Album · Sly and the Family Stone
There’s a Riot Goin’ On by Sly and the Family Stone
There’s a Riot Goin’ On is an album by Sly and the Family Stone, released in 1971. 1 song from it has charted on rock radio countdowns, with 5 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Family Affair”, on 5 lists with a best position of #128.
There's a Riot Goin' On, the fifth studio album by Sly and the Family Stone, landed on Epic in November 1971, and it's the sound of the party ending. Sly Stone produced it and all but took it over, working through 1970 and 1971 at the Record Plant in Sausalito and in his home studio in Bel Air, amid heavy drug use and a band pulling apart.
The sunshine of the old hits is gone. In its place: murky, edgy funk, a primitive drum machine ticking away, overdub piled on overdub until the mix turns thick as fog, and songs soaked in apathy and disillusion about fame and the fading '60s counterculture. It was going to be called Africa Talks to You until Marvin Gaye's What's Going On prompted a change. Reviews were mixed, but it topped the Billboard pop and soul album charts, "Family Affair" went to number one, and funk, jazz-funk and hip hop have been living in its shadow ever since.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from There’s a Riot Goin’ On on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Family Affair | 5 | #128 | – | 2001–2026 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.