When Questlove‘s highly rated documentary Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius) came out recently (Hulu), its featured star, Sly Stone, was conspicuously missing. And now, just a few months later, he has passed away at the age of 82 from multiple health issues.
His legacy is well served in the documentary, however. Jordan Hoffman, thedailybeast.com, sets it up: “One can’t overstate just how influential Sly and the Family Stone were for the development of pop, soul, rock and funk music (not to mention fashion) in the late 1960s and early 1970s….These songs—’Dance to the Music,’ ‘Everyday People,’ ‘I Want to Take You Higher,’ ‘Family Affair,’ ‘Hot Fun in the Summertime’ and ‘Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)’ are impossible to dislike—true crossover hits among generations, races and genders.”
Do you believe in the concept of Black Genius?, Questlove asks at the start of the trailer for Sly Lives! Over the course of the film various artists, producers, and family members will offer their thoughts about Stone’s particular genius.
The Genius of Sly Stone
Tracey Thorn, New Statesman: “Sly was not just a musical genius but a progressive mastermind, insisting that the band be multi-racial and made up of both men and women. Everything about them embodied the notion of inclusivity, of reaching towards a better world in which – without wanting to sound too blandly idealistic – all people could get along together. In a song like ‘Everyday People’, he made the impossible sound easy.”
Ty Burr, Tyburrswatchlist.com: “…’Sly Lives!’ does dive into the thorny issues of the movie’s subtitle, addressing the pressures exerted on a Black genius – which Stone most certainly was – by an America primed to make his internal operating system crash from all the conflicting instructions.”
Robert Daniels, rogerebert.com: “This film sees Sly as a three-dimensional person whose brilliance should neither absolve nor condemn him. It marvels at his genius and mourns the evaporation of his hitmaking talent.”
Stone’s Decline Due to Drug Addiction
Dwight Brown, dwightbrownink.com: Sly went “…the path of many bright, famous musicians. Struggle. It’s all about the art. Breakthrough. Success. Excess. Downward spiral. Comeback. Fizzle under the weight of drugs, drink and celebrity.”
Robert Daniels, rogerebert.com: “Questlove smartly parallels the arc of the band with the country. The same year the band formed, the Civil Rights movement led by Martin Luther King Jr. still held integrationist promise, and Sly and the Family Stone became emblematic of that hopeful future. As the non-violent movement fell apart due to the murder of MLK, Black Power took hold. Similarly, Sly and his band, composed of actual family like his sister and brother, lost their innocence. Sly turned to hard drugs and began penning introspective lyrics that spoke to his own insecurities with his place as the voice of Blackness.”
Stone, by the way, eventually went off drugs in 2019.
Regarding “Family Affair”
Sadly, both the band and the family had become increasingly dysfunctional by the time this tune came out in 1971. You can consult Billboard for a detailed description of its origins and meaning, but the documentary also gives “Family Affair” its due.
For further info about Stone’s family, life, and career, you can go right to the source: his own 2023 memoir
