Freddie Stone, co-founder of Sly & the Family Stone:: Official Site

Freddie Stone was born Frederick Stewart in Vallejo, California. He grew up in Vallejo and eventually moved to San Francisco in his late teens. Freddie recalls music being a part of his life as far back as he can remember. During his elementary years his brother and sisters sang together as "The Stewart Four". Their parents would transport them from place to place and they would sing for the people. Looking back, even then, they were recording music. Their first recording was made when Freddie was four years old. Freddie also began playing instruments at an early age. He started with wind instruments around third grade.

As a teenager, the primary sounds of the Stewart household were either those of the family or the most noted gospel singers during that era. Growing up, Freddie sang in the church choir that his mother directed. He recalls his father playing the scrub board and violin, his cousin on piano, his brother and sisters singing, and his uncle preaching. His gospel roots and the original raw music birthed in him can only be attributed to the environment he grew up in, because all of the children seem to share that same raw talent.

Freddie studied music theory and composition, and acquired skills on many of the wind and string instruments. In 1965 he formed a group called Freddie and the Stone Souls. The group played various nightclubs and dances in the San Francisco area. In 1967, Sly and the Family Stone was born. As the naked eye tells the story, there is nothing more to the making of Sly and the Family Stone than a collaboration of two brothers. As they say, "the rest is history".

As a musician, songwriter, and producer, Freddie has written songs for his sister, Rose, brother Sylvester (Sly Stone), and Larry Graham. He is also credited for his arrangement of songs on the 1995 release of the Promise Keepers album.

Along with his current musical endeavors, Freddie Stone (now Pastor Frederick Stewart) is entering his seventh year as pastor of Evangelist Temple Fellowship Center, in Vallejo, California (the city where it all began). Freddie lives with his wife, Melody and his two youngest daughters, Joy and Kristi.