Sly & The Family Stone – Stand!

Album Revolution #2: "Sly & The Family Stone" – "Stand!"....Before I even owned the album, I and everyone in existence knew the significance of this...After building a strong following from their first 3 albums, "Sly & The Family Stone" continues to expand their sound of the "Psychedelic Soul" persuasion....With that expansion, the different members of the group were allowed a lot of latitude, whether with the instruments or their vocals...As I continue to marvel at this album, I might as well call this whole album as one big "Ultimate Crown Jewel" (my first time ever doing so)....They got it right by having the title track start this album..."Sly's" fantastic lyrics, along with a melody that morphs into different phases, with the last one just going into a "Funk" jam session!!!!! The thought provoking "Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey", was as bold as it could be back in the days (very tamed by today's standards)....But it wasn't just the lyrics that made it bold, it was the music, and the delivery of the music...It's sad though that over 50 years later that this song is still very much relevant today...."I Want To Take You Higher", sounds like a big jam session, with the emphasis of the the music getting longer..."Somebody's Watching You" is a little more subtle, but the melody is righteous!!!!! "Sing A Simple Song" may sound like it could be a "Simple" song, but it packs a "Big Punch"!!!!! "Everyday People" though...For a song only 2 minutes long, it has so much to say (In my opinion, it could have been just a little longer)....The Super Dooper Massive "Sex Machine" is an outright masterpiece!!!! 13 minutes and 48 seconds of pure "Funk", that obviously couldn't be contained in a 3, 4, 5 or even a 6 minute jam....Last, but certainly not least, "You Can Make It If You Try" finishes off a masterpiece of an album (this one should have been longer too)...I don't think anyone had any idea that this album was going to make the impact that it did...I do believe "Sly" thought it would...Whatever he was trying to accomplish, he did that here and then some...Unfortunately though, soon the brilliant mind of "Sly Stone" would start getting clouded by the use of drugs...I really hate that, because down the line it would start to effect him, not just musically but professionally as well...But thank goodness, that would not happen for a while, so let's enjoy what's in store!!!!!

Would be interested in buying a NM- or VG+ unipak cover only for my NM- copy with a badly damaged sleeve. Message me if you have one you would like to sell