*Sly Stone’s daughters are sharing fond memories of their father amid the release of his memoir, “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” — which dropped this week.
As Time reports, the book was written for Auwa Books—Questlove’s book imprint—and named after Stone’s group’s 1969 hit. Per the outlet, the book unpacks “Stone’s musical innovations, personal demons, and efforts to bring social change to the U.S. as the frontman of one of the country’s first major racially integrated, mixed-gender bands.”
“People liked to say that there were two personalities in me. A doctor said it when I was in rehab, that Sylvester was welcome in meetings but Sly couldn’t come,” Stone said in an interview with Time. “My dad even said there were Sly days and Sylvester days. I never really thought that’s how it was. I was the same person no matter what. But there was a myth, some stories that people liked to tell that were partly true and some that weren’t true at all. I had to get past some of the Sly Stone stories, and the only way to get past them was to go right through them,” he added.
In a new interview with Billboard, Stone’s daughters Phunne and Novena speak out about growing up with the famous musician.
When asked to share a favorite memory of Stone, Novena said, “I didn’t get to see my dad a whole lot growing up. But one day, when I was around eight years old, he picked me up in his cool car and he got me a Game Boy — which I really wanted — and some video games to go with it. Then we went to a magic store because he was really into magic stuff too. And he got me this magic penny thing, which was really cool. So we were kind of like being kids together. After that, we went to a boxing match, which was really random. But it actually was really smart that he got me the Game Boy first, because I just played with my Game Boy while he enjoyed the boxing match.
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Phunne added: “I’m going to fast forward to when I was a little older, early 30s. I’d come to town to visit him. He picked me up in his van and he’s just driving and driving. I’m on crutches because I’d just had a surgery on my ankle. So I’m ready to go and put my foot up. I’m like, “Where are we going?” And he says, “Don’t worry about it…” And he’s dressed all weird in a black vest, no shirt, boxing shorts, boxing shoes and this Shirley Temple wig. I was confused,” she explained.
Phunne continued, “It took us probably 45 minutes to get through traffic. But we’re in a residential area up in the hills. We park and all these people start rushing to the van. I’m like, “What is this, dad?” And he says [mimicking Stone’s voice], “We’re at Eddie Murphy’s house. We’re going to watch the fight.” [Both sisters laugh.] And we sat next to Louis Farrakhan. I met a lot of people and bumped into a lot of people because of my crutches. That was a very interesting and fun day.”
Below are additional excerpts from Phunne and Novena’s conversation with Billboard.
When did you understand that your dad was Sly Stone?
Phunne: I was fairly young, four or five. I can remember being at a show. I think Bootsy Collins was opening that for my dad. And mom had to go back to the hotel and grab something. She never left me with people. But she left me with Jerry Martini. So I was having a fit, because I want my mommy. So finally the show begins and Bootsy Collins is on stage. I’m on stage left behind the curtains. But I can see all the way across to stage right and I see my mom is back. I’m screaming “Mommy, mommy,” but the music is loud. But I could see her saying, “Noooooo.” But I just shot across the stage, zigzagging around the dancers. So I knew then that [he] was big, given all the people there.
Novena: For me, it was more so connected to having his albums at home. It was mostly me and my mom spending a lot of time at home in Sausalito (Calif.) And because she loves music, the centerpiece of the living room was pretty much the record player, [with] albums by like Michael Jackson, Guns N’ Roses, Stevie Wonder and then Sly & the Family Stone. I always remember knowing that [those wore] my dad’s records. And maybe actually a little earlier too. I have like a faint memory of being in a limousine with him and my mom — and you know, limousines aren’t a normal way to travel. So I was like, “This is special; he’s important.” You start piecing things together little by little.
Is there a surprising revelation in the book that you didn’t know beforehand?
Novena: I feel like the conversations that I have with him haven’t been really long and detailed. It will usually be a quick answer. Then that’s it. So it was cool for me to see what felt like him sitting down and talking for a really long time, and telling stories back to back to back. He has a way with words. I don’t know if “surprise” is the right word. But it just struck me a something that I don’t really get to experience, as far as like a vibe.
Also interesting is his version of how he met my mom, which was different than what she told me. It was just a sample of how different people have different memories of how something went down or add different things to it. That’s an overall theme of the book, which he keeps bringing up: A memory is not necessarily like the truth. It’s like a story. And everybody has different stories, depending on how they look at things.
Phunne: I just started reading it, because I’ve been super busy. But I was there during a lot of the interviews done for the book. And I’ve heard a lot of those stories over the years, through my mom and other band members. So I was already shocked. I haven’t been shocked again yet. [Both laugh.]
Read the full interview at billboard.com.
READ MORE: Reclusive Sly Stone Participating in Upcoming Documentary About his Life and Impact
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