Search - Sly & the Family Stone :: Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back

Genuinely suprised...but what else should I expect?

Alex Tavares | Bronx, NY | 07/25/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The title track to this album is in my opinion one of Sly's best songs and highlights the musical range and genuis of this man. It utilizes timbales and latin percussion. The horn riffs are amazing. The clavinet throughout the chorus is dripping it is so funky. This song is just so damn catchy, I played it over and over again when I first bought the album. If you are a Sly fan, buy this album just for this song alone.

"Everything in You" is another great song with wonderful vocal arrangements, clever interplay between horns and strings, and a head nodding bassline during the verse. "Blessing In Disguise" sounds like funkadelic at its best. Mamma's A Hippe" is another infectious tribute to mothers, with a nice 32nd beat riff on the drums. "What was I thinking in my head" is a catchy dancefloor tune with a funky jam instrumental toward the end. I read somewhere that this song was a dancefloor hit.

The worst song on this album is "Family again", which he released as a single. Utterly annoying. Why he released this song and not the title track is beyond me. His album may have fared better commercially if he had. His duo with Peter Framton was another major dud.

All of the other songs on this album are passable, and I definitely recommend this album if you are a Sly fan. Not on par with his greatest, but there are some gems here to round out your "Best of Sly" personal collection.



"

Sly falls off his barstool...

Tom | London | 07/29/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"While I would agree that this LP is hardly in the same league as Sly's best work, this isn't the complete disaster it is often described as (well, not artistically, tho it was certainly a commercial disaster). I remember reading a critic saying that by '76 (when this LP was released), everybody was doing Sly better than Sly himself - that's a bit cruel, it would be more accurate to say that musicians INSPIRED by Sly were having more success than Sly himself. I don't think too many people actually sounded that much like Sly, with one rather glaring and galling (for Mr Stewart) exception: namely Sly's old bassbuddy Larry Graham who was selling tens of thousands more records than Sly by simply aping the old Family Stone formula (which he did after all help to invent) but accentuating the positive elements and omitting the darker vibes present from "Thank You Falettinme..." onwards. Sly follows suit on this LP which is relentlessly upbeat in that rather irritating way the early Family Stone could be - though here Sly has more of a fixed grin than ever. As one of the other reviewers said, the album is full of "that was then but this is now" positivity which seems to be aimed more at Sly himself than his listeners. At times Sly reminds you of a drunk who corners you in a bar and tells you all about his drinking problems and keeps insisting "But I'm alright now" ....until eventually he falls off his barstool. Having said that, the title track is a Latin-influenced number which reminds you of how odd and catchy Sly's pop songs could be and though "Family Again" is yet another rewrite of "Dance to the Music", it's perky enough to retain your interest. "What Was I Thinkin'" has a killer bassline, as has "Sexy Situation", though in the latter case that's all the song has. "Nothing Less Than Happiness" is a promising blusey doowoppy ballad, a great verse but unfortunately Sly never got round to writing a chorus (or much of a lyric) to go with it. "Blessing In Disguise" is probably the best song here, with a great arrangement and good singing. In fact Sly sounds in good voice throughout but latterly the album peters out a bit with some rather anonymous songs. All in all, not great, not terrible."

Sly's Blessing In Disguise!

O. T. davis | 02/15/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Sly at his last amazing high! A well crafted album considering his state of mind in 1976. My favorite track on this is "A Blessing In Disguise." He captures is old Stand style of song writing! I consider this to be one of my top 10 greatest Sly Stone songs of all time. This album is not one of his funkiest, it tends to sway more towards a more free, gentle, pop zone than anything else he's done. If you are looking or more funk, get Fresh or Riot. If you are looking for Sly in a more chilled out mode with well written songs, then get this one. The title track is amazing as well as "Family Again" (which features Peter Frampton on guitar!) and "Mother Is A Hippie." Like one reviewer said before me-I miss the hell out of you Sly-PLEASE come back-I miss you and the music world sure could use you right now!"