The Greatest American Rock Band Bracket!
Second Round, Funk/R&B/Blues Division
Sly and the Family Stone (1) vs. Prince & the Revolution (4)
Funky peace and love-spreaders versus R&B superstars
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Sly and the Family Stone:
"Sly & the Family Stone harnessed all of the disparate musical and social trends of the late '60s, creating a wild, brilliant fusion of soul, rock, R&B, psychedelia, and funk that broke boundaries down without a second thought. The Family Stone was comprised of men and women, and Blacks and whites, making the band the first fully integrated group in rock's history. That integration shone through the music, as well as the group's message. Before Stone, very few soul and R&B groups delved into political and social commentary; after him, it became a tradition. The Family Stone's arrangements were ingenious, filled with unexpected group vocals, syncopated rhythms, punchy horns, and pop melodies." --Allmusic.com Popularity
Influence:
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Prince and the Revolution:
"No other artist of the rock & roll era compares to Prince. He was the rare combination of a visionary pop conceptualist and master musician who could capture the sounds he imagined, a quality that fueled his remarkable success in the 1980s. Ideas came to Prince so quickly, they couldn't be contained on his own records, either with or without his backing band the Revolution. Prince and the Revolution existed in a formal capacity from only 1984 through 1986, but the origin of the diverse band dates back to 1979, when Prince assembled a team of musicians to help him tour in support of his self-titled second album. There wasn't an area of pop music in the '80s that didn't bear [their] influence: it could be heard in freaky funk and R&B slow jams, in thick electro-techno and neo-psychedelic rock, and right at the top of the pop charts." --AllMusic.com Popularity
Influence:
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