Roots Archives Forum

Sly Stone verses Sly Dunbar... who would come out on top?

Of course there's no need to choose, both are legends in their own right. Check out the latest mix I did featuring songs by both of these brilliant musicians/producers:

http://www.mixcloud.com/DestroyBabylon/sly-vs-sly

I think I may have to do a second volume. I assume all the regulars in this forum can talk Sly & Robbie tracks for days, but how about Sly Stone fans? Any rare gems out there that you'd recommend?

when it comes to understanding Sly (Stone), this release is crucial:

http://acerecords.co.uk/listen-to-the-v ... -1965-1970

It's a compilation of session work and studio productions, and peovides great glimpses into the genius of the man.

I think that Sly Dunbar would be my choice mostly because I see him (and Robbie) as equally good music arrangers as Sly Stone but they also had a wider repertoire (the stuff they did at the Nassau Compass Point Studio with Grace Jones and Gwen Guthrie is remarkable -- just as good as the best stuff they did in reggae!). Hell they could make Joe Cocker sound funky as hell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNeHrCuNfg).

I do however love Sly Stone but primarily based on his three classic albums (Fresh not included -- it is good but not nearly as good as the previous three in my opinion). If you compare it to the vast catalogue of classic releases from Sly (either as session player or producer) I don't think there's any real comparison. Had reggae been as widespread as funk/soul I think Sly & Robbie had been as revered as say James Brown.

By the way I love the graphics for your mix. Made me smile!

@davek - thanks for the link, I was eying that comp, and after your rec. and reading that write up, sounds like I gotta pick it up asap!

@kalcidis - You make a strong point, while Stone was obviously first and influenced Dunbar (and everyone else who followed), he only had a limited stretch of time where he was truly productive, whereas Dunbar has possibly remained on the forefront longer (even if lesser known).

And thank you for the kind words about my silly drawing! I couldn't resist.


-jbo

I recorded a version of SLy Stone's Everyday people with Sly & Robbie and Funkadelic singer Mudbone Cooper for an upcoming Funk project.

gbougard wrote:I recorded a version of SLy Stone's Everyday people with Sly & Robbie and Funkadelic singer Mudbone Cooper for an upcoming Funk project.

Nice! Can you give any release details yet?

We're still recording vocals on many tracks. We did rapper Uncle Murda the other day on a relck of Genius of love, a combination of Chanel Nicole and Future Fambo, a soul singer named Bradd Marquis, a cover of Aretha Franklyn's Chain of Fools on The Message by Memphis-based Big Baby, rapper Soul Khan on the same riddim, (we could do a riddim album on the Message because I also voiced a number of DJ's in Kingston: Ultimate Shines, Big Youth, Johnny Builda, Zazabella, etc...).

I'm begging people like Rakim, Ghostface Killa, etc... because I love the old NY vibe, but I cant afford to pay what they asking, quite feankly. I mean I could break the piggy bank on a couple of them, but then how am I going to sell enough to recoup my investment???

Once I've done some rough mixes, I think I'll post them on youtube or something. Soon come

Sly vs Sly rematch is finally up:

http://www.mixcloud.com/DestroyBabylon/ ... y-round-2/

Thanks again to @davek, I took his advice and got the Listen to the Voices compilation, as well as the Precious Stone comp of early Sly Stone productions, both are fantastic and featured in this mix. I included some old Dunbar tracks to match- a killer rarity from Dunbar's first group, the Yard Brooms, as well as his debut session work with Dave and Ansel Collins.

@gbougard - any progress on your project?