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“We were at the top of our game then,” Greg Errico, drummer of Sly & The Family Stone says of the group’s 1968 stand at New York’s infamous Fillmore East. “The band was just killing it. There were moments that made my hair stand up, where that stage lifted off like a 747 and flew.”

… The entire four concert run – two shows each night in October 1968 – will be released on July 17th as Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968, showcasing a band both fully formed and on the cusp of greatness. Exclusively at Rolling Stone, you can listen to the group’s intense and grooving rendition of “M’Lady,” from the October 5th early show.

Listen to Sly & The Family Stone’s “Hot Fun in the Summertime” off Higher! on Spotify.

Sly & The Family Stone is featured in the new issue of Uncut, dated August 2015 on sale in UK shops and available to download now. The magazine covers the early days of the band, as a boxset of their epochal Fillmore East shows from 1968 is due to be released July 17. “Sly Stone reinvented pop music in his own image,” says the Family Stone’s Cynthia Robinson.

Pre-order the four-disc box set, Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968, now!

Hear Sly & The Family Stone’s live funky, organ and horn-laden performance of “Life,” exclusively at Vibe. The recording is from Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968, a four-disc set to be released July 17 that features 34 unreleased performances from their live shows at Bill Graham’s legendary concert hall.

Listen to an exclusive stream of “Color Me True” at The Daily Beast. The track is included on Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968, to be released on July 17. Featuring four total performances in their entirety, the performances have the band in their prime, full of energy, positivity, and excitement.

In 1968, Sly & The Family Stone visited New York to play four shows over two days at downtown’s storied Fillmore East. Epic Records taped the performances for a potential live album, but that was put on hold when “Everyday People” went to Number One the following year. Now, the entire run is scheduled come out July 17th on Legacy Recordings as Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968.

Exclusively at Rolling Stone, you can hear one of the most memorable tracks: the October 4th late show take on “Dance To The Music.” When the band kicks in after the first scat break, they form a loose mass of funk, each instrument swirling around and bouncing off the others.

The legendary Sly & The Family Stone—in conjunction with Epic/Legacy—is dropping a four-disc set of previously unreleased live shows recorded at the Fillmore East venue in 1968. Both nights had two sets—an early show and a late show. Visit Complex.com now to hear a live version of “Music Lover” from their early Oct. 5, 1968 performance. It will be part of the collection, Sly & The Family Stone – Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968, set for release on July 17th and available for pre-order now.

SLY & THE FAMILY STONE—LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST OCTOBER 4th & 5th 1968 TO BE RELEASED FRIDAY, JULY 17

Four-Disc Debut Release of Previously Unreleased Live Set Recorded at Legendary Fillmore East Venue

Double Vinyl LP “Best-Of” from shows, compiled by “Captain” Kirk Douglas of The Roots, to be released exclusively for Record Store Day 2015

New York, NY – Epic/Legacy is excited to announce the debut release of SLY & THE FAMILY STONE—LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST OCTOBER 4th & 5th 1968, a four-disc set of previously unreleased live shows recorded during the band’s rise at New York City’s legendary venue. The set is scheduled to be released on Friday, July 17 and is available now for pre-order (http://smarturl.it/sfs_lafe_amzn).

Sly & The Family Stone’s reputation as one of the most influential bands of the 1960s has rarely been in denial. The group effortlessly combined upbeat, funky melodies with socially conscious lyrics, which would paint a vivid picture of the sociopolitical landscape of the ‘60s while also creating a road map for pop music in the decades to come. This four-disc anthology presents a lesser-known side of the band: not the dominant soul-funk-pop juggernaut of the late 1960s, but an up-and-coming ensemble whose onstage energy could not be contained.

On October 4th and 5th, 1968, shortly after the release of the band’s third album Life, Sly & The Family Stone took the stage at Bill Graham’s legendary Fillmore East in New York City. Along with the success of Dance To The Music, which was released earlier that year and spun off the Top 10 hit of the same name, Sly & The Family Stone were making a name for themselves on the concert circuit, with their dynamic, high energy live performances.

Epic Records, the group’s record company, recorded all four of these concerts (two shows per night) with plans to release a live album that would consist of selections from these performances. But the release was shelved after the release of the single “Everyday People,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969 and anticipated the band’s breakthrough year, with the acclaimed album Stand! and an increasing spotlight in the public eye culminating in an appearance at Woodstock that summer.

Sly & The Family Stone—Live At The Fillmore East October 4th & 5th 1968 features all four of these energetic shows, which mark not only the first release of these sets but the first official release primarily highlighting live material from the group. The collection will be preceded by a double-vinyl ‘best-of’ featuring highlights from all four shows compiled by “Captain” Kirk Douglas, guitarist for The Roots. This special package will be exclusively available at participating independent record retailers on Record Store Day (April 18, 2015).

