Best of Sly & The Family Stone Vinyl 2xLP

Titled as a response to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On, There’s a Riot Goin’ On is at once unnervingly sinister and deliciously entertaining. While Sly played most of the instruments himself, a revolving cast of guests add to the braised, fragmented funk of “Luv n’ Haight” and “Africa Talks to You (The Asphalt Jungle)”. The slow, splintering grooves of “Just Like a Baby” and “Time” explore the outer reaches of insular blues, but there are small flashes of sweetness within the darkness, especially on the gorgeous and disarmingly improvisational “Family Affair”.