The Isley Brothers at Hotburrito's Soulencyclopedia

The Isley Brothers

Formed: Cincinnati, Ohio

Members:
O'Kelly Isley - vocals (born: December 25, 1937 in Cincinnati, Ohio; died: March 31, 1986, heart attack; buried: George Washington Memorial Park, Paramus, Bergen County, New Jersey)
Rudolph Isley - vocals (born: April 1, 1939 in Cincinnati, Ohio
Ronald Isley - vocals (born: May 21, 1941 in Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jimi Hendrix - guitar 1964 - 1966
Marvin Isley - bass, percussion, vocals 1969 - 1984 *
Ernie Isley - drums, guitar, percussion, vocals (born: March 7, 1952 in Cincinnati, Ohio) 1969 - 1984 *
Chris Jasper - keyboards, percussion, vocals 1969 - 1984 * (born: December 30, 1951 in Cincinnati, Ohio)
* formed Isley/Jasper/Isley in 1984

The original 3 Isley Brothers - Ronald, Rudolph and O'Kelly - sang gospel, with their mother and their brother Vernon (who died in an car accident in 1957), prior to moving to New York in 1958.
Here they recorded doo-wop for small labels, their first ever release being 'An Angel Cried' for the Teenage label before signing to the Gone label in 1958. After 4 singles, which were essentially rock 'n' roll, they signed to RCA in 1959. That year a debut American hit came with 'Shout'. In 1964 they released a record for their own T-Neck label with the new guitarist Jimi Hendrix. It was not a success, the music was experimental because Jimi was free to display his virtuosity and all the effects he used. They signed a contract with Motown and carried on without Hendrix. In Motown they were not allowed to 'do their own thing', the famous producers trio Holland/Dozier/Holland worked with them from then on.
In 1969 they were joined by their younger brothers Marvin and Ernie and their cousin Chris Jasper.
In 1984 The Isley Brothers divided into 2 groups. The original trio carried on The Isley Brothers name at Warner Brothers, while the younger trio became Isley/Jasper/Isley.

Singles:
Shout [RCA, 1959]
Twist And Shout [Wand 124, 1962]
This Old Heart Of Mine [Motown 54128, 1966]
I Guess I'll Always Love You [Motown 54135, 1966]
Behind A Painted Smile [Motown, 1969]
Put Yourself In My Place [Motown, 1969]
It's Your Thing [T-Neck 901, 1969]
I Turned You On (Now I Can't Turn You Off) [T-Neck]
Black Berries [T-Neck]
Was It Good To You [T-Neck]
Work To Do [T-Neck]
Layaway [T-Neck]
Get Into Something [T-Neck]
Love The One You're With [T-Neck]
That Lady [T-Neck 2251, 1973]
Highways Of My Life [T-Neck, 1973]
Summer Breeze [T-Neck 2253, 1974]
Don't Let Me be Lonely Tonight
Harvest For The World [T-Neck 258 2261, 1976]
It's A Disco Night (Rock Don't Stop) [1979]
Let's Lay Together [Polygram 854586, 1996
Floatin' on Your Love [Polygram 854738, 1996]
Tears [Polygram 854862, 1997]
Contagious [Polygram 450879, 2002]

Singles by Isley/Jasper/Isley:
Look The Other Way [CBS, 1984]
Caravan Of Love [CBS, 1985] became a huge hit for The Housemartins in 1986

