Sly and the Family Stone at the Grammys???

Actually now I kinda want a "Sly Lives" t-shirt

"Sly went down the aisle of his brother's church with his mother on his arm, and nobody recognized him, because he has a hunchback," Selvin said. "He deprived his body of too much nutrition over the years."

Not sure I want to see THAT.

Pretty sad.

Waiting for Sly ... and waiting
Sly Stone has been invited to participate in the Grammy telecast. Stars gather for the run-through.

By Geoff Boucher
Times Staff Writer

February 8, 2006

"You have to have faith. Right?" Ken Ehrlich, the producer of tonight's 48th Annual Grammy Awards was saying Monday night with the sweaty brow and queasy smile of a gambler who has just pushed every last chip across the felt tabletop.

The reason for the sweat: Ehrlich is betting big on Sly Stone.

For years, the Grammy producer has called and wooed Stone in hopes of bringing the mercurial music icon to the show. This year it worked. A tribute to Stone is a centerpiece of tonight's Staples Center show, airing at 8 p.m. on CBS. That's the good news. The problem is, um, well … Sly Stone.

As a songwriter, singer, cultural maverick and high-integrity 1960s icon, Stone is about as cool as it gets — the Miles Davis of Woodstock, the man who carved the template for much of today's familiar confluence of hip-hop, funk, soul and rock. But he also has not done an interview since 1987, and his legendary no-show habits make him the fascinating pop-culture amalgamation of Howard Hughes and Prince. His last major public appearance was in 1993, when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Last year, he attended a Family Stone tribute band show at the Knitting Factory here in L.A., but wore a motorcycle helmet the entire time.

Needless to say, his return to the scene makes great television — if he actually shows up, that is.

"He is magic," Ehrlich said a week ago, "and there's that whole J.D. Salinger thing. People want to see him."

On Monday, Ehrlich seemed far less giddy. Rehearsals had hummed along all day (even when one of Keith Urban's amps caught fire, the veteran crew took it in stride). After dinner, when it came time for Stone's tribute, the day came to a screeching halt as a stage full of big-name musicians cooled their heels and waited for Stone.

An hour ticked by.

"I heard he's in the building," said Walter C. Miller, director of the show. "Well, supposedly, he's in the building."

Shows such as the Grammys are billed as forums for anything-can-happen music moments, but, of course, a live television broadcast of its scope is about as spontaneous as a NASA rocket launch. Four days of rehearsals, 21 stage managers and a legion of publicists are assigned to calculate the magic to the moment.

On Monday, Madonna, Jamie Foxx, Kanye West, Urban and the other big stars were on time and on marks. As Foxx said: "This isn't the Source Awards, right? You show up, you do it and you do it right. This is the Grammys. This is the real thing."

True, but rules of real life and the mortal world may not apply to Stone. The Family Stone shattered and sank in 1975. Among the reasons was Stone himself and his drug and health issues, but he was gaining the aura of an artist too fragile for the strength of his own music. His record label wanted more hits, his band was conflicted over his varied music paths, and there was even pressure in the late 1960s from the Black Panther party, which wanted him to more overtly choose one side of the racial line to stand on.

"His music was freedom," said Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas. "Freedom of expression and to say things that people then didn't feel comfortable saying. Things about the relations between white and black folks, what they are and what could be. His music was joy too. I can't wait to see what he looks like."

The Black Eyed Peas star said that as he sat at the foot of the stage. Behind him was Maroon5, last year's best new artist Grammy winner, and John Legend, a favorite in the category this year. There was also British soul singer Joss Stone, Joe Perry of Aerosmith, R&B singer Van Hunt and others. Joss Stone was barefoot and flirting with Adam Levine of Maroon5 as the other artists on stage were noodling, comparing chords. Looking out at the Staples Center floor, all the folding chairs had placards with the faces and names of the stars: Tom Hanks was in the front row, and, not far behind him, Tony Bennett sharing a row with the Neptunes.

And the minutes ticked by. Will.I.Am left.

Finally, a voice came over the arena PA: "Security, please clear the arena."

The assembled musicians again ran through their medley of Stone hits and then … there he was, in a hooded, camouflage rain slicker, matching pants and 3-inch platform boots. He came to a keyboard at center stage and made eye contact with no one. Still lean, but beneath the hood he seemed smaller than he was in the '60s.

The teleprompter told him how to reintroduce himself to the world: (SLY): Ow Ow Ow.

He sang "I Want to Take You Higher," and his voice was robust and clear. Looking straight down, his chin bounced on his chest. His left hand and wrist were in a cast. From under the hood, he peeked at the musicians next to him, grinned … and then he was gone. Adam Levine stared at the long lost star like was a museum piece. Perry, beneath a black cowboy hat, smiled and shook his head.

Legend gave the first review of the performance: "It was great — I mean, hey, he showed up."

Afterward, John Cossette, executive producer of the show, looked a bit ashen. Stone sounded great, no doubt, but he also looked a bit … nutty. "No comment. He's not doing this, he's not hiding out for 15 years to do what you just saw."

He was right. Stone came back and did it again. This time, his plastic pants were tucked into his boots and, at the song's close, he stepped away from the keyboard, bobbed his head and beamed. And then he was gone again.

Ehrlich, like a man who wants to recheck his lottery ticket, called for a third run-through. This time, though, when it came to the point where Stone should have dashed out on stage, there was a long lull and empty air. Finally, a crew member jumped up behind the keyboard and played the part of the enigmatic star.

