| Graham Central Station | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | January 1974 | |||
| Recorded | 1973–1974 | |||
| Genre | Funk | |||
| Length | 38:23 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. Records | |||
| Producer | Larry Graham Russ Titelman | |||
| Graham Central Station chronology | ||||
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Graham Central Station is the self-titled debut album by former Sly and the Family Stone bass player Larry Graham's new band Graham Central Station.
In late 1972, Larry Graham quit Sly and the Family Stone because of tensions with group leader Sly Stone. After agreeing to produce a band named Hot Chocolate (not to be confused with British pop band Hot Chocolate), he decided to join the band and renamed them Graham Central Station in 1973.
The cover photo was taken at the Third and Townsend Southern Pacific Depot in San Francisco. [1] The station was demolished shortly afterward from 1975—1976.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
Released in 1974, the album peaked at number twenty on the Billboard Top Soul Albums charts while the single, "Can You Handle It?" peaked at #9 on the Billboard Soul Singles chart.
In his review for Allmusic, Donald A. Guarisco called the track "Hair" "pure magic," adding that it "wraps a clever lyric about tolerance around a huge groove driven by one of Graham's serpentine basslines." He also called out "Can You Handle It?" as another highlight and credited "Ain’t No Fun to Me" and "We Be's Gettin' Down" with making the album "equal parts pop-soul and funk" respectively. [3]
While not released as a single, the track "Hair" went on to become one of Graham's most popular compositions among fans. Graham has said that like many of his songs, it was built around the bassline, which opens the track.
In a 1995 interview, Graham said of the song's origins;
"Hair. I got into that song because people used to really ask me everywhere; 'Is that really all your hair?' Because I had this hair that was like...BOOM. I mean it was like...you know, hanging down, big 'fro—super 'fro. And people would literally ask me, so that's why I wrote the song. [4]
"People" was sampled by Das EFX and KAM while "It Ain't No Fun to Me" was sampled by Da Lench Mob. "It Ain't No Fun to Me" on this album is a cover of the Al Green song. [5] [6] The line "People, people, people" was also used on Santana's Supernatural as part of "The Calling"
All songs written by Larry Graham except where indicated. Timings taken from original Warner Bros LP.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "We've Been Waiting" | 0:57 | |
| 2. | "It Ain't No Fun To Me" | Al Green | 5:11 |
| 3. | "Hair" | 4:55 | |
| 4. | "We Be's Gettin' Down" | 4:43 | |
| 5. | "Tell Me What It Is" | 4:56 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Can You Handle It?" | 5:10 | |
| 7. | "People" | Larry Graham, Freddie Stone | 4:31 |
| 8. | "Why?" | 3:37 | |
| 9. | "Ghetto" | 4:23 |
with:
| Chart (1974) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Billboard Pop Albums | 48 [7] |
| Billboard Top Soul Albums | 20 [8] |
| Year | Single | Chart positions [9] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Pop | US Soul | |||
| 1974 | "Can You Handle It?" | 49 | 9 | |
Larry Graham Jr. is an American bassist and baritone singer, with the psychedelic soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone and as the founder and frontman of Graham Central Station. In 1980, he released the single "One in a Million You", which reached the top ten on the US Billboard Hot 100. He is credited with the invention of the slapping technique on the electric bass guitar, which radically expanded the tonal palette of the bass, although he himself refers to the technique as "thumpin' and pluckin'".
Sly and the Family Stone was an American funk band formed in San Francisco, California in 1966 and active until 1983. They are considered to be pivotal in the development of funk, soul, R&B, rock, and psychedelic music. Their core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist Sly Stone, and included Stone's brother and singer/guitarist Freddie Stone, sister and singer/keyboardist Rose Stone, trumpeter Cynthia Robinson, drummer Greg Errico, saxophonist Jerry Martini, and bassist Larry Graham. The band was the first major American rock group to have a racially integrated, mixed-gender lineup.
Sylvester Stewart, better known by his stage name Sly Stone, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer who is most famous for his role as frontman for Sly and the Family Stone, playing a critical role in the development of funk with his pioneering fusion of soul, rock, psychedelia and gospel in the 1960s and 1970s. AllMusic stated that "James Brown may have invented funk, but Sly Stone perfected it," and credited him with "creating a series of euphoric yet politically charged records that proved a massive influence on artists of all musical and cultural backgrounds." Crawdaddy! has credited him as the founder of the "progressive soul" movement.
Graham Central Station was an American funk band named after founder Larry Graham. The name is a pun on New York City's Grand Central Terminal, often colloquially called Grand Central Station.
