The Isley Brothers are an American soul group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of the brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, the group has enjoyed one of the "longest, most influential, and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music".
"Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" is a Motown song written by Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, and Janie Bradford. The song was first recorded by The Temptations as a track on their 1966 album Gettin' Ready. Eddie Kendricks sings lead on the recording, which was produced by Whitfield. Jimmy Ruffin also recorded a version with The Temptations providing background vocals in 1966. It remained unreleased until 1997.
"That's the Way Love Is" is a 1967 Tamla (Motown) single recorded by The Isley Brothers and produced by Norman Whitfield.
T-Neck Records was a record label founded by members of the R&B/soul group The Isley Brothers in 1964, which became notable for distributing the first nationally-released recordings of Jimi Hendrix, their guitarist, and which later became a successful label after the Isleys began releasing their own works after years of recording for other labels, scoring hits such as "It's Your Thing" (1969) and "That Lady" (1973).
Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5 was the debut studio album from Gary, Indiana-based soul family band the Jackson 5, released on the Motown label on December 12, 1969. The Jackson 5's lead singer, a preadolescent Michael Jackson and his four older brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Marlon, became pop successes within months of this album's release. Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5's only single, "I Want You Back", became a number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 within weeks of the album's release. The album reached number 5 on the US Pop Albums chart, and spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the US R&B/Black Albums charts. To date, the Jackson 5's debut album has sold estimated 5 million copies worldwide.
Marva Whitney was an American funk singer commonly referred to by her honorary title, Soul Sister #1. Whitney was considered by many funk enthusiasts to be one of the "rawest" and "brassiest" music divas.
"Stubborn Kind of Fellow" is a 1962 song recorded by Marvin Gaye for the Tamla label. Co-written by Gaye and produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" became Gaye's first hit single, reaching the top 10 of the R&B chart and the top 50 of the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1962.
O'Kelly "Kelly" Isley Jr. was an American singer and one of the founding members of the family group the Isley Brothers.
"For Once in My Life" is a song written by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, and first recorded in 1965.
"For the Love of You" is a song recorded by the Isley Brothers, who released the song as the second single off their 1975 album, The Heat Is On. The record showcased the two sides of the act, with the album's first single "Fight the Power" reflecting a fast-paced funk vibe while showcasing a ballad side on the latter. The song later became a crossover hit for the brothers.
This Old Heart of Mine is the fourth studio album released by The Isley Brothers in 1966, on the Tamla (Motown) label. The album, their first with the seminal Detroit-based music label, yielded the Isleys' biggest hit in their early period with the title track, "This Old Heart of Mine ". Other charted singles including "Take Some Time Out for Love" and "I Guess I'll Always Love You".
The Brothers: Isley is the seventh album released by The Isley Brothers on their own T-Neck label on October 18, 1969. After years with other labels and fresh off the success of the It's Our Thing (1969) album, which included the hit title track, "It's Your Thing", the Isley Brothers celebrated their newfound independence by releasing another new album that year with this LP. The album yielded the Billboard Top 40 pop hit, "I Turned You On" and subsequent charters, "Was It Good to You?" and "Black Berries". It was also their second full venture into funk music, a genre they would dominate in the coming years. The album was remastered and expanded for inclusion in the 2015 released CD box set The RCA Victor & T-Neck Album Masters (1959–1983).
Between the Sheets is the 22nd album released by The Isley Brothers on their T-Neck imprint on April 24, 1983. The album is notable for the title track, the follow-up hit "Choosey Lover", and the ballad "Touch Me".
It's Our Thing is the sixth album released by The Isley Brothers on their own T-Neck Records imprint in April 1969. Fully emancipated from three and a half years in Motown Records and encouraged by their international success in the United Kingdom, the Isleys composed this album in the style of Sly & the Family Stone/James Brown funk that was dominating the music industry at the time but with their own flair as explained in their smash "It's Your Thing". Other hits off the album though it didn't chart included "I Know Who You Been Socking It To" and "Give the Women What They Want". This album was also the Isleys' first Top 40 record reaching #22 on the pop albums chart. Curiously, despite its importance in the career of the seminal group, this album was not released in CD format until 2008. The album was remastered and expanded for inclusion in the 2015 released CD box set "The RCA Victor & T-Neck Album Masters, 1959-1983". Although not featured on the album's cover, It's Our Thing marks the first Isley Brothers album to feature Ernie Isley on bass guitar.
"Keep On Doin'" is a song recorded by The Isley Brothers, who released the song from their 1970 album, Get into Something. Though the track's chart performance was modest at best, it would later inspire the funk instrumental, "The Grunt", recorded by James Brown's backing band at the time, The J.B.'s.
"Footsteps in the Dark" is a 1977 slow jam recorded by The Isley Brothers as an album track featured on the group's album Go for Your Guns. It was the B-side to "Groove with You", which reached number 16 on the R&B singles chart. The song is noted for its unique guitar timbre which can be heard on other Isley Brother tracks such as "Voyage to Atlantis", as well as marking Ron Isley's growing transition into singing more ballads compared to the band's earlier funk approach.
"I Like It" is a R&B/Soul song by American family band DeBarge. Released on August 20, 1982 by Motown Records (Gordy), it was the second single from their second studio album, All This Love (1982).
"Put Yourself in My Place" is a song written by the Motown team of Holland–Dozier–Holland and recorded by at least four Motown recording acts during the sixties: The Elgins in 1965, The Supremes, Chris Clark and The Isley Brothers in 1966.
Hot Dog is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson recorded for the Blue Note label in 1969 and featuring Donaldson with Ed Williams, Charles Earland, Melvin Sparks, and Leo Morris. The album features Donaldson using the varitone amplification system for his saxophone.
Twisting and Shouting is the third album released by The Isley Brothers in 1963, credited as The Famous Isley Brothers, on the United Artists label. Their third album after Twist & Shout one year prior, the album was released with none of the songs making the singles chart, and preceded a three-year gap before the brothers' next album, This Old Heart of Mine (1966), which would see them move to Berry Gordy's Motown label. In 1991, the album was reissued on CD with extra tracks and retitled The Complete United Artists Sessions.
