Sly Stone claims ex-manager cost him $80 million

By Eriq Gardner

It's not uncommon for a musicians to accuse their managers of cheating them out of money, but few complaints come close to the scope of allegations made by funk and soul pioneer Sly Stone against ex-manager Gerald Goldstein on Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

According to the complaint, Stone alleges that Goldstein diverted about $80 million in royalties, leaving him "to live hand to mouth, at times homeless and dependent on social security payments."

Stone says that in 1989, he signed what he believed to be a standard management agreement, but the document was allegedly a contract allowing Goldstein to take over all the rights to collect his royalties. For the next 20 years, the musician says he was told there were little or no royalties due and that the IRS had placed liens and levies on his income.

The complaint goes on to allege that Goldstein engaged in a scheme to borrow money from (co-defendant) Mercantile National Bank against Stone's future royalties and that Goldstein created a variety companies to purchase and hold real property.

Here's the entire complaint, which includes 19 causes of action and the 1989 employment agreement as evidence.

Stone seeks damages from Goldstein, a variety of trusts, and a few music industry giants including Sony Music, Warner/Chappell, BMI, and Soundexchange.

He is repped by Robert Allan, Rod Rummelsburg and Stella Wei-Ying Yap at Malibu's Allan Law Group.

Comments

[David Konow]

I think a crack pipe cost him that money, as well as his career.

[Henry Giles]

You know?, it still amazes me that every time a man of color complains about mis-management in the music industry, some dofus (like yourself)throws in his two cents and includes the crackhead remark. Does it ever enter into that very, very small brain of yours that the allegations just might have true legal merit. I seldom ever see these kind of remarks when it concerns a white music or film superstar and I find these remarks rather bigoted. So do me a favor, and keep your bigoted remarks to yourself. Now hang That in your crack pipe and smoke on it for a while. Peace!

[David Konow]

It has nothing to do with black or white. Anybody who knows anything knows Sly Stone had a huge drug problem that cost him his career, which is why you've barely seen or heard from him since the '70's. I'm a big fan of his music, and am very thoroughly disgusted by what he did to himself because he was a very gifted musician, and because of drugs he lost everything. Also when you're high out of your mind, it's very easy for unscrupulous people to take advantage of you, which is also probably what happened here. A sad case either way.