“Walking in Jesus Name” (1952) – The Stewart Four * Writer unknown * 78: “On the Battlefield” / “Walking in Jesus Name” * Label: Church of God in Christ
Emerging from the contradictory little trail of written info about this 78 is a consensus that it appeared in 1952 when young Sylvester Stewart, later to be known as Sly Stone, was nine years old. The lone voice you hear is his, and so, too, might be the guitar, but that might also assume overdubbing. Would such studio layering be going on in a genre and era in which direct recording was the norm? Stewart’s shy but soulful delivery is a marvel, and it sounds like he’s right up close to the mic and trying not to wake anybody up. It’s an unusual sound in the exultant gospel realm, but it foretells the quirky in-your-ear vocals we’d later hear on There’s a Riot Goin’ On. The other side of the record lets us hear the other Stewart siblings (Rose, Freddie, and Vaetta—each of whom would later take part in their big brother’s Family Stone band) singing backup. Look at a photo of the four siblings with mother Alpha Stewart at the piano as you listen.