If You Want Me To Stay by Red Hot Chili Peppers

If You Want Me to Stay" is a 1973 hit single by Sly & the Family Stone, from their album Fresh. The single was the band's final Top 20 pop hit, and is the best-known of its post-There's a Riot Goin' On recordings.The song has been covered extensively since its introduction, by artists ranging from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, to Etta James, to Eric Benet, to Mercury Rev, to Victor Wooten, to Soulive, to Pama International. The song has also been featured in the movies "Talk to Me" and "Dead Presidents".


Lyrics:

If you want me to stay
I'll be around today
To be available for you to see
I'm about to go there
Then you'll know
For me to stay here
I've got to be me
You'll never be in doubt
That's what it's all about
You can't take me for granted and smile
Count the days I'm gone
Forget reachin' me by phone
Cause I promise
I'll be gone for a while
And when you see me again
I hope that you have been
The kind of person
That you really are now
You got to get it straight
How could I ever be late
When you're my woman
Taking up my time
Oh how could I ever allow
I guess I wonder how
I could get out a pocket for fun
When you know that
You're never number two
Number one's gonna be number one

I'll be good
I wish I could
Get this message over to you now

When you see me again
I hope that you have been
The kind of person
That you really are now
I'll be so good
I wish I could
Get this message over to you now

Get this message over to you now
I'll be so good
I wish I could

Category:

Music

Tags:

• If
• You
• Want
• Me
• To
• Stay
• Red
• Hot
• Chili
• Peppers
• What
• Hit!?
• Anthony
• Kiedis
• Hillel
• Slovak
• Flea
• Cliff
• Martinez
• funk
• rock

[mr208573]

im 107 years old and i started playing bass yesterday

[housebanks22]

i bet 99% of everyone who said this version is better than sly's version is white

[cokemall]

both versions are nice, just different. rhcp is kinda rockish and sly's soulish and smooth. I think rhcp did a great job covering it, but it'll always be slys' tune

[NirvanaRHCPfan]

@housebanks22 I'm black and I prefer this version. Probably because I heard this one first.

[Qoooba95]

ppl always say that rhcp version of a song is better than original.

[bergjasper]

@bifferspice lmao "pea" is a great song though ;D

[saintjasin]

I can tell you this, the RHCP version is better for sampling the bassline... sly's kicks are hard to EQ out.

[bifferspice]

@bergjasper "pea" says differently :-)

[bergjasper]

and what's with all this competition Sly vs RHCP, both are completely different, why can't one simply love both versions without hating on the other...?

[bergjasper]

@bifferspice what? holdon a second, ANY RHCP song is worth listening to!

[bifferspice]

everyone having a go at RHCP, i'd say this. yes, sly's version is the only version worth listening to - this is purely a tribute. but it was thanks to this that i got into Sly and i'll always be grateful for that. Thanks to their lyrics on BSSM, i also got into Bukowski and Roberta Flack. I owe them an awful lot for that! So just chill your hatred, and go listen to BSSM, then listen to Sly, and just be glad the world can be good sometimes