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Family
(Mick Jagger / Keith Richards)

Olympic Sound Studios, London, UK, June 28, 1968

Mick Jagger - vocals
Keith Richards - acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Charlie Watts - drums
Bill Wyman - bass
Nicky Hopkins - piano
Jimmy Miller - percussion

Here's father, his heart screwed on, yes, here he's got it, I'm sure
'Cause he lost his life in an accident, they found his heart in the man next door
What exactly's gonna happen, he says with his transplanted mouth
Will my borrowed brain still compute the same
Or will my daughter stop her sleeping out

Here comes the girl, she's got her head screwed on, but it ain't screwed on right
Her ambition is to be a prostitute, but the breaks just weren't right
What exactly's gonna happen, tell me, when her father finds out
That his virgin daughter has bordello dreams
And that he's the one she wants to try out, yeah

Here is ma, she's living dangerously, it's a cinch she'll try it anything twice
She thinks she can run right to the whirlpool's edge and stop herself just in time
What exactly's gonna happen, when she finally fizzles out
That the lovers will just be sucked into
To see what the colours of death are all about

Here's the son, has his legs a-screwed on, yeah, they're screwed on pretty tight
But his brain is loose and it ain't no use, he's already lost the fight
What exactly's gonna happen, when he finally realize
That he can't play his guitar like Fiji Jim
Or write St. Augustine, if he tried

What exactly's gonna happen, when the family finds out
That they've been in orbit now for a thousand years
And need a thousand more to climb out

Produced by Jimmy Miller

First released on:
The Rolling Stones - “Metamorphosis” LP
(Decca SKL 5212) UK, June 6, 1975



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-12-01 18:20 by René.

E.G. Jim?? Fiji Jim??
it's a mystery ... but Fiji Jim sounds cooler :E

One of my ever favourites. It has a very special aura, mellancolic...........
There is another electric guitar version with tremolo, it is slower, and MJ sings really bad. Anyway i love both

No disrespect KeithNacho, but this is one of the very few Stonescuts I really don't like. The words may be worse than the music; I don't even know.

Nasty tune.

I really don't know what I think of Family, I don't like and I don't disliked it the reason is probably that I liked it a bit when it was released.

I'm glad they didn't released it in '68 because it doesn't fit on any Stones record

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I think it's Fiji Jim as there's a separate Stones track by that name which I believe is an outtake of the Black And Blue Musicland sessions.

I always thought that Fiji Jim was Jimi Hendrix - a misplaced geographical reference to his early nickname of The Wild Man Of Borneo.

The song is very much a nod to Dylan in the way that the lyrics portray characters on outer fringes of society in a similar way to Like A Rolling Stone or Visions Of Johanna.
Dylan very much informed Beggar's Banquet, both in character construction in the lyrics - Jigsaw Puzzle, Sympathy For The Devil, and in the stripped down sound of No Expectations and Dear Doctor which echoed Bob's current back to basics acoustic album John Wesley Harding.

Not a very good song!

I think that the leslie effect on the guitar was added during preparations for the Metamorphosis release.

If you put JJF + Child of the moon + Family on BB album, here you should have one of the best works in modern music.

I'm sorry, but i love this tune (Hold back is worse; no?)

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KeithNacho
If you put JJF + Child of the moon + Family on BB album, here you should have one of the best works in modern music.

You mean it isn't already???

I've always liked this song too. It's a bit odd, but definitely has a Banquet sound to it.

The lyrics must be the most morbid ones Jagger ever committed to tape.

It was very obvious that this song fits in BB. I still think that this tune is much better than Hold Back (i even like it more over any BTB tune). I'm sorry for this

A Banquet sound to it?? explain...........

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Guess I am in the minority here as well but I have always liked this track. A dark, Beggar's era cut w/cool (if kind of silly) lyrics.

Never liked it...Also it sounded like it was forced or just a fast run through...lt was not finished...You can also tell that Jagger never really finished the lyrics.. He dropped it anyway because the song really doesn't have the r& b or even the country feel the rest of the album has..It was released just to fill up the album Metamorphis....It would never have made the cut for BB...

My absolute favorite from Metamorphosiosisioossisonophosisis...and once again:
Who can sing better than Mick?

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Come On
Who can sing better than Mick?

hardly anyone, but you wouldn't know it from this track. He's definitely responsible for this turkey.

