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Sly Stone’s memoir recalls that the idea of marrying Kathy Silva at Madison Square Garden started in a phone call with Epic Records executive Steve Paley. The wedding itself took place on June 5, 1974, before a Sly and the Family Stone concert. The 2023 excerpt announcement on the Official Sly Stone Site revisits the origin of the plan; it is a retrospective memoir passage, not news of a newly discovered event.
What Sly Stone’s memoir excerpt says
In the passage from Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), Stone describes sitting at home thinking about his relationship with Kathy Silva and their son, Sylvester Jr. He says he called Paley and proposed the idea of getting married soon. When Paley asked where, Stone first suggested Hawaii, Silva’s home state, then New York, a city he says he liked for its streets, sushi and his residence at the Century.
Stone recalls that one of them suggested Madison Square Garden and the other laughed. “But the seed had been planted,” he writes. The excerpt establishes how Stone remembered the idea taking shape; it does not, on its own, supply a complete account of the ceremony that followed. The official excerpt notice, posted October 4, 2023, reproduces the passage.
When and how the Garden wedding happened
Stone and Silva married at Madison Square Garden on June 5, 1974, before a Sly and the Family Stone concert. George W. S. Trow’s contemporaneous New Yorker feature, published August 26, 1974, reports that the decision to hold the wedding there had been made by May 23. Trow describes planning that involved Epic/CBS personnel, publicist Bobby Zarem, designer Joe Eula, Halston and Paley, as well as arrangements for a reception at the Waldorf-Astoria’s Starlight Roof. His account offers a view of the preparations at the time, rather than a neutral, all-knowing record of every detail. Read Trow’s account in The New Yorker.
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A later Recording Academy account from 2023 describes the concert and ceremony as a shared Garden event. It says Eddie Kendricks performed first, Stone’s mother and niece offered religious acknowledgements, and a reception followed at the Waldorf-Astoria. The Academy puts attendance at almost 20,000; that is its reported estimate, not a definitive count.
Why get married at a concert?
Stone’s remembered explanation was practical as well as personal. As quoted by Sports Illustrated in 2026, he wrote, “I could do a gig, get paid, and get married at the same time.” The same article quotes his recollection of a ticket costing $8.50 for both the wedding and concert. That is a memoir recollection of a ticket, not an established price range for the event. Read the Sports Illustrated account.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the different accounts can tell us
| Source | Perspective and date | What it supports |
|---|---|---|
| Sly Stone’s official site | Memoir excerpt announced October 4, 2023 | Stone’s retrospective account of the conversation with Paley and the early Garden idea. |
| The New Yorker, George W. S. Trow | Contemporary feature, August 26, 1974 | Reporting on the preparations, decision timeline and planned Waldorf-Astoria reception. |
| Recording Academy | Memoir-based retrospective, 2023 | Later account of the event, including the almost-20,000 attendance estimate and ceremony details. |
These sources have different jobs: Stone’s memoir gives his personal recollection, while Trow’s reporting documents the event’s planning as it was unfolding. The book is Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) by Sly Stone with Ben Greenman, with a foreword by Questlove, according to publisher Macmillan.
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