Two out of three is good — unless the third one is live on the air in front of the world. But maybe it doesn't matter. Young R&B star Van Hunt said afterward that, on stage or not, Stone is a presence. "When he came out, I have to tell you, I didn't even look at him. I couldn't. I mean, it's Sly. I was afraid to look. I don't even think the guy is real."

Fucking right!

No, Slick and the family rock!

The Sly medley was 90% disaster.

JBR i did hear sly sing a bit. i dunno.. i am not antipop or anything. ive definitely been around this board for a long time, but... somehow bland/brand professionalism of the entertainment world rankles a bit when i see it live. "artist" "X" is going to "be" "themselves" to a fault. its so much easier to be into pop music listening to the radio.

techno is so excitingly dark and druggy right now.. i have almost come to a point where i cant even appreciate a guy and a guitar and a song, if only because what a guy, a guitar and a song symbolizes has actually completely replaced the content that a guy and a guitar and a song could create.

this is all offtopic. i am off to listen to basteroid.

You are helping to support my theory that the part of Sly Stone tonight was played by Green Velvet.

well, his father at least.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v503/CitizenGatsby/woozydisgust.jpg

Upon Steve Tyler's cue, Sly takes the stage in a silver trench coat and blond mohawk curled slightly forward on top. The song is "I Want to Take You Higher."

Sly gets behind the keyboard, which has two mics. The one with the cord is on his right. The cordless one is on his left. He stands slumped over, bobbing up and down in time, and appears to be singing with force while banging inexactly on the keys, which I can't hear at all. He's got a bandage or cast or something on his right hand (not the left, as reported above).

The mic he's singing into, the one with the cord, doesn't work. How do I know? Because the other one clearly does work, and picks up his voice when he gets near it.

Maybe this technical difficulty throws him. Who knows? Suddenly Sly seems to be not singing his parts. Either that, or the director is cutting at all the wrong times to all the wrong people. There's a guitar solo, and I can't tell who's playing it. There's some weird panning and cutting. The camera returns to Sly when he's not singing, and it's obvious something's awry.

Side note: The drummer's really carrying this set. He looks a little like David Cross.

Then Sly grabs the cordless mic in his left hand, switches it to his right, and sings a bit from behind the keys, audible now, and sounding not-bad, hitting the notes square, doing the "Baby baby baby, I want to take you" part. Something like that.

Then he walks out from behind the keys, doing something you can't see clearly on camera: He grabs a third, emergency mic (also cordless) from off the top of the keyboard in his left hand. So he has mics in both hands. The director, maybe not wanting to show the bandage on his right hand, the mic in his right hand, or both, doesn't show Sly's right hand in the air at all, cutting it off in close-up.

Sly sings one more "Baby baby baby" near the edge of the stage, to the audience, and that's it. He waves to the crowd with his left mic in hand, and walks offstage, seemingly early. The song goes on a bit without him.

On fifth viewing, the sum total of clearly audible lines sung by Sly Stone (slightly revising my quote above):

"Shakalaka"

"Wanna take ya--baby baby baby take ya"

"Baby baby baby"

I'm not saying he didn't sing more than that, I'm saying the mic didn't pick it up (or only just barely picked it up).

This was a bit goofy, but as far as tributes go, but not horrible...

Nile Rogers and Quincy Jones (?) on guitar.
Randy Jackson on bass.
Anyone else I didn't notice back there?

cable?

god its just so so unbelievably depressing. i'm just glad i'm only a kind of 'greatest hits' fan of sly stone as opposed to a proper sly nut who's been waiting to see his comeback in some dignified form for nigh on 15 years. the most recent photo u used to see of him was one of him at that award show in the early 90's. i thought that would pretty much be the end of it/ him, but was thrilled to hear he would be 'coming back' for this. i expected some kind of santana-type revival/ tour etc.

it seems a shame if it really was that bad.

there's AMAZING footage of him and the band on a bbc DANCING IN THE STREET episode from 1996, but of course u can't buy THAT on video/dvd anymore.

Heck, next year, Beefheart comes out for the Grammys.

i laughed and i laughed.

Photo of Sly is certainly a great, major WTF moment.

I'd say that was almost inevitable.

Keys you can't hear, which appears to be just as well as he doesn't seem to be playing them with any ability whatsoever, and about three bits of audible singing.

It was really kind of awful, like a guest cameo on Cheers or something where they come in the door, get clapped, one of the regular cast makes a joke at their expense and they leave again.

none of these fuckers can sing.

Yes, he's totally strange-looking. Yes, he probably pissed away a big chunk of his talent with PCP. And obviously the performance was a bit of a train-wreck. But based on the few words he managed to sing into the mic, his voice sounds undiminished.

btw, last year I saw the Larry Graham band (original family stone bassist) w/ Greg Errico (original family stone drummer) as Larry recieved his key to the city of Oakland on the steps of City Hall. It was energetic, tight, nuanced, and soulful. Basically the opposite of this "All Star" performance.

Cool, I didn't know that was a helix talk box, and didn't know what a helix talk box was. Did you hear that synthy noise then? I'll have to listen harder, but I think something was obviously not working, and it wasn't Sly's fault.

A friend also says he thought Sly was missing a finger. Could this be true? Was that why they wouldn't show his right hand?