...posting about "*Jimi Hendrix*":http://mog.com/CrashPryor/blog_post/34190 and,more recently, James Brown got me thinking about the Isley Brothers and how they fused R&B and rock back in their early days...I think it started with "Twist and Shout", their first mainstream hit but you can really hear it come through on cuts like the original version of "Who's that Lady", "Fight the Power" and "Live it Up"...I got turned onto their stuff as kid while listening to the sounds pumping from the rent parties down in my uncle's basement and later, I'd check the Isleys on TV shows like American Bandstand, etc......nowadays the group can be checked on those "Power" R&B formatted stations where I couldn't imagine a lot of their guitar-laden cuts like "Shout" would ever see the light of day- I could be wrong, but I don't listen to the radio for my music anymore...if you're unfamiliar with their funky stuff from the 70s-80s you should definitely check "*The Greatest Hits, Vol. 1*":http://www.thestore24.com/Music/Album.aspx?p_id=P+++++4562&a_id=R+++463742&search=isley%20brothers&sec=album&prodid=SNY86198.2&si=rhino ...if you've already been there...the album I'm checking right at the moment is "*The Isleys -- Live*":http://www.rhino.com/store/ProductDetail.lasso?Number=72284 which holds "Work to Do", a sweet-ass version of "Lay Lady, Lay" and a medley of CSNY and Jimi Hendrix ( !!! ) on "Ohio/Machine Gun" cut back in '73, it clearly encapsulates where the Isleys were heading...check out this Soul Train, clip of "Live it Up" from 1974...a word of caution: bell bottoms, platforms and 'fro's were the order of the day...
Nixne Svix says
oh my mom used to crank this shit(albeit in the later 70's) , her and my aunt used to teach my Cousins(girls) all of the 60's70's dance moves to funk and brit pop and we(the boys) would crack up. well who is laughing now? my cousin is a Go-Go dancer for Lil' Stevens Underground Garage Tour. Best part? My Cuz , never took a dance class in her life , just showed up and cranked classics like this and busted her old Aunties and Moms dance moves and scored the gi! nice memories! all but two of us (of 6) are immersed in music by proxy now. thanks man...(she is foreground-dig the Union Jack Brit Pop Mini!)
ivylander says
The Isleys rule. In addition to all that you mention above, I would add to any self-respecting soul music library "Brown Eyed Girl," "Harvest For The World," "Caravan of Love," and their versions of "Love The One You're With" and even (God help me) Seals and Crofts' "Summer Breeze." Plus a bunch of other songs I can't think of at the moment. I even like (and am maybe one of three people in the world who would admit to liking) that Ronald Isley/Burt Bacharach collaboration. Ronald's voice cuts through the orchestral goo and delivers the emotional goods. I can even forgive him for doing "This Old Heart Of Mine" with Rod Stewart."
By the way, do you know what the latest is with his legal problems?
CrashPryor says
..that's what I'm talkin' about Nix..you can't fake the funk...Ivy, I haven't heard anything new but will ask an AR cat I know when I go in...I'll hollaback...and yeah, that "Summer Breeze" is blowing through the jasmine in my mind too...gotta find that slice now...thanks, yo...
Rawkkiddoh says
Ahh, Soul Train and the famous "line" I never grow tired of seeing old clips like that, and how no matter how hard tv tries, they will never be reproduced. Next thing you know, you will have some clip with the Solid Gold Dancers. As for the Isley Brothers, love em. Perfect for those long car trips to canada. For some reason, I only bring them during the summer trips, they seem to fit the weather better.
Hattie says
Oh, the isley Brothers. Me loves me some. In fact, I tagged them on a post the other day. Summer Breezes is my childhood home's street name, so when I hear "Summer Breeze" I get to think of home.
...posting about "*Jimi Hendrix*":http://mog.com/CrashPryor/blog_post/34190 and,more recently, James Brown got me thinking about the Isley Brothers and how they fused R&B and rock back in their early days...I think it started with "Twist and Shout", their first mainstream hit but you can really hear it come through on cuts like the original version of "Who's that Lady", "Fight the Power" and "Live it Up"...I got turned onto their stuff as kid while listening to the sounds pumping from the rent parties down in my uncle's basement and later, I'd check the Isleys on TV shows like American Bandstand, etc......nowadays the group can be checked on those "Power" R&B formatted stations where I couldn't imagine a lot of their guitar-laden cuts like "Shout" would ever see the light of day- I could be wrong, but I don't listen to the radio for my music anymore...if you're unfamiliar with their funky stuff from the 70s-80s you should definitely check "*The Greatest Hits, Vol. 1*":http://www.thestore24.com/Music/Album.aspx?p_id=P+++++4562&a_id=R+++463742&search=isley%20brothers&sec=album&prodid=SNY86198.2&si=rhino ...if you've already been there...the album I'm checking right at the moment is "*The Isleys -- Live*":http://www.rhino.com/store/ProductDetail.lasso?Number=72284 which holds "Work to Do", a sweet-ass version of "Lay Lady, Lay" and a medley of CSNY and Jimi Hendrix ( !!! ) on "Ohio/Machine Gun" cut back in '73, it clearly encapsulates where the Isleys were heading...check out this Soul Train, clip of "Live it Up" from 1974...a word of caution: bell bottoms, platforms and 'fro's were the order of the day...
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