Sly & The Family Stone - "Stand!" (1969)

In 1969 they could make music. At least on the basis of Stand! which contains classics like the title track, I Want To Take You Higher, Sing A Simple Song, Everyday People and You Can Make It If You Try. A number of songs on one and the same album an artist could proudly present after a lifelong career.

This album was more difficult than you might expect to find. In Sweden I was looking a long time in various used record stores without success, it wasn't until last summer's relocation to Montreal I found it here instead. This was Sly & The Family Stone's fourth album and it's considered by many, including several of the band members, to be their career's peak. The band consisted at the time of the siblings Sylvester (Sly), Freddie and Rose Stone and a number of their friends. They are considered to be the first major American band with a mixed gender and ethnic setup.

It's really not much to argue about when it comes to the album, OK, the songs Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey and Sex Machine are not really to my taste, a little bit too much of lengthy jams. But otherwise it's impossible to criticize the album. It's funky, souly, energetic and danceable. The melodies are really irresistible. Another groovy album for the musically and politically aware party. Music that in any case makes me happy and urges me to move my body (to my children's wild protests. Hey, I dance really cool!!!).

A few years later, the band released the album There's A Riot Goin' On, which is also really good. But in 1969 it started to go downhill on a personal level for many of the band members, especially Sly himself. Although the Stone siblings came from a church background, an intensive abuse of various drugs, mainly cocaine (and PCP, according to Wikipedia), started. Sly is said to have constantly carried around a violin case filled with drugs. This meant that the production rate was slowed down, the band missed gigs or interrupted them earlier than planned etc. Sly became increasingly difficult to deal with and he's had a rather troubled life until today. This also affected the relationships within the band in a negative way, and band members began after a while to be replaced.

But of this you notice nothing on Stand!. Definitely a recommendation. A classic.


Tracklist

Side A
1. Stand! 3:08
2. Do not Call Me Nigger, Whitey 5:58
3. Somebody's Watching You 3:20
4. Sing A Simple Song 3:56

Side B
1. Everyday People 2:21
2. Sex Machine 13:34
3. You Can Make It If You Try 3:37