There’s a Riot Goin’ On

There were a few good jams on this, Luv n' Haight, Family Affair, and Thank You for Talkin' to Me Africa. But beyond that, I found the album kinda dragged at times. Keep in mind this is from 1971, it's 3.5 stars for me.

Not sure on this one tbh.

I can respect it, but it sounds pretty dated now with all the wacka wacka guitar.

Not really enjoying it. 2

It was OK. Not as hooky as other Sly stuff but a good listen overall.

Like a last dispeptic burp from.the rich food of the 60's. Anyone going into this expecting another "Dance to the Music" are in for a shock.

By this point Sly Stone was drugged and angry. The promise of Woodstock had given way to Watergate and the Race Riots of the early 70s.

The personal and political darkness combined to make this an album of unparalleled cynicism and rage. Long sinuous funk workouts move slowly while half heard vocals say things like "They say time is the answer, but I don't believe it" or "The deeper in debt the harder you bet" through a production of such murkiness that nothing would rival it until "Exile on Main St" or Bowie's "Watch that Man".

It's hard to say it's an enjoyable album, but did set the scene for the sort of angry, political black music that led to Grand Master Flash and Public Enemy.

Pass the funk. The album highlight is ‘Family Affair’, and I’m not sure if I add a star or take one away for the yodeling on Space Cowboy.

An absolute classic funk record. I've always been a big fan of this one, it's got a bit of everything you need.

This album just didnt click with me at all. I was bored almost the entire time. I love 70s funk but this just wasn't it for me.

I'm sure it's an important album with depth but it's not enjoyable. 2.5/5. Raising to a 3.

Solid Sly album

Слай пошатало в этом альбоме

Truly the coolest bass parts I've heard in ages :)

Wow, “There's A Riot Goin' On” sounds different from “Stand!”, which was released two years earlier and which I already had the pleasure of reviewing. It's funkier, edgier, and somehow more grown-up, which is both good and bad news, because the flower power-esque naivety was definitely one of the qualities that made “Stand!” so great. While I like the stronger funk influence, I don't like the totally flat sound of the drum machines at all. Together with the (by funk standards) extremely soft bass sound, the whole groove becomes blurred unless you use sufficiently powerful speakers—I was able to correct this here, but it's actually a weakness of the production, especially since the monotonous drum patterns also annoy me after a while.
Since there are no real earcatchers either, I consider “Riot” a clear step backward compared to “Stand!”.

60s-70s Funk? Not really my thing

I don’t have the music vocabulary to describe this properly, but it felt like a lot of the instruments blended together in a way that made it feel flat. That’s something I really don’t like in music for whatever reason.

il je dosadno il je naporno, većinom potonje. predzadnja i zadnja pjesma nešto podnošljivije, al prekasno je tad. prekmično za mene sve u svemu

I love Sly and the Family Stone. Grooves always hit, vocals are always great and layered great. That being said I think this album is a little disjointed and is missing a bit of a sense of cohesion to me. Still a great album that I really enjoyed

Rubbish!

3.75

This is #day436 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… here's to my second and final Sly & The Family Stone record. The funny thing is, when it comes to albums of this kind, my musical vocabulary shrinks to words like "funky," "groovy," and "trippy." This one's a bit bluesy, too. I'm sure it's an important record, both sonically and historically, given the times and all that. Still, I'm probably a little less impressed than I was with Stand!. This is a 3 out of 5. Looking forward to #day437.

(sly & the family) stone cold classic