This song is amazing, i love the guitars in both versions

I have always loved this song and its dark, creepy sound!!!

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NICOS
A Banquet sound to it?? explain...........

it's obvious: it was recorded during Beggars Banquet sessions and it has the acoustic feel of the album... lead acoustic guitar and the piano and all. musically fits the album right.

it was very interesting for me to hear... can't tell ya what piano reminds me of, but it's the same that "Cool, Calm & Collected"... good one, Nicky. on the other hand musically the song is rather dull - nothing that interesting happens here.

lyrically it's screwed on ;-) I love Stray Cat Blues and @#$%& Blues lyrics and the nastier Stones get the happier I am but this one... I can hardly get it. the worst of all is that Mick probably thought it could be nice on Blonde On Blonde. it could be one of the worst Dylan's style imitations ever...

but anyway 1968 Olympic Studios sessions are one of the best of them.

>>> hardly anyone, but you wouldn't know it from this track. He's definitely responsible for this turkey.

good one cc! ^^

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NICOS
A Banquet sound to it?? explain...........

I'm pretty sure it was replaced by Jigsaw Puzzle in the final tracklist. If you listen to the second version of Family (the one with electric guitar on it), there are certain similarities between both tracks, not least the lyrics portraying a bunch of different people, a degenerated family on one hand and a battered band on the other. Two attempts at emulating Dylan...not entirely successful to my ears, but that's part of their charm.



Edited 8 time(s). Last edit at 2010-03-23 00:25 by Greenblues.

I'm still not convinced that it fits on BB, instrument wise yes, but the color of the sound is to clear compare to the other songs from BB maybe Mr. Jimmy didn't finished the mixing

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Track like this hint that Beggars Banquet could have been quite a different album had a more fully realized Family been included and things like Sympathy and Pay Your Dues remained closer to their their original form.

A lot of posts here are confounding me. For one, if this wasn't dne during the Beggar's sessions, then when? Nobody proposes any answer whatsoever. It could possibly be Let It Bleed sessions, but that is it. No WAY this song is from any other era.

Far as the song itself goes, I don't see how so many people consider this bad but something like, say, 'Jigsaw Puzzle' a classic. They both have ridiculous but amusing lyrics and some good changes.

it's not amusing me ;-) and NICOS I've got no idea what you're talking about - it's BB mood all the way for me. it's... darker than most of the songs, yeah. but still it's the same old Banquet...
theimposter, nice thought about comparing it to 'classic' Jigsaw Puzzle. but, on the other hand see - the Stones themselves figured out the 2nd one is going to turn out better. they thrashed some pearls into the vaults before, yeah I know, it just doesn't seem to be the case of Family.
Family - what a funny duet it makes with Downtown Suzie!

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theimposter
A lot of posts here are confounding me. For one, if this wasn't dne during the Beggar's sessions, then when? Nobody proposes any answer whatsoever. It could possibly be Let It Bleed sessions, but that is it. No WAY this song is from any other era.

Far as the song itself goes, I don't see how so many people consider this bad but something like, say, 'Jigsaw Puzzle' a classic. They both have ridiculous but amusing lyrics and some good changes.

I have no problem accepting it's from BB sessions. Jigsaw Puzzle although equally bizarre, is more successful attempt at Dylan-esque lyrics than on Family. JP is just a stronger track over all with plenty of room for the band to let loose for a bit.

Hmm, had it been less rough perhaps Still A Fool could have taken Jigsaw Puzzle place on BB.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-03-22 23:38 by His Majesty.

Yeah I always had a lukewarm liking for it, just seems really unfinished . . . here's one!!! . . . my god, what the hell is this!!!!!!!!!!!!








Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-03-22 23:37 by NorthShoreBlues2.

along with Jigsaw Puzzle - one of the most obvious nods to Dylan the stones ever did. Jagger's even got a very dylanesque vocal sneer, right outta Blonde on Blonde. Fiji Jim was a real life guitar whiz....

1968 English blues worthy of a place in a Hammer film or in
even better company sitting in amongst the noise of Performance .....
......which was just getting its good ole dark-self ready to be born ....



ROCKMAN

I always lumped this song together with Memo from Turner (which I like ALOT), mostly in how he sings it. Perhaps Mick should have put out a solo EP. It's not even close to the greatness that is Jigsaw Puzzle.