View source for Everyday People

{{other uses}}
{{for|the Arrested Development song based on Everyday People|People Everyday}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox song
| name        = Everyday People
| cover       = Epic-sly-everyday-people.jpg
| alt         =
| type        = single
| artist      = [[Sly and the Family Stone]]
| album       = [[Stand!]]
| B-side      = [[Sing a Simple Song]]
| released    = November 1968
| recorded    = 1968
| studio      =
| venue       =
| genre       = {{flatlist|
* [[Rock music|Rock]]<ref name= "Marsh 1989">{{cite book|first=Dave|last=Marsh|title=The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5t5DYDniSHEC|date=1989|publisher=[[Plume (publisher)|Plume]]|isbn=0-452-26305-0|page=18}}</ref>
* [[Pop music|pop]]<ref>{{cite web|last= Pitchfork Staff |title= The 200 Best Songs of the 1960s |website= [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date= August 18, 2006 |url= https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/6405-the-200-greatest-songs-of-the-1960s/|quote= Sly smoothed out his incendiary funk into a couple minutes of gently buoyant pop...|access-date= October 12, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/16/sly-stones-greatest-songs-ranked|title=Sly Stone's greatest songs – ranked!|first=Alexis|last=Petridis|date=March 16, 2023|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=June 30, 2025|quote=Everyday People distils the band’s initial essence – multiple vocals, propulsive bass, lyrics preaching tolerance in a fractured US – into two minutes and 22 seconds of perfect pop.}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/sly-and-the-family-stone-20-essential-songs-79782/everyday-people-1969-37485/|title=Sly and the Family Stone: 20 Essential Songs|first=Oliver|last=Wang|date=June 9, 2025|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=June 30, 2025|quote='Everyday People,' was an undeniably feel-good pop hit...}}</ref>
* [[psychedelic soul]]<ref name= "Billboard Pop 500">{{cite magazine|last= Billboard Staff|title= The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List|magazine= [[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |url= https://www.billboard.com/lists/best-pop-songs-all-time-hits/|date= October 19, 2023|access-date= February 11, 2024|quote= Sly and the Family Stone’s euphoric slice of psychedelic soul, presented by its co-ed, biracial lineup...}}</ref>
}}
| length      = 2:22
| label       = [[Epic Records|Epic]]<br> <small>5-10407</small>
| writer      = [[Sly Stone]]
| producer    = Sly Stone
| prev_title  = [[Life (Sly and the Family Stone song)|Life]]
| prev_title2 = [[M'Lady (Sly and the Family Stone song)|M'Lady]]
| prev_year   = 1968
| title       =
| title2      = [[Sing a Simple Song]]
| next_title  = [[Stand! (song)|Stand!]]
| next_title2 = [[I Want to Take You Higher]]
| next_year   = 1969
| misc        = {{External music video|{{YouTube|YUUhDoCx8zc|"Everyday People"}}}}
{{Audio sample
 | type        = single
 | file        = Slyfam-everydaypeep-1969.ogg
 | description = "Everyday People"
}}
}}
"'''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|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] chart.<ref>{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=54}}</ref>  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.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=27 December 1969 |title=TOP HOT 100 SINGLES -1969 |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/60s/1969/Billboard%201969-12-27.pdf |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|pages=16}}</ref>

==Overview==
{{Original research section|date=May 2016}}
The song is one of [[Sly Stone]]'s pleas for peace and equality between differing races and social groups, a major theme and focus for the band. The Family Stone featured [[Whites|white]] members [[Greg Errico]] and [[Jerry Martini]] in its lineup, as well as female members [[Rose Stone]] and [[Cynthia Robinson]]; making it an early major integrated band in rock history. Sly and the Family Stone's message was about peace and equality through music, and this song reflects the same.

Unlike the band's more typically [[funk]]y and [[Psychedelic music|psychedelic]] records, "Everyday People" is a mid-tempo number with a more mainstream pop feel. Sly, singing the main verses for the song, explains that he is "no better / and neither are you / we are the same / whatever we do."

Sly's sister [[Rose Stone]] and Cynthia Robinson sing bridging sections using the cadence of the "[[wikt:na-na na-na boo-boo|na-na na-na boo-boo]]" children's taunt, also known as the children's nursery rhyme Five Little Monkeys Swinging From a Tree. The chant mocks the futility of people hating each other for being tall, short, rich, poor, fat, skinny, [[White people|white]], [[Black people|black]], or anything else. The bridges of the song contain the line "different strokes for different folks", which became a popular [[catchphrase]] in 1969 (and inspired the name of the later television series, ''[[Diff'rent Strokes]]''). Rose's singing ends each part of the bridge with the words:  "And so on, and so on, and scooby dooby dooby".{{efn|The children's animated TV series ''[[Scooby-Doo]]'' (often featuring the phrase "scooby dooby doo") debuted on CBS in September 1969, seven months after “Everyday People” hit #1.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Breiham|first=Tom|date=2018-11-19|title=The Number Ones: Sly & The Family Stone's "Everyday People"|url=https://www.stereogum.com/2023240/the-number-ones-sly-the-family-stones-everyday-people/columns/the-number-ones/|access-date=2021-09-05|website=[[Stereogum]]|language=en}}</ref>}}

