Below is a breakdown of Mary J. Blige’s Family Affair, it shows the section name and number of bars.
Section No. of Bars
Intro 8
Chorus 8
1st Verse 8
Chorus 8
2nd Verse 8
Chorus 8
Bridge 16
Chorus 8
Chorus 8
Chorus 8
Chorus 8
Outro to fade… (6)
This weeks “Track of the week” is Family Affair by Mary J. Blige. This track is a fantastic track for all you beginners out there. It’s not too fast, very easy to hear what’s going on and an easy groove to play to. Obviously, as with all tracks on a CD, you can play what you want, but this track really lends itself to just that. Now, if the following goes over your head, let it. If you don’t yet know what I’m talking about here it really doesn’t matter, the following info is for the guys that think playing the track “as is” is a tad boring. So, for you guys, you can try double timing each chorus. You can double time still using 8th’s, or if that’s too fast, use ¼’s. If you do the 8th’s, try and give it a Drum n Bass kind of feel. If you use ¼’s then try to do some elaborate fills! Also, if that’s not enough, you can play the verses “swung straight”. If you don’t know what “swung straight” means, maybe with a “laid back” feel means more to you?
Either way, don’t neglect this tracks and it’s a great one for all levels.
