Family Affair ( Sly and the Family Stone song ) - wikipedia Family Affair ( Sly and the Family Stone song ) `` Family Affair '' Single by Sly and the Family Stone from the album There 's a Riot Goin ' On B - side `` Luv N ' Haight '' Released 6 November 1971 Format 7 '' single Recorded 1971 Genre Funk electronic dance music Length 3 : 06 Label Epic 5 - 10805 Songwriter ( s ) Sly Stone Producer ( s ) Sly Stone Sly and the Family Stone singles chronology `` Thank You ( Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin ) '' / `` Everybody Is a Star '' ( 1969 ) `` Family Affair '' ( 1971 ) `` Runnin ' Away '' ( 1972 ) Music video `` Family Affair '' ( audio ) on YouTube `` Family Affair '' is a 1971 number - one hit single recorded by Sly and the Family Stone for the Epic Records label. Their first new material since the double a-sided single `` Thank You ( Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin ) '' / `` Everybody Is a Star '' nearly two years prior, `` Family Affair '' became the third and final number - one pop single for the band. Rolling Stone magazine later ranked the song # 139 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song version by John Legend, Joss Stone, and Van Hunt, won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at 49th Annual Grammy Awards. Contents 1 Overview 2 Notable covers and derivative recordings 3 Personnel 4 Chart history 4.1 Sly & the Family Stone version 4.2 Shabba Ranks version 5 See also 6 References 7 External links Overview `` Family Affair '' The hit single features a programmed rhythm track and electric piano - based instrumentation. Problems playing this file ? See media help. Released on November 6, 1971, `` Family Affair '' was markedly different from the earlier Sly & the Family Stone hits. `` Family Affair '' is a somber, Hohner Pianet electric piano based record with a rhythm box ( or drum machine ) providing the rhythm, making it the first number - one hit to feature a programmed rhythm track. Sly Stone and his sister Rose sing lead on the song. Bobby Womack was invited to play rhythm guitar. The lyrics reflect the good and bad aspects of being family, with Sly delivering his part in a low funk - styled tone instead of his earlier gospel - based shout, sounding off rhythm and off key. Sly 's screams emulate a child crying. `` Family Affair '' was the most successful hit of Sly & the Family Stone 's career, peaking at number - one on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, while achieving the same on the Billboard R&B Singles chart for five weeks. Billboard ranked it as the No. 79 song for 1972. The band 's long - awaited fifth album, There 's a Riot Goin ' On, debuted at number one on the Billboard soul album charts during the same period. There 's a Riot Goin ' On was typified by a deep, dark style of funk, evident in `` Family Affair '', that earned the album a place as one of the most influential albums of all time. Recorded in his Bel Air home studio and in New York at CBS, and mixed in Los Angeles at The Record Plant, with the exception of his sister Rose singing the refrain, `` It 's a family affair '', Sly did not utilize the Family Stone for this recording. His friend Billy Preston played the keyboard lines in the song with Sly also playing keyboard as well as guitar, bass, and programming the rhythm box. According to the biography Sly and the Family Stone : An Oral History, Sly Stone felt that this song was n't strong enough to be released as a single. His manager and Epic Records -- especially A&R executive Stephen Paley -- had to convince him otherwise. Notable covers and derivative recordings `` Family Affair '' has been heavily covered, with versions by Tyrone Davis, The Brothers Johnson, MFSB, Iggy Pop, Bunny Wailer, Andrew Roachford, and many more. The song 's drum machine - created rhythm was duplicated in several early to mid-1970s recordings, in particular The Temptations ' `` Let Your Hair Down '' ( 1973 ), and Stevie Wonder 's `` You Have n't Done Nothin ' '' ( 1974 ). Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers performed a Go - go rendition for the album Go Go Swing Live ( 1986 ). Madonna featured this song as an intro to `` Keep It Together '' on her Blond Ambition Tour in 1990. A rap - infused, danceable cover was released by German Milli Vanilli spinoff band Try ' N ' B in 1992. Another retooled cover was done in 1993 by Shabba Ranks featuring Patra and Terri & Monica as a single for the Addams Family Values soundtrack. This version charted on the Billboard pop chart at number 84, number 16 on the R&B chart, and number - six on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. Prince sampled the song on his track `` Y Should Eye Do That When Eye Can Do This ? ''. Janet Jackson sampled the song on the track `` And On and On '', the B - side to her single `` Any Time, Any Place ''. The Black Eyed Peas song `` Weekends '' from their 2000 album Bridging the Gap samples `` Family Affair ''. In 2005, John Legend, Joss Stone and Van Hunt recorded a cover featuring elements of the original recording for Different Strokes by Different Folks, a Sly & the Family Stone tribute / remix album. This version of `` Family Affair '' won the 2007 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Jazz bassist Christian McBride recorded a cover on his album A Family Affair. Personnel Sly Stone -- vocals, bass, electric guitar and drum programming Rose Stone -- vocals Billy Preston -- Hohner Pianet Chart history Sly & the Family Stone version Chart ( 1971 / 1972 ) Peak position U.S. Billboard Hot 100 U.S. Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles Shabba Ranks version Chart ( 1993 ) Peak position U.S. Billboard Hot 100 84 U.S. Billboard Hot R&B / Hip - Hop Singles & Tracks 16 U.S. Billboard Hot Rap Tracks 6 U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music / Maxi - Singles Sales 11 See also Hot 100 number - one hits of 1971 ( USA ) R&B number - one hits of 1971 ( USA ) R&B number - one hits of 1972 ( USA ) References Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Jump up ^ Billboard.com - Search Results : Family Affair Sly ( singles charts ). Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 16. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). Top R&B / Hip - Hop Singles : 1942 - 2004. Record Research. p. 534. Jump up ^ Billboard Year - End Hot 100 singles of 1972 External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Sly and the Family Stone Sly Stone Freddie Stone Rose Stone Cynthia Robinson Greg Errico Jerry Martini Larry Graham Studio albums A Whole New Thing ( 1967 ) Dance to the Music ( 1968 ) Life ( 1968 ) Stand ! ( 1969 ) There 's a Riot Goin ' On ( 1971 ) Fresh ( 1973 ) Small Talk ( 1974 ) High on You ( Sly Stone, 1975 ) Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I 'm Back ( 1976 ) Back on the Right Track ( 1979 ) Ai n't But the One Way ( 1982 ) I 'm Back ! Family & Friends ( Sly Stone, 2011 ) Live albums The Woodstock Experience ( 2009 ) Compilations Greatest Hits Ten Years Too Soon Sly & the Family Stone Anthology Who in the Funk Do You Think You Are : The Warner Bros. Recordings Rock and Roll The Essential Sly & the Family Stone Different Strokes by Different Folks Higher ! The Collection Singles `` Underdog '' `` Dance to the Music '' `` Dance à la Musique '' `` Life '' `` Everyday People '' `` Stand ! '' `` Hot Fun in the Summertime '' `` Thank You ( Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin ) '' `` I Want to Take You Higher '' `` Family Affair '' `` Runnin ' Away '' `` ( You Caught Me ) Smilin ' '' `` I Ai n't Got Nobody '' `` If You Want Me to Stay '' `` Frisky '' `` Time for Livin ' '' `` Loose Booty '' `` I Get High on You '' `` Le Lo Li '' `` Crossword Puzzle '' `` Blessing in Disguise '' `` Family Again '' Additional personnel Vet Stone Mary McCreary Elva Mouton Gerry Gibson Rustee Allen Pat Rizzo Andy Newmark Bill Lordan Vicki Blackwell Jim Strassburg Related articles Awards Discography Sly Stone solo discography Members Little Sister Coming Back for More On the Sly : In Search of the Family Stone Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Family_Affair_(Sly_and_the_Family_Stone_song)&oldid=858016009 '' Categories : 1971 singles 1993 singles Sly and the Family Stone songs Billboard Hot R&B / Hip - Hop Songs number - one singles Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles Song recordings produced by Sly Stone Songs written by Sly Stone 1971 songs Epic Records singles Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Talk Contents About Wikipedia Français Italiano 日本 語 Português Русский Svenska Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 4 September 2018, at 14 : 43 ( UTC ). 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Question: who sings the song it's a family affair
Answer: Sly and the Family Stone