A Whole New Thing is the debut album by funk/soul band Sly and the Family Stone, released in 1967 on Epic/CBS Records. The album was released to mixed criticism and failed to make an impact from a commercial standpoint and did not chart. CBS Records executive Clive Davis prevailed upon band leader Sly Stone to create a more commercial album; the result was the album Dance to the Music. Unlike later Sly and the Family Stone albums, A Whole New Thing was recorded live in the studio instead of being overdubbed and featured less of a pop feel than later releases such as Dance to the Music and Stand!. The lead vocals are shared between Sly Stone, Freddie Stone, and Larry Graham; Rose Stone would not join the band until they began work on Dance to the Music.

A Whole New Thing
Studio album by Sly and the Family Stone
Released	October 1967 1970 (re-release)
Recorded	June–September 1967
Genre	Soul, funk
Length	38:01
Label	Epic
Producer	Sly Stone
Sly and the Family Stone chronology
A Whole New Thing (1967) Dance to the Music (1968)
Cover for 1970 reissue
1970 reissue cover for A Whole New Thing. Note the use of photographs similar to those on the cover of the Sly & the Family Stone Greatest Hits album, and the inclusion of Rose Stone as a member of the Family Stone. Rose Stone was not a member of the band at the time of this LP.

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Austin Chronicle	[2]
BBC Music	favorable[3]
The Guardian	[4]
Rolling Stone (1967)	unfavorable[5]
Rolling Stone (2007)	[6]
Stylus	B−[7]
Uncut	[8]

Track listing

All tracks written by Sylvester Stewart, and produced and arranged by Sly Stone for Stone Flower Productions.

Side one

1. "Underdog" – 3:59
2. "If This Room Could Talk" – 3:00
3. "Run, Run, Run" – 3:14
4. "Turn Me Loose" – 1:52
5. "Let Me Hear It from You" – 3:35
6. "Advice" – 2:22

Side two

1. "I Cannot Make It" – 3:20
2. "Trip to Your Heart" – 3:43
3. "I Hate to Love Her" – 3:30
4. "Bad Risk" – 3:04
5. "That Kind of Person" – 4:25
6. "Dog" – 3:10

CD bonus tracks

• 1995 CD reissue:
  • "What Would I Do"
• 2007 CD limited edition reissue:
  • "Underdog" (mono B-side version) [3:04]
  • "Let Me Hear It From You" (mono B-side version) [3:28]
  • "Only One Way Out of This Mess" [3:51]
  • "What Would I Do" [4:05]
  • "You Better Help Yourself" (instrumental version) [4:19]

Personnel

Sly and the Family Stone

• Sly Stone – vocals, organ, guitar, piano, celeste, harmonica, and more
• Freddie Stone – vocals, guitar
• Larry Graham – vocals, bass guitar
• Cynthia Robinson – trumpet, vocal ad-libs
• Jerry Martini – saxophone
• Greg Errico – drums
• Little Sister (Vet Stone, Mary McCreary, Elva Mouton) – background vocals

References