Essential Isley Brothers album: The Ultimate Isley Brothers

Albums:
- Shout! [Collectables Records COL-5103, 1959]
- Twist & Shout! [Sundazed SC 6002, 1962]
- * This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You) [Tamla TS-269, June 1966]
- * Soul On The Rocks [Tamla TS-275, September 1967]
- Doin' Their Thing [Tamla TS-287, April 1969]
- It's Our Thing [T-Neck TNS 3001, 1969]
- The Brothers: Isley [T-Neck TNS 3002, 1969]
- Get Into Something [T-Neck TNS 3006, 1970]
- Givin' It Back [T-Neck TNS 3008, 1971] with Bill Withers on guitar
- Brother, Brother, Brother [T-Neck TNS 3009, 1972]
- The Isleys Live [T-Neck TNS 3010, 1972] 2 LP set
- Isleys' Greatest Hits [T-Neck TNS 3011, 1973]
- This Old Heart Of Mine: Best Of Isley Brothers [Atlantic, 1972]
- 3 + 3 [T-Neck KZ/PZ/ZQ 32453, 1973]
- Live It Up [T-Neck KZ/PZ/PZQ 33070, 1974]
- ** The Heat Is On [T-Neck PZ 33536, 1975]
- The Best Of The Isley Brothers [Buddah BDS 5652-2, 1976] 2 LP set
- Harvest For The World [T-Neck PZ/PZQ 33809, 1976]
- ** Go For Your Guns [T-Neck PZ/PZQ 34432, 1977]
- Forever Gold [T-Neck PZ 34452, 1977]
- Showdown [T-Neck JZ/PZ 34930, 1978]
- Timeless [T-Neck KZ 2-35650, 1978] 2 LP set
- Winner Takes All [T-Neck PZ 2-36077, 1979] 2 LP set
- Go All The Way [T-Neck FZ/PZ 36305, 1980]
- Grand Slam [T-Neck FZ/PZ 37080, 1981]
- Inside You [T-Neck FZ 37533, 1981]
- The Real Deal [T-Neck FZ 38047, 1982]
- ** Between The Sheets [T-Neck FZ/PZ 38674, 1983]
- Greatest Hits, Vol.1 [T-Neck FZ/PZ 39240, 1984]
- Masterpiece [Warner Brothers 25347, 1985] last album with O'Kelly Isley
- Smooth Sailin' [Warner Brothers 25586, 1987] Angela Winbush, Paulinho da Costa, Greg Phillinganes, Nathan East
- Spend The Night [Warner Brothers 25940, 1989] Angela Winbush, Paulinho da Costa, Nathan East, Paul Jackson jr.
- This Old Heart of Mine: Best of Isley Brothers [Curb 77333, 1990]
- Tracks Of Life [Warner Brothers 26620, 1991] with Angela Winbush, Paulinho da Costa, Quincy Jones, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, David Paich, Steve Porcaro, Nathan East
- 60's Greatest Hits And Rare Classics [Motown 5483, February 1991]
- The Complete UA Sessions [EMI 95205, March 1991]
- Shout! [Collectables Records 5103, 1991] reissue of the 1959 album
- The Isley Brothers Story, Vol. 1: Rockin' Soul (1959-68) [Rhino 70908, April 1991]
- The Isley Brothers Story, Vol. 2: The T-Neck Years (1969-85) [Rhino 70909, April 1991]
- It's Your Thing [Columbia 22187, 1991]
- The Isley Brothers At Their Best [Special Music, March 1992]
- Shout And Twist With Rudolph, Ronald & O'Kelly [Ace 928, October 1992]
- Greatest Motown Hits [Universal/Polygram, February 1993]
- Live! [Elektra, October 1993]
- The 16 Greatest Hits Of The Isley Bros. [Deluxe 7899, March 1994]
- Shout! [Bear Family, November 1994]
- Beautiful Ballads [Sony 57860, 1994]
- Star Box [Tristar 35268, August 1995]
- For The Love Of You [Sony 21343, December 1995]
- Funky Family [Sony 57858, 1995]
- Soul Kings, Vol. 1 [SMS 56, 1995]
- Summer Breeze [Sony 20312, April 1995]
- Best Of The Isley Brothers [Laserlight 12725, 1995]
- Greatest Hits [Eclipse 64787, January 1996]
- Mission To Please [Island 524214, 1996] Backing vocals by R. Kelly, Angela Winbush and Keith Sweat
- Shout: The RCA Sessions [RCA 66883, July 1996]
- Hello It's Me [American Music 24132, May 1997]
- The Best Of The Early Years [PSM 520326, April 1998]
- Slow Jams [American Music 33781, February 1999]
- Smooth Love [American Music 33712, February 1999]
- The Best of the Isley Brothers: Shout! [BMG 37008, February 1999] Imported (Japanese) version
- It's Your Thing: The Story Of The Isley Brothers [Epic/T-Neck/Legacy, August 1999] 3CD Box set; Jimi Hendrix on 2 tracks
- Super Hits [Sony 65879, May 1999]
- Shake It Up Baby! [Varese Sarabande 066103, March 2000]
- Tamla Motown Early Classics [Spectrum, April 2000]
- The Universal Masters Collection [Universal, May 2000] remastered tracks from the Island years
- The Early Years [Classic World 9956, June 2000]
- The Ultimate Isley Brothers [Epic/Legacy 62196, October 2000]
- Love Songs [Sony 61482, January 2001]
- Crazy Love [Brentwood 61203, May 2001]
- Eternal [DreamWorks 450291, August 2001] with Paulinho Da Costa
- Harvest For the World (Expanded) [Sony 85314, August 2001]
- The Heat Is On (Expanded) [Sony 85315, August 2001]
- Shout: The RCA Sessions [RCA, November 2001]
- 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of the Isley Brothers [Universal 016363, November 2001]
- Essential Collection [Spectrum, February 2002]
- Let's Go! [Stateside 537514, April 2002]
- 3+3 [Epic 85798, April 2003] reissue of the 1973 album; remastered + 1 Bomus Track
- Body Kiss [DreamWorks 450409, May 2003]
- For The Love Of You [Collectables 9338, June 2003] reissue of the 1995 album
- Groove With You [Madacy 4846, July 2003]
- Live It Up [Epic/Legacy 85299, February 2004]