"Everyday People" is a 1968 song composed by Sly Stone and first recorded by his band, Sly and the Family Stone. It was the first single by the band to go to number one on the Soul singles chart and the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. It held that position on the Hot 100 for four weeks, from February 9 to March 8, 1969, and is remembered as one of the most popular songs of the 1960s. Billboard ranked it as the No. 5 song of 1969.
Stand! is the fourth album by soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone, released in April 1969. Written and produced by lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Sly Stone, Stand! is considered an artistic high-point of the band's career. Released by Epic Records, just before the group's celebrated performance at the Woodstock festival, it became the band's most commercially successful album to date. It includes several well-known songs, among them hit singles, such as "Sing a Simple Song", "I Want to Take You Higher", "Stand!", and "Everyday People". The album was reissued in 1990 on compact disc and vinyl, and again in 2007 as a remastered numbered edition digipack CD with bonus tracks and, in the UK, as only a CD with bonus tracks.
Dance to the Music is the second studio album by funk/soul band Sly and the Family Stone, released in 1968 on Epic/CBS Records. It contains the Top Ten hit single of the same name, which was influential in the formation and popularization of the musical subgenre of psychedelic soul and helped lay the groundwork for the development of funk music.
"Dance to the Music" is a 1967 hit single by soul/funk/rock band Sly and the Family Stone for the Epic/CBS Records label. It was the first single by the band to reach the Billboard Pop Singles Top 10, peaking at #8 and the first to popularize the band's sound, which would be emulated throughout the black music industry and dubbed "psychedelic soul". It was later ranked #223 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
"Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" is a 1969 song recorded by Sly and the Family Stone. The song, released as a double A-side single with "Everybody Is a Star", reached number one on the soul single charts for five weeks, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1970. Billboard ranked the record as the No. 19 song of 1970.
"Stand!" is a 1969 song by the soul/rock/funk band Sly and the Family Stone Issued as a single that year by Epic Records, it reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 14 on the Hot Soul Songs charts.
"Sing a Simple Song" is a 1968 song by the soul/funk band Sly and the Family Stone, the B-side to their #1 hit "Everyday People". The song is sung in turn by Sly Stone, Freddie Stone, Rose Stone, and Larry Graham, with shouted spoken word sections by Cynthia Robinson. As with nearly all of Sly and the Family Stone's songs, Sylvester "Sly Stone" Stewart was credited as the sole songwriter.
"Hot Fun in the Summertime" is a 1969 song recorded by Sly and the Family Stone. The single was released just prior to the band's high-profile performance at Woodstock, which greatly expanded their fanbase. The song peaked at number 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart, kept out of the number 1 spot by "I Can't Get Next to You" by The Temptations. "Hot Fun in the Summertime" also peaked at number 3 on the U.S. Billboard soul singles chart in autumn 1969. It is ranked as the seventh biggest U.S. hit of 1969, and the 65th in Canada.
Real Men... Wear Black is a studio album by the funk group Cameo released in 1990 on Atlanta Artists/Mercury Records. The album reached No. 18 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart.
Betty Davis is the eponymous debut studio album by American funk singer Betty Davis, released through Just Sunshine Records in 1973. The album was produced by Greg Errico and features contributions from a number of noted musicians, including Neal Schon, Merl Saunders, Sylvester, Larry Graham, Pete Sears, and The Pointer Sisters.
There's a Riot Goin' On is the fifth studio album by American funk and soul band Sly and the Family Stone. It was recorded from 1970 to 1971 at Record Plant Studios in Sausalito, California and released later that year on November 1 by Epic Records. The recording was dominated by band frontman/songwriter Sly Stone during a period of escalated drug use and intra-group tension.
Release Yourself is the second album by Graham Central Station, released in 1974. The cover photograph was taken at Old Saint Hilary's Church, Tiburon, California.
Ain't No 'Bout-A-Doubt It is the third album by Graham Central Station. Released in 1975, the album peaked at number four on the Billboard Top Soul Albums. The single, "Your Love", was a number-one hit on the Soul Singles chart.
Mirror is the fourth album by Graham Central Station, released in 1976. The album peaked at number seven on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart.
Now Do U Wanta Dance is the fifth album by Graham Central Station. Released on April 1, 1977, the album peaked at number twelve on the Billboard Top Soul Albums.
My Radio Sure Sounds Good to Me is album by Larry Graham & Graham Central Station. Released in 1978, the record marked the first time that Graham called his band Larry Graham & Graham Central Station. The album peaked at number eighteen on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart.