During the chorus, all of the singing members of the band (Sly, Rosie, [[Larry Graham]], and Sly's brother [[Freddie Stone]]) proclaim that "I am everyday people," meaning that each of them (and each listener as well) should consider himself or herself as parts of one whole, not of smaller, specialized factions.

[[Bass guitar|Bassist]] [[Larry Graham]] contends that the track featured the first instance of the "[[Slapping (music)|slap bass technique]]", which would become a staple of funk and other genres.  The technique involves striking a string with the thumb of the right hand (or left hand, for a left-handed player) so that the string collides with the frets, producing a metallic "clunk" at the beginning of the note. Later slap bass songs &ndash; for example, Graham's performance on "[[Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again)]]" &ndash; expanded on the technique, incorporating a complementary "pull" or "pop" component.

The third verse of Sly and the Family Stone's 1969 "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)", a No. 1 hit by February 1970, references the titles of "Everyday People" and several of the band's other successful songs.

"Everyday People" was included on the band's album ''[[Stand!]]'' (1969), which sold over three million copies.

== Cover versions ==
[[Joan Jett]] covered the song for her 1983 album [[Album (Joan Jett album)|''Album'']].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Grein |first=Paul |date=2025-06-11 |title=Forever No. 1: Sly & the Family Stone's 'Everyday People' |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/sly-and-the-family-stone-everyday-people-analysis-1235996306/ |access-date=2025-08-31 |website=Billboard |language=en-US}}</ref> Her version of the song peaked at #37 on the [[Billboard Hot 100]] and #43 on the [[Dance Club Songs|US Dance Club Songs]] charts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joan Jett & the Blackhearts {{!}} Biography, Music & News |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/joan-jett-the-blackhearts/ |access-date=2025-08-31 |website=Billboard |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[Maroon 5]] also recorded a cover of the song for a [[Different Strokes by Different Folks|Sly and the Family Stone tribute album]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/beck-moby-toast-sly-stone-102354/ |title=Beck, Moby Toast Sly Stone |last=Devenish |first=Colin |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=February 25, 2004 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250605104305/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/beck-moby-toast-sly-stone-102354/ |archive-date=June 5, 2025}}</ref> [[Cher]] and [[Future (rapper)|Future]] covered the song for a 2017 [[Gap Inc.|Gap]] advertisement.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/future-cher-gap-ad-everyday-people-cover-video-7964783/ |title=Watch Future & Cher's Auto-Tuned Cover of 'Everyday People' in New Gap Ad |last=Penrose |first=Nerisha |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=September 13, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519163736/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/future-cher-gap-ad-everyday-people-cover-video-7964783/ |archive-date=May 19, 2022}}</ref> The latter's duet later went viral on TikTok in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-05-28 |title=Cher & Future's Super-Awkward 2017 Gap Commercial Is Going Viral Via TikTok Reenactments |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2309730/cher-futures-super-awkward-2017-gap-commercial-is-going-viral-via-tiktok-reenactments/news/ |access-date=2025-06-08 |website=[[Stereogum]]|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pilley |first=Max |date=2025-06-01 |title=Cher and Future's cringeworthy 2017 Gap advert is going viral on TikTok |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/cher-and-futures-cringeworthy-2017-gap-advert-is-going-viral-on-tiktok-3866459 |access-date=2025-06-08 |website=[[NME]]|language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
[[Hip hop music|Hip-hop]] group [[Arrested Development (group)|Arrested Development]] used the song as the basis of their 1992 hit, "[[People Everyday]]", which reached No. 2 on the [[UK Singles Chart]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Singles Chart Top 100 |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19921101/7501/ |access-date=2025-06-11 |website=OfficialCharts.com |publisher=[[Official Charts Company]]}}</ref> and No. 8 on the Hot 100.<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Arrested Development Chart History (Hot 100) |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/arrested-development/chart-history/hsi/ |access-date=2025-06-11 |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]}}</ref>

