best-of's don't come much better than this: 20 tracks from one of the superlative bands of all time. sly stone's gift as producer and ringleader was to mesh the emerging big-band, good-time funk sound of the late 1960s with an unerring sense of melody, structure and message. the result, on early hits like 'dance to the music', 'm'lady', 'stand' and 'everyday people', was some of most gleeful, high-spirited and uplifting music ever made. later, as the 1960s gave way to the long hangover of the 70s and stone himself descended into drug abuse, sophisticated songs like 'if you want me to stay' and 'family affair' took on a melancholic, reflective tinge, while a sharp political edge found its way into 'runnin' away' and 'don't call me nigger, whitey'. genius through and through.