP tracks on the GH.

imho the only actually bad album Sly ever made is Heard Ya Missed Me, which is just a really sad listen

Jilly Boel and the Eltones (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 12 April 2012 17:29 (thirteen years ago)

Oh man, apparently its OOP now, but a few years back Best Buy had The Collection box for $35 and it had remasters of the first seven records. One of my favorite purchases.

heated debate over derpy hooves (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Friday, 13 April 2012 04:12 (thirteen years ago)

grr, tragically flawed collection!

Race Against Rockism (Myonga Vön Bontee), Friday, 13 April 2012 04:47 (thirteen years ago)

Yeah, get GH and the first 4 albums, and Fresh, too. And Riot, of course. A Whole New Thing is way underrated.

Sick Mouthy (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 13 April 2012 05:16 (thirteen years ago)

imho the only actually bad album Sly ever made is Heard Ya Missed Me, which is just a really sad listen

I quite like it!

Charles Kennedy Jumped Up, He Called 'Oh No'. (Tom D.), Friday, 13 April 2012 11:54 (thirteen years ago)

grr, tragically flawed collection!

why is it tragically flawed? other than missing the non-album singles that i had to pick up the remastered GH to get?

heated debate over derpy hooves (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Friday, 13 April 2012 16:24 (thirteen years ago)

Exactly that! Leaving off three CRUCIAL songs in favour of pointless things like edited single versions of "Higher" and "Runnin' Away" and whatnot = aggravating. (Woulda been nice to have High On You in there as well but at least there's a reason for excluding it.)

Race Against Rockism (Myonga Vön Bontee), Friday, 13 April 2012 17:22 (thirteen years ago)

Also woulda been nice if they'd thrown in the planned-but-cancelled '68 (?) live Fillmore set. And those of us who also wanted the epochal Woodstock set are the proud owners of two copies of Stand!

Dancing with Mr. T (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Friday, 13 April 2012 17:30 (thirteen years ago)

fair call, but its not as if it was advertised as "complete" or anything, i thought it was a great and cheap way to pick up 7 remastered albums! it did annoy me that i had to pick up GH separately, but i don't know, still far cheaper than shelling out $80+ for all of them individually

heated debate over derpy hooves (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Friday, 13 April 2012 17:36 (thirteen years ago)

Yeah, still a nice set and you got a great price, obv. I just get so pissed off at record labels not making that little extra bit of effort.

Race Against Rockism (Myonga Vön Bontee), Friday, 13 April 2012 17:57 (thirteen years ago)

Lots of used copies of this on Amazon:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51eowv07q5L._SL500_AA300_.jpg

I think it's got everything on GH, and it extends into the key early-'70s stuff. I bought a vinyl copy when they were everywhere cheap. Never knew about Collection, but I'd have to agree that omitting "Hot Fun" and "Everybody Is a Star" because they weren't on regular albums is needlessly rigid at best.

clemenza, Sunday, 15 April 2012 11:20 (thirteen years ago)

two years pass...

so excited for this, a reissue I've been waiting for for 20+ years:
http://lightintheattic.net/releases/1451-i-m-just-like-you-sly-s-stone-flower-1969-70

Οὖτις, Thursday, 2 October 2014 15:09 (ten years ago)

Oh, wow, that's awesome. Was just listening to some of those 6ix and Little Sister tracks yesterday for the first time in forever.

Portly Backgammon (Old Lunch), Thursday, 2 October 2014 15:21 (ten years ago)

I hunted down 45s of the originally released stuff but had no idea there was more in the vaults

Οὖτις, Thursday, 2 October 2014 15:22 (ten years ago)

looks really similar to this comp http://amzn.com/B0037M5X1E

wk, Thursday, 2 October 2014 17:18 (ten years ago)

there's at least 8 songs on this that aren't on that tho

Οὖτις, Thursday, 2 October 2014 17:20 (ten years ago)

nice! I didn't look that closely

wk, Thursday, 2 October 2014 18:16 (ten years ago)


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