On June 9, 2025, the world lost a musical titan: Sylvester Stewart, better known as Sly Stone, passed away, leaving behind a legacy that transformed popular music. As the frontman of Sly and the Family Stone, Stone was an architect of funk, blending genres with an artistry that remains unmatched. But long before he led one of the most influential bands of the 1960s and 1970s, Stone carved his path in the bustling music scene of San Francisco, producing psychedelic garage rock for DJ Tom Donahue’s Autumn Records. This formative period not only honed his skills but also shaped the multicultural ethos that would define his magnum opus, the Family Stone.
Born on March 15, 1943, in Denton, Texas, Stewart and his family soon relocated to Vallejo, California. Surrounded by a rich musical environment, he emerged as a child prodigy, mastering multiple instruments before adolescence. By age seven, he was playing keyboards and, by eleven, had conquered guitar, bass, and drums. His early experiences in gospel music, performing with his siblings, instilled in him a profound appreciation for harmonious collaboration and spiritual expression. Together, they formed “The Stewart Four,” recording their first single, “On the Battlefield,” when Sylvester was just thirteen.
While attending high school, Stewart involved himself in various musical endeavors, eventually joining the Viscaynes, a doo-wop group notable for its integration. It was his time with the Viscaynes that planted the seeds of his vision for the Family Stone, a racially and culturally diverse ensemble that would later become a symbol of unity and acceptance during a turbulent era in America.
In the mid-1960s, Stewart’s indelible mark on the San Francisco music scene began as a disc jockey for KSOL, where he curated soul and R&B playlists that included the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and other white performers, a rarity at the time. Simultaneously, he moonlighted as a session musician, contributing his keyboard talents to hits for icons like Dionne Warwick, Marvin Gaye, and the Ronettes, solidifying his reputation as a versatile and much sought after artist. But it was his role as chief producer for Autumn Records that richly colored his early career, profoundly influencing his future.
Under the guidance of Tom Donahue, a pioneering figure in independent radio, Autumn Records became a hub for up-and-coming artists in the San Francisco area. It was here that Stewart found himself producing notable psychedelic rock acts, such as The Beau Brummels and The Great Society, a band featuring Grace Slick before she found massive fame with Jefferson Airplane. Stewart’s production work during this period showcased his burgeoning artistry, as he melded the raw energy of garage rock with a burgeoning sense of experimentation.
One of Stewart’s notable productions was Bobby Freeman’s “C’mon And Swim,” a hit that helped put Autumn on the national map. He was also behind the mixing desk for a 45 by The Great Society, which included a young Jerry Slick and the haunting early composition that would eventually lead to “White Rabbit.” Stone’s insights into the sound and structure of popular music were groundbreaking, capturing the psychedelic zeitgeist while pushing the boundaries of conventional songwriting.
Reportedly Stewart also produced a 45 for The Psyrcle that was released on Lorna, a division of Autumn Records, however the record did not sell well regionally or nationally and no trace of it can be found today. After taking a hiatus The Psyrcle regrouped under the name The Rockets, later evolving into Crazy Horse, Neil Young’s renowned backing band.
Stewart himself released three 45 singles on Auntum Records, I Just Learned How To Swim (1964), Buttermilk (1965) and Temptation Walk Part One (1965) but with little impact.
Tom Donahue’s wide reaching influence on music through Autumn Records and his regular radio shows remains palpable to this very day. He was arguably the first DJ to harness the power of album-oriented rock, changing the way music was presented and consumed. His commitment to showcasing diverse artists, including Stone, paved the way for future integrated bands that would challenge the racial barriers of the era.
Donahue first worked as a disc jockey during the late ’40s in Charleston, West Virginia. He later worked in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia before being hired by San Francisco radio station KYA in 1961.
Donahue and fellow disk jockey Bobby Mitchell formed Autumn Records in early 1964, hiring Stewart (Sly Stone) as its principal producer. Donahue and Mitchell also produced rock concerts in the park at least two years before Bill Graham, including The Beatles final public performance on August 29, 1966.
On April 7, 1967, after the closure of his beloved Autumn Records, Donahue took over the 8 p.m. to midnight shift at FM radio station KMPX. The station allowed Donahue to play album cuts, broadcast live music, refuse to air certain commercials, make public announcements of a political and general nature, and generally get involved with the community and its concerns.
KMPX soon became the first full-time album oriented FM radio station. The format proved popular and was adopted by FM radio stations across the country. After a strike against KMPX management, Donahue and most of staff moved to KSAN-FM in May 1968. The station was virtually unchallenged as the area’s top progressive rock station for years, and Donahue became the station’s general manager in 1972.
On the verge of becoming part owner of KMPX, Donahue died of a heart attack on April 28, 1975, at the age of 46. He was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1996.
In its day, Donahue’s Autumn Records was one of the most successful independent record labels in the mid-1960s, but changes in the record-buying public’s tastes and major marketing by already established bigger labels (nearly every major record company in America and the UK signed a heavy psychedelic band by the late 1960s) led to the demise of Autumn in 1966. Most of the recording contracts were sold to Warner Bros. Records and its catalog sold to Vault Records. The owner of Vault was later a partner of JAS Records, which reissued the Autumn catalog. The Autumn Records catalog has most recently been remastered and reissued by Sundazed Records.
Finding himself of work with the demise of Autumn Records in 1966, Stewart began doing shows with his band Sly and the Stoners which included Cynthia Robinson on trumpet and backing vocals. Her voice and presence would later feature prominently as a magic key ingredient to the Sly & the Family sound. Questlove of hip hop band The Roots has since gone on to call Robinson the original “hype man”, typically in hip hop music, the backing vocalist who supports the primary performer with exclamations, interjections and ad-libs in an attempt to increase the audience’s excitement or engagement, a tradition no doubt rooted in African American gospel church culture.
At the same time Stewart’s brother Freddie was playing gigs in his band Freddie and the Stone Souls with Greg Errico and Jerry Martini. One fateful evening the two Stewart brothers made the decision to fuse both their bands together under the moniker Sly and the Family Stone, adding bassist Larry Graham, later credited with the invention of the slapping technique on electric bass, radically expanding the tonal vocabulary of bass guitar. Working around the Bay Area in 1967, this racially integrated, mixed-gender act made quite a strong impression. In 1968, Stewart’s sister, now known professionally as Rose Stone, would join the band. The following year they would conquer Woodstock, change the world and sell close to 10 million records. And that’s just the beginning on the story…
Sly Stone’s influences extended far beyond his own recordings. His work laid the groundwork for countless artists across many genres, from hip-hop to rock, reinterpreting his innovative sounds and themes of inclusivity. He became an avatar for the era’s aspirations and struggles, intertwining societal issues with infectious rhythms.
As we remember Sly Stone, we honor not just the music he created but the spirit he embodied. His journey, from a young boy in Texas to a pioneer of funk and a champion of diversity in music, encapsulates the essence of American creativity.
Stone’s presence in the canon of popular music will forever shine brightly, a reminder that the influences of music are as vast and varied as the people who create it. In a world often divided, Sly Stone’s legacy is one of unity, innovation, and a relentless pursuit of artistic expression that will echo through the halls of music forever.