From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Tue May 21, 2002  1:15 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Ronald Isley
 
RONALD ISLEY

Born 21 May 1941, Cincinnati, Ohio

The longtime lead vocalist for the Isley Brothers, Ronald Isley helmed the
influential family group for close to a half century, a period spanning not
only two generations of siblings but also massive cultural shifts which
heralded their music's transformation from gritty R&B to Motown soul to
blistering funk.
The four brothers Isley, Ronald, Rudolph, O'Kelly and Vernon started out
singing gospel in their native Cincinnati in the early fifties. After Vernon's
1955 death in a traffic accident, Ronald was tapped as the remaining trio's
lead vocalist. In 1957 they cut their first disc on the Teenage label ("The Cow
Jumped Over The Moon"). Having moved to New York, the group caught the
attention of producer George Goldner who signed them up and issued several
singles dotted around his various labels. These include some excellent rockers,
like "Everybody's Gonna Rock 'n' Roll" (Gone) and "Rockin' McDonald" (Mark-X).
A move to RCA in 1959 brought the Isley Brothers to prominence, with "Shout"
(# 47 pop), whilst their recording of "Twist And Shout" on Wand in 1962 gave
them their first Top 20 hit. After recording for their own T-Neck label, they
signed
to the Motown subsidiary Tamla in 1965, joining forces with the famed Holland-
Dozier-Holland writing and production team. In spite of a big hit with "This Old
Heart of Mine" (# 12 pop), the group felt straitjacketed by the Motown assembly-
line production formula, and in 1969 they exited Tamla to resuscitate the T-Neck
label. By then they had effectively abandoned their distinctive sound and moved
into funk and disco. They frequently topped the R&B charts in the second half of
the seventies. In 1986, O'Kelly Isley died of a heart attack, and brother
Rudolph
left to join the ministry soon after; Ronald forged on, however, teaming with
younger siblings Ernie and Marvin. They continue to have hits till this day.

CD recommendation: Shout (Bear Family 15425) or its 1996 equivalent (same
20 tracks) "Shout : the RCA sessions" (BMG/RCA).
For a list of Isley Bros websites see: http://www.pop-rock.dk/isley_brothers.htm