Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)

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A-side
  
"Everybody Is a Star"

Format
  
7" single

Genre
  
Funk

Released
  
December 1969

Recorded
  
1969

Length
  
4:48

"Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" is a 1969 song recorded by Sly and the Family Stone. The song, released as a double A-side single with "Everybody Is a Star", reached number one on the soul single charts for five weeks, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1970. Billboard ranked the record as the No. 19 song of 1970.

Contents

"Thank You" was intended to be included on an in-progress album with "Star" and "Hot Fun in the Summertime"; the LP was never completed, and the three tracks were instead included on the band's 1970 Greatest Hits LP. "Thank You" and "Star", the final Family Stone recordings issued in the 1960s, marked the beginning of a 20-month gap of releases from the band, which would finally end with the release of "Family Affair" in 1971.

The song's length on the original hit single and the Greatest Hits LP is 4:48 and was re-channeled to simulate stereo on the popular Greatest Hits LP. The previously unreleased full-length version (6:18) was mixed by Bob Irwin in true stereo and its only issue was on a 1990 Columbia promotional CD Legacy: Music for the Next Generation. On the subsequent (and currently available as of 2015) The Essential Sly & The Family Stone 2-CD set, the track is in stereo but is the standard 4:48 length hit version.

The song was ranked number 402 on Rolling Stone magazine's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

Overview

The title is an intentional mondegreen or sensational spelling for "thank you for letting me be myself again." The third verse contains specific references to the group's previous successful songs, "Dance to the Music", "Everyday People", "Sing a Simple Song", and "You Can Make It If You Try". The song features co-lead vocals from Sly Stone, Rose Stone, Freddie Stone, and Larry Graham.

Cover versions

  • Sly and the Family Stone worked on "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" in a slower pace as "Thank You for Talkin' to Me Africa", the closing track of 1971's There's a Riot Goin' On.
  • In 1970, pianist Junior Mance included an instrumental cover of the song on his album, With a Lotta Help from My Friends.
  • Maceo Parker covered the song on his 1970 album Doing Their Own Thing.
  • Gladys Knight and the Pips did a cover version of the song in 1971.
  • Magazine covered the song in 1980 on the album The Correct Use of Soap. The same recording was issued as the A-side of a single, and a live version was included on the 1981 album Play.
  • Soundgarden performed it on their 1989 tour and during their John Peel session that year.
  • Dave Matthews Band performed the song on their 2008 summer tour. It was often featured as the final song of the encore.
  • A cover version of the song by Antonio Banderas (as Puss in Boots) & Eddie Murphy (as Donkey) was made for the 2007 animated film Shrek the Third' ending credits, and its soundtrack
  • Widespread Panic includes portions of this song during live performances as John Bell "raps", most commonly during "Barstools and Dreamers" and "Red Hot Mama Girl".

    • In other media

    Janet Jackson's 1989 song "Rhythm Nation" samples the groove from the song in between verses.

    Personnel

  • Sly Stone - co-lead vocals, guitar, writer, producer
  • Rose Stone - co-lead vocals
  • Jerry Martini - tenor saxophone
  • Cynthia Robinson - trumpet
  • Freddie Stone - guitar, co-lead vocals
  • Larry Graham - bass, co-lead vocals
  • Greg Errico - drums

    • References

    Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA