AllMusic stated that "James Brown may have invented funk, but Sly Stone perfected it," and credited him with "creating a series of euphoric yet politically charged records that proved a massive influence on artists of all musical and cultural backgrounds.

[4] Born in Texas and raised in the Bay Area city Vallejo in Northern California, Stone mastered several instruments at an early age and performed gospel music as a child with his siblings (and future bandmates) Freddie and Rose.

As part of the doctrines of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), to which the Stewart family belonged, the parents encouraged musical expression in their middle-class household.

The fact that the group was integrated made the Viscaynes "hip" in the eyes of their audiences, and would later inspire Sylvester's idea of the multicultural Family Stone.

With his brother, Fred, he formed several short-lived groups, like the Stewart Bros.[9] After high school Stone studied music at the Vallejo campus of Solano Community College.

While still providing "music for your mind, body, and your soul" on KSOL, Sly Stone played keyboard for dozens of major performers including Dionne Warwick, Righteous Brothers, Ronettes, Bobby Freeman, George & Teddy, Freddy Cannon, Marvin Gaye, Dick & Dee Dee, Jan & Dean, Gene Chandler, and many more, including at least one of the three Twist Party concerts by then chart topper Chubby Checker held at the Cow Palace in San Francisco in 1962 and 1963.

One night, the two stood in a kitchen making the decision to fuse the bands together adding Larry Graham, who had studied music and worked in numerous groups.

By the summer of 1969, Sly & The Family Stone were one of the biggest names in music, releasing two more top five singles, "Hot Fun in the Summertime" and "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)"/"Everybody Is a Star", before the end of the year and appearing at Woodstock.

After the group began touring following the success of Dance to the Music, The Family Stone drew praise for their explosive live show, which attracted black and white fans in equal measure.

[14] After moving to the Los Angeles area in fall 1969, Stone and his bandmates became heavy users of illegal drugs, primarily cocaine and PCP.

In the early 1980s Sly Stone was also part of a George Clinton/Funkadelic family project with Muruga Booker called "The Soda Jerks," who recorded an album worth of material, of which only one song has been released.

[25] Stone managed to do a short tour with Bobby Womack in the summer of 1984, and he continued to make sporadic appearances on compilations and other artists' records.

Mellon says that he found bathrooms smeared with gold paint, marble floors blackened, windows broken and a gaunt Stone emerging from a guest house to say, "You’re spying on me."

[26] On August 18, 2009, The Guardian reported that the forthcoming documentary, Coming Back for More by Dutch director Willem Alkema, claims Stone is homeless and living off welfare while staying in cheap hotels and a camper van.

[31] However, in December 2015, the award was overturned when an appellate court ruled that the trial judge had not told the jury to take into account the fact that Stone had assigned his royalties to a production company in exchange for a 50% ownership stake.

Sly and the original Family Stone lineup (minus Larry Graham) performed briefly during a tribute to the band, for which the headliners included Steven Tyler, John Legend, Van Hunt, Nile Rodgers and Robert Randolph.

Sporting an enormous blonde mohawk, thick sunglasses, a "Sly" beltbuckle and a silver lamé suit, he joined in on "I Want To Take You Higher."

Stone walked to the front of the stage toward the end of the performance, sang a verse, and then, with a wave to the audience, sauntered offstage before the song was over.

A Sly and the Family Stone tribute album, Different Strokes by Different Folks, was released on July 12, 2005, by Starbucks' Hear Music label, and on February 7, 2006, by Epic Records.

Epic Records' version of the tribute album, which included two additional covers ("Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey" and "Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin)") was released in January 2006.

A similar scene took place at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 13, 2007, with over half the sold-out venue walking out in disgust before his stage exit.

A day later at the Blue Note Records Festival in Ghent, Belgium, he left the stage after telling the audience that when waking up that morning he realized he was old, and so he needed to take a break now.

[citation needed] On October 17, 2008, Sly played with the Family Stone at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa, California.

[38] On Memorial Day, May 25, 2009, Stone re-emerged once again, granting an hour-long interview with KCRW-FM, a Los Angeles NPR affiliate, to discuss his life and career.

The album features re-recorded versions of Sly & the Family Stone hits with guest appearances from Jeff Beck, Ray Manzarek, Bootsy Collins, Ann Wilson, Carmine Appice and Johnny Winter, as well as three previously unreleased songs.

It explores the challenges black performers face, and celebrates how Stone has been able to establish a healthy life after the pressures of show business and fame.

Motown producer Norman Whitfield, for example, patterned the label's forays into harder-driving, socially relevant material (such as The Temptations' "Runaway Child" and "Ball of Confusion") based on their sound.

Legions of artists from the 1990s forward – including Public Enemy, Fatboy Slim, Beck, Beastie Boys and LL Cool J's popular "Mama Said Knock You Out" along with many others – mined Stone's seminal back catalog for hook-laden samples.

They made elaborate plans for a laser-light show, a real-life "angel" flying on wires dropping gold glitter all over the crowd, and for thousands of doves to be released.

[58] Stone’s second daughter, Novena Carmel, born c. 1982, is a singer and performer, and also a booking agent at the Little Temple club in Los Angeles, now known as The Virgil, and currently a co-host for the popular public radio station KCRW on Morning Becomes Eclectic.