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Sly & the Family Stone

The Culture Corner: Sly and the Family Stone's 'There's A Riot Goin' On' turns 50

Sly and the Family Stone circa 1971. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

The Culture Corner: Sly and the Family Stone's 'There's A Riot Goin' On' turns 50

WXPN

On today's Culture Corner, World Cafe correspondent John Morrison dives into the 1971 album, exploring its songs and the unique way it combines genres.

The Culture Corner: Sly & The Family Stone

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For Questlove, The Pandemic Meant Embracing Quiet — And Buying A Farm

Questlove, here at the Grammys in January 2020, says the pandemic has changed him. Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for the Recording Academy hide caption

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Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for the Recording Academy

Music Interviews

For Questlove, The Pandemic Meant Embracing Quiet — And Buying A Farm

Fresh Air

The Tonight Show music director has been branching out: In addition to buying a farm, he's making his directorial debut with Summer of Soul, a documentary about a 1969 concert series in Harlem.

For Questlove, The Pandemic Meant Embracing Quiet — And Buying A Farm

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What's Going On? 50 Years Ago, The Answer Was Bigger Than Marvin Gaye

On a Brooklyn street in September 1971, a sea of fists greets the caskets of several of the incarcerated men killed in the violent clash at Attica Correctional Facility that month. Charles Frattini/NY Daily News via Getty Images hide caption

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Charles Frattini/NY Daily News via Getty Images

50 Years Of NPR

What's Going On? 50 Years Ago, The Answer Was Bigger Than Marvin Gaye

The tension and loss that drove Marvin Gaye wasn't lost on his peers: In the same year as What's Going On, a wave of Black artists released explosive new work that put its politics front and center.

The Black Roots Of Rock And Roll: Part 2

George Clinton circa 1970 Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

The Black Roots Of Rock And Roll: Part 2

WXPN

John Morrison shines a spotlight on Black rock innovators from the '60s and '70s, including Sly & The Family Stone, George Clinton and more.

The Black Roots of Rock and Roll Part 2 on World Cafe

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'You're What I Wanted': Assembling The Family Stone

Sly & The Family Stone in Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., in 1968. Left to right: Sly Stone, Cynthia Robinson, Freddie Stone, Rose Stone, Jerry Martini, Larry Graham. Stephen Paley/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Stephen Paley/Courtesy of the artist

Music Interviews

'You're What I Wanted': Assembling The Family Stone

Members Cynthia Robinson and Jerry Martini say that, when crafting the lineup of his pioneering funk and soul band, Sly Stone was a man on a mission.

'You're What I Wanted': Assembling The Family Stone

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First Listen: Sly And The Family Stone, Highlights From 'Higher!'

Sly & The Family Stone's new career-spanning anthology, out August 27, is titled Higher! Herb Greene/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Herb Greene/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen

First Listen: Sly And The Family Stone, Highlights From 'Higher!'

A new four-disc box set compiles live rarities and should-have-been hits along with the pop-out classics. The effect is a full picture of a fitful man desperate to rally the masses into a pop utopia, fearful (or is it knowing?) that he was really headed to the shadows. Hear 16 songs from Higher!

Sly & The Family Stone, 'Higher!'

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Sly Stone: The Early Days In The East Bay
Ace Records

Review

Music Reviews

Sly Stone: The Early Days In The East Bay

Fresh Air

Stone is known to millions from the records he made with Sly and the Family Stone. But his early days, and the recordings he produced for his own Stone Flower label, add another dimension to the career of this enigmatic character, rock historian Ed Ward said.

Sly Stone: The Early Days In The East Bay

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Music Interviews

1,000 Essential Recordings You Must Hear

Covering music from Marian Anderson to ZZ Top, 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die: A Listener's Life List covers all genres in its more than 900 pages. It's driven by the notion that "the more you love music, the more music you love." Author Tom Moon submits his picks for the best summer recordings.

1,000 Essential Recordings You Must Hear

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The Best of 'News & Notes' 2007

Sly and The Family Stone's 40 Years of Music

Soul power-funk band Sly and The Family Stone are celebrating their 40th anniversary with a brand new box-set featuring the group's first seven albums. Rose Stone and Larry Graham, two of The Family Stone's original members talk about the band's contributions to popular music.

Sly and The Family Stone's 40 Years of Music

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Review

Song Of The Day

Sly Stone: After the Last Hurrah

By the time 1974's Small Talk came out, Stone was viewed as a has-been — a young, brilliant innovator burnt out by drugs and megalomania. A fresh visit to Small Talk, though, counters that assessment, as evidenced by the wry "Wishful Thinkin'."

'Wishful Thinkin'" by Sly Stone

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