- 3+3 [Sony] SACD version

* reissued as a 2-on-1 CD This Old Heart of Mine/Soul On The Rocks [Motown MOTD-8156, October 2002]
** reissued as a 3 CD set The Heat Is On/Go For Your Guns/Between The Sheets [Sony 65378, August 1997]

Isley Brothers / Jimi Hendrix:
- In the Beginning [T-Neck TNS 3007, 1971] Mid-'60s recordings with Jimi Hendrix as backing musician

The Isley Brothers / James Brown / Ike & Tina Turner
- Classic Artists - Only The Hits [St. Clair, August, 1997]

Earth, Wind & Fire / The Isley Brothers / The Manhattans
- Soul Times Three [Sony, December 1995]

Isley/Jasper/Isley:
- Broadway's Closer To Sunset Boulevard [CBS, 1984]
- Caravan Of Love [CBS, 1985]

Ernie Isley:
- High Wire [Elektra, 1990]

They appear on the following albums:
Various Artists - Tribute To Curtis Mayfield [1994]
Various Artists - Felix Hernandez presents the Rhythm Revue [TVT 4010, September 1997] 3 CD Box Set
Various Artists - R&B: From Doo Wop to Hip Hop [Sony 65801, October 1999] 2 CD Set
Various Artists - The Ladies Man (Original Soundtrack) [DreamWorks 450276, October 2000]
Various Artists - Back to Black: 1900-1999 [Universal 541518, February 2001] 10 CD Box Set
Various Artists - People Get Up: Original House Party Funk & Get Down Jazz [Harmless 31, August 2001]
Various Artists - Body and Soul: Christmas [Time Life 18740, September 2001]
Various Artists - Season's Greetings: 20th Century Masters/The Millennium Collection [Hip-O 556728, October 2001] 3 CD Box Set
Various Artists - Can You Dig It? The '70s Soul Experience [Rhino 74346, October 2001] 6 CD Box Set
Various Artists - Rock, Rhythm and Doo Wop, Vol. 1: The Greatest Songs From Early Rock 'n' Roll [Rhino 78353, November 2001] 3 CD Box Set
Various Artists - Smooth Grooves: Ladies' Men [Rhino 78327, January 2002]
Various Artists - The In Crowd, Vol. 2: Empire Made [RPM 235, January 2002]
Various Artists - Soul Spectacular! The Greatest Soul Hits of All Time [Rhino 78300, February 2002] 4 CD Box Set
Various Artists - Soul Train Music Awards 2002 [MCA 584859, March 2002]
Various Artists - A Cellarful of Motown! [Universal 544619, May 2002] 2CD set
Various Artists - The Essence of Soul 2002 [J-Records 20040, July 2002]
Various Artists - John Lennon's Jukebox [EMI, April 2004] 2 CD set

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