<P> 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 . </P> <P> According to the biography Sly and the Family Stone: An Oral History, Sly Stone felt that this song wasn'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 . </P> <P> "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 Haven't Done Nothin"' (1974). </P> <P> Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers performed a go go rendition for the album Go Go Swing Live (1986). </P>

It's a family affair by sly stone