“Captain” Kirk Douglas, guitarist for The Roots states, “This performance is living breathing evidence of how much of a force of nature Sly & the Family Stone were at this point of their career. Every member of the group shines in a way that I can only describe as a revelation. It was enjoyable listening to the band break free from the studio arrangements of the songs we know and love to find new interpretations. And to think they did this twice in one evening! The heaviest of rock and the funkiest of soul jumps out of the speakers combined with a message just as relevant today as the day it was recorded. This deserves to be played LOUD!”

The complete SLY & THE FAMILY STONE—LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST OCTOBER 4th & 5th 1968 track listing is below:

CD 1 (Recorded Live at the Fillmore East, NYC, October 4, 1968-Early Show)
1. Are You Ready
2. Color Me True
3. Won’t Be Long
4. We Love All (Freedom)
5. MEDLEY: Turn Me Loose / I Can’t Turn You Loose
6. Chicken
7. Love City

CD 2 (Recorded Live at the Fillmore East, NYC, October 4, 1968 -Late Show)
1. M’ Lady
2. Don’t Burn Baby
3. Color Me True
4. Won’t Be Long
5. St. James Infirmary
6. MEDLEY: Turn Me Loose / I Can’t Turn You Loose
7. Are You Ready
8. Dance To The Music
9. Music Lover
10. MEDLEY: Life / Music Lover

CD 3 (Recorded Live at the Fillmore East, NYC, October 5, 1968-Early Show)
1. Life
2. Color Me True
3. Won’t Be Long
4. Are You Ready
5. Dance To The Music
6. Music Lover
7. M’ Lady

CD 4 (Recorded Live at the Fillmore East, NYC, October 5, 1968-Late Show)
1. M’ Lady
2. Life
3. Are You Ready
4. Won’t Be Long
5. Color Me True
6. Dance To The Music
7. Music Lover
8. Love City
MEDLEY: 9. Turn Me Loose / I Can’t Turn You Loose
10. The Riffs

The SLY & THE FAMILY STONE—LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST 2LP track listing is below:

SIDE ONE: M’ Lady ; Life ; Are You Ready SIDE TWO: Won’t Be Long ; Color Me True ; We Love All (Freedom) SIDE THREE: Dance To The Music ; Music Lover SIDE FOUR: Love City ; MEDLEY: Turn Me Loose / I Can’t Turn You Loose ; The Riffs

Finding The Funk is getting its television premiere on VH1 TONIGHT at 10PM ET/PT. Directed by cultural critic Nelson George, the new VH1 Rock Doc chronicles one of pop music’s most beloved genres, exploring both the components and the innovative artists behind funk’s rise throughout the 1970s.

The film gets a helping hand from The Roots drummer Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, who provides narration, as well as memories and insights from legends like Bootsy Collins, Sly Stone, D’Angelo, Shelia E and many more.

Sly and the Family Stone are celebrating their career – and Sly Stone’s 70th birthday – with the new anthology collection Higher!, out August 27th. To mark the release, the influential funk group dug deep into their vaults for mono single masters and old, rare recordings. At Rolling Stone, you can get an exclusive listen to Sly and the Family Stone’s take on the track “What’s That Got to Do With Me,” originally by Jim and Jean.

Listen to “What’s That Got to Do With Me” and read more at Rolling Stone.

All through the brilliant highs and the murky lows of the late ’60s and early ’70s, Sly & The Family Stone had the globe dancing to the music. The creativity of the mixed-race, mixed-gender, and mixed-genre band shines in this new 77-track, 4CD box set, Higher!. With 17 previously unreleased tracks, it’s a lot more music than you knew was there – all remastered to hit the pinnacle of sound.

Also included in Higher! is a stunningly colorful and evocatively detailed 104-page, 10-inch book of rare photographs, posters, picture sleeves, recording documents, vintage ads, and other memorabilia, along with extensive liner notes by Jeff Kaliss), track-by-track annotations, and a detailed timeline of Sly & The Family Stone’s life and career.

As a special exclusive with purchase of Higher! on Amazon.com, you’ll get a bonus CD including 6 extremely rare and previously unreleased tracks! *** UPDATE: The Amazon edition with bonus CD is now sold out. ***

AMAZON EXCLUSIVE BONUS CD Track list:

1. Stand! (long version)
2. TV Medley: Sing A Simple Song/ Hot Fun In The Summertime / I Want To Take You Higher
3. Time For Livin’ (alternate Record Plant mix)
4. Saint James Infirmary (instrumental) (live)
5. Sittin’ On My Fanny
6. Dust To Dust (instrumental)

All tracks previously unissued except track 2, available on Epic/Legacy 10” vinyl I Want To Take You Higher.

Sly Stone is featured on the new Funkadelic single, “The Naz,” which will be available for download on Saturday, April 20th. The single will feature Sly “on vocals telling the story of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Sly uses his trademark radio rap that he used to kick as a DJ on San Francisco’s radio station KSOL-AM. ‘He just laid it down and we built the entire song around it,'” said George Clinton in a statement. You can read more and get the single at GeorgeClinton.com.