BLESSED BE THE FUNK

Remembering Sly Stone and the heavenly Brian Wilson on their passing

- JOHN CLEWLEY

Last week, two giants of US popular music passed away. Beach Boys legend, composer/songwriter Brian Wilson, and funk pioneer Sly Stone of Sly & The Family Stone fame.

Both created magic that changed the arc of popular music; Wilson for his melodic and harmonic beauty (and advanced production techniques), and Stone for creating psychedelic funk that brought rock into the groove.

They found fame while still young and the pressure of being labelled geniuses all but destroyed their personal lives. Wilson suffered from a schizo-affective disorder and substance abuse, while Stone, after a glorious five-year period at the top, descended into addiction, disappearing for years. They fit the “tortured artist” trope perfectly.

But it is Sly Stone who is the subject of this column, as funk is one of the musical areas to have featured heavily in World Beat over the years — from James Brown to Afrofunk, and even Thai funk (remember The Impossibles’ two funk albums, California and Hot Pepper recorded in Sweden).

Born in Denton, Texas, in 1943 into a musical family, Sylvester Stewart was something of a child prodigy. By the age of 11, he had mastered keyboards, bass and drums and later guitar (foreshadowing Stevie Wonder and Prince). He learned his musical chops at church, performing gospel music with his siblings (brother Fred, and sisters Rose and Loretta, who would also join his band Family Stone later). He played as a kid in the family band, The Stewart Four, and then moved onto highschool bands.