Is he one of the greats? I think so, just wanted to hear what you guys thought

scriptgirl said:

Is Sly "One of the greats"? Well, lesse he created one of the first multiracial/gender bands in music.....brought counterculture to r&b.....
Introduced the slap bass guitar technique that changed rhythm sections for years to come.....oh yeah and he also wrote a couple of tunes like.....
"Dance To The Music"
I Wanna Take You Higher"
"Stand"
"Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey"
"You Caught Me Smilin"
"You Can Make It If You Try"
"Hot Fun In The Summertime"
"Everybody Is A Star"
"Thank You Fa Lettin Me Be Myself Again"
"Everyday People"
"Family Affair"
"If You Want Me To Stay"

I thin it might be his arrangements that stand out more than anything

I tend to really love some of the more obscure Sly tunes.....like "Mother Beautiful", "Can't Strain My Brain" etc. Brilliant horn arrangements!

A great songwriter/composer.

There's R&B before Sly and after Sly. There's a difference. A lot of things Sly did back then paved the way for everything we've heard in R&B, soul, pop and funk rock (in the 80's and 90's).

We all know he influenced Miles, P, Herbie Hancock, George Clinton and so many others. He had a great knack for combining all kinds of elements in his songs and making them memorable.

His stuff still holds up today.

SPYZFAN1 said:

This.

Off the charts!!

He's incredible!

One of America's greatest musical treasures. Sly was before his time. Which may be why he showed up late sometimes and others not at all!

sunlite said:

I swear, if you listen to his 1970s recordings, they sound like they were just recorded! His genius is that scary!

Definitely one of the greatest songwriters. He was a clever lyricist, with(at the time) very outspoken beliefs and had the balls to make songs like "don't call me nigger whitey". Even today you won't here a pop artist make that shit! he showed an ability to craft great catchy tunes, but was inconsistent as he plunged into drug addiction(had he not I think he could've rivalled SW in making catchy yet complex pop songs in the 70's).

Is the cd "Small Talk" worth getting?

scriptgirl said:

Is that one of the last albums he did?

scriptgirl said:

No he put out some more stuff after that including 1975's High on You. I think his last solo album was in '83.

thanks-was small talk the last "family"cd?

scriptgirl said:

Technically? Yeah.

"High On You" 1975- Classic and underrated. The "solo" LP.

"Heard You Missed Me" 1976 - Weak. Sly's bland attempt of a pop LP. But it's a must have for the Sly-ologists. He toured for this record going on after Bootsy and before P-Funk in 76.

"Back On The Right Track" 1979 - Soulful and funky.

"Ain't But The One Way" 1980 or 1983 - This LP was blasted buy the critics but I love it. The 44 second song "Sylvester" is the highlight of the CD.

"Remember Who You Are" 1994 - Reissue of "Back On The Right Track". Remasterd with cool liner notes.

"Backtracks" 1999 - Remixes of some of the jams from "Back On The Right Track" plus some of S.&.T.F.S songs from the mid 60's. Bobby Freeman's "Swim" (that Sly produced) is included too.

Thanks!