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The Isley Brothers

THE ISLEY BROTHERS
 
 
The Isley Brothers  are an American musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio.  The group has been cited as having enjoyed one of the “longest, most influential, and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music”.  The group first came to prominence in 1959 with their fourth single, “Shout”, which eventually sold over a million copies.  Afterwards the group recorded successful works for a variety of labels, including the top 20 single, “Twist & Shout”, and the Motown single, “This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)” before recording and issuing the Grammy Award-winning hit, “It’s Your Thing”.  Initially influenced by gospel and doo-wop music, the group began experimenting with different musical styles incorporating elements of rock and funk music as well as pop balladry.  In 1997, they were inducted to Hollywood’s Rockwalk and in 2003, were inducted to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.  (More from Wikipedia)
 
 
“Sad Sad Love” by the Poppees is one of those achingly emotional songs at which John Lennon excelled; two versions of this song are included, and the spare demo version that closes Side 1 of Pop Goes the Anthology might be even better than the studio version.  “Since I Fell for You” sounds like a lost Beatles track and is one of the “obscure R&B tunes the Fabs would surely have envied” (as Greg Shaw put it).  But the Poppees really hit the mark with their hot fast songs; “She’s So Bad” (recorded live at CBGB) and “She’s Got It” (the “B” side of their second single) recall the fury of the Beatles’ “Twist and Shout” (their biggest cover song; the original was by the Isley Brothers).  They also turn in a wonderful live version on Side 2 of the instrumental hit from ages ago, “Apache”.
 
(December 2010)
 
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Mikki was born Mikki Farrow in Detroit.  She met and married a legendary saxophone player named Andrew “Mike” Terry in the mid-1960’s.  In his Allmusic entry, Jason Ankeny writes:  “The baritone saxophone of Andrew ‘Mike’ Terry remains an indelible component of the famed Motown sound. . . .  Terry’s résumé reads like a roll call of soul’s greatest hits – his Motown track record alone spans chart smashes including the Four Tops’ ‘I Can’t Help Myself’, the Isley Brothers’ ‘This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)’, Kim Weston’s ‘Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)’, and Marvin Gaye’s ‘Baby Don’t You Do It’; and as a freelancer, he played on monsters like Jackie Wilson’s ‘Higher and Higher’, the Fascinations’ ‘Girls Are out to Get You’, and the Capitols’ ‘Cool Jerk’.” 

 

(July 2014)