Sing a Simple Song
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Sing a Simple Song" is a 1968 song by the soul/rock/funk band Sly & the Family Stone, the b-side to their #1 hit "Everyday People". The song's lyrics, sung in turn by Sly Stone, Freddie Stone, Rose Stone, and Larry Graham, with spoken word (or, rather, shouted word) sections by Cynthia Robinson, offer a simple solution for dealing with the problems and paradoxes of existence : "Sing a simple song!" As with nearly all of Sly & the Family Stone's songs, Sylvester "Sly Stone" Stewart was credited as the sole songwriter.
The song is one of Sly & the Family Stone's signature songs, and has been covered by a number of acts, including Dusty Springfield, Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Temptations, The Jackson 5, The Commodores, Miles Davis (during the Jack Johnson sessions), The Meters, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, Prince, The Budos Band, Maceo Parker and others. It has also been sampled by numerous artists, including 2Pac, Jodeci Wu-Tang Clan, Public Enemy, De La Soul, Digital Underground ("Humpty Dance"), Cypress Hill, Gorillaz and Adina Howard.
The bass line for this song was used by Jimi Hendrix and Band of Gypsys two years later in the 1970 song "We Gotta Live Together". Whether the bass line was knowingly plagiarized is the subject of much debate by musical scholars.
Personnel
- Lead Vocals by Sly Stone, Rose Stone, Freddie Stone, and Larry Graham
- Background Vocals by Rose Stone, Freddie Stone, Larry Graham, and Little Sister (Vet Stone, Mary McCreary, Elva Mouton)
- Piano by Rose Stone
- Guitar by Freddie Stone
- Bass by Larry Graham
- Drums by Greg Errico
- Horns by Jerry Martini (tenor saxophone) and Cynthia Robinson (trumpet)
- Written and produced by Sly Stone