''[[Rolling Stone]]'' ranked "Everyday People" as No. 145 on their list of [[the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time]] in 2004<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=2008-06-22 |title=The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time : Rolling Stone |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/2 |access-date=2025-02-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622142703/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/2 |archive-date=22 June 2008 }}</ref> and No. 109 on their updated list in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-15 |title=Sly and the Family Stone, 'Everyday People' |url=https://au.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-songs-of-all-time-30065/sly-and-the-family-stone-everyday-people-30458/ |access-date=2025-02-13 |website=[[Rolling Stone Australia]]|language=en-AU}}</ref> It was listed on ''Billboard''{{'}}s 500 Best Pop Songs.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Werthman |first=Rania Aniftos, Katie Atkinson, Katie Bain, Anna Chan, Ed Christman, Hannah Dailey, Stephen Daw, Kyle Denis, Frank DiGiacomo, Thom Duffy, Chris Eggertsen, Ingrid Fajardo, Griselda Flores, Josh Glicksman, Quincy Green, Paul Grein, Lyndsey Havens, Rylee Johnston, Becky Kaminsky, Gil Kaufman, Carl Lamarre, Elias Leight, Jason Lipshutz, Joe Lynch, Meghan Mahar, Elizabeth Dilts Marshall, Rebecca Milzoff, Taylor Mims, Gail Mitchell, Melinda Newman, Jessica Nicholson, Danielle Pascual, Glenn Peoples, Isabela Raygoza, Eric Renner Brown, Kristin Robinson, Dan Rys, Marc Schneider, Andrew Unterberger, Christine |date=2023-10-19 |title=The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/best-pop-songs-all-time-hits/annie-lennox-walking-on-broken-glass/ |access-date=2025-02-13 |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Personnel==
* [[Sly Stone]]: vocals
* [[Rose Stone]]: vocals, piano
* [[Freddie Stone]]: vocals, guitar
* [[Larry Graham]]: vocals, bass guitar
* [[Greg Errico]]: drums, background vocals
* [[Jerry Martini]]: saxophone, background vocals
* [[Cynthia Robinson]]: trumpet, vocal [[ad-libs]]
* Engineered by Don Puluse
* Written and produced by Sly Stone

==Charts==
The song was ranked No. 5 on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' magazine's Top [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]] songs of 1969.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Top Records of 1969 |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Billboard-IDX/IDX/60s/1969/Billboard%201969-12-27-OCR-Page-0017.pdf |magazine=Billboard |location=Cincinnati, Ohio |publisher=Billboard Publications, Inc. |date=December 27, 1969 |access-date=November 26, 2019 }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (1968–1969)
! Peak<br/>position
|-
!scope="row"|Canada ''[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]'' Top Singles<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.5912&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.5912.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.5912|title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1969-02-17 |access-date=2018-12-15}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|2
|-
!scope="row"|New Zealand (''[[New Zealand Listener|Listener]]'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=search+listener&qartistid=733#n_view_location|title=Flavour of New Zealand - search listener|website=Flavourofnz.co.nz|access-date=June 9, 2025}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|10
|-
!scope="row"| [[UK Singles Chart|UK Singles]] (Official Charts Company)<ref>{{cite web|title=SLY & THE FAMILY STONE|website=[[Official Charts Company|Official Charts]] |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/2826/sly-and-the-family-stone/}}</ref>
|{{center|36}}
|-
{{single chart|Billboardhot100|1|artist=Sly the Family Stone|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{single chart|Billboardrandbhiphop|1|artist=Sly the Family Stone|rowheader=true}}
|}

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ 2025 chart performance for "Everyday People"
! scope="col"| Chart (2025)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
! scope="row"| Japan Hot Overseas (''[[Billboard Japan]]'')<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.billboard-japan.com/charts/detail?a=d_and_a_overseas&year=2025&month=06&day=23|title=Billboard Japan Hot Overseas – Week of June 18, 2025|website=[[Billboard Japan]]|language=ja|access-date=June 18, 2025}}</ref>
| 15
|}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Sly & The Family Stone|title=Everyday People|award=Gold|source=radioscope|relyear=1968|certyear=2023|access-date=February 16, 2025}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Sly & The Family Stone|title=Everyday People|award=Silver|relyear=2006|certyear=2021|id=17397-5201-1|access-date=July 30, 2021}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|artist=Sly & The Family Stone|title=Everyday People|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1968|certyear=2025|access-date=February 14, 2025}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{YouTube|3JvkaUvB-ec|"Everyday People" audio}}

{{Sly & the Family Stone}}
{{Joan Jett}}
{{Aretha Franklin}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:1968 songs]]
[[Category:1968 singles]]
[[Category:1969 singles]]
[[Category:1983 singles]]
[[Category:Sly and the Family Stone songs]]
[[Category:Joan Jett songs]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles]]
[[Category:Cashbox number-one singles]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Sly Stone]]
[[Category:Songs written by Sly Stone]]
[[Category:Songs about racism and xenophobia]]
[[Category:Epic Records singles]]
[[Category:Direction Records singles]]