Just Like This

Between 1969 and 1983, the Isleys released a string of amazing albums on their own T-Neck label, all preaching love for both mankind and that special lady (themes that dominate Isleys records to this day), with Ernie’s souladelic guitar and Marvin‘s elastic bass positioned high in the mix. Ernie, Marvin and brother-in-law Chris Jasper were finally given equal billing on 1973’s 3+3, a flawless fusion of soul, funk, pop and rock that still stands as the group‘s high-water mark. Like many Isleys LPs of the era, 3+3 also showcased the group’s knack for reworking AM-radio cheesefests like James Taylor‘s “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” or Seals & Croft‘s “Summer Breeze” into dignified and transcendent soul music. It’s a tradition that continues with Eternal‘s dreamy cover of Chicago’s “If You Leave Me Now.”

“It‘s gotta be something that sticks with you, that you walk around subconsciously singing,” says Ronald of his litmus test for cover choices. “You go, ’Why am I singing ”Hello It‘s Me“ all the time? What is it about ”Lay Lady Lay“ that stays on my mind?’ I‘ve been singing ’If You Leave Me Now‘ for a couple of years, whenever I’m going hunting or fishing, and I thought we could bring a lot to it. I can always tell the songs that we‘re going to do, but I can’t explain it.”

He can, however, explain the essential elements of a good slow-jam, something that Ronald has honed to an art form. Since 1983, death, sickness and family infighting have rocked the Isleys‘ lineup, but Ronald has kept the family name on the charts with such romantic, adult-oriented ballads as “Between the Sheets” and “Sensitive Lover.” “If you take a girl out, and you’re trying to go to bed with her, the song should ask her for you,” he explains. “If you‘re dancing with her, and you know the lyrics to the song, you can squeeze her on certain lyrics, and the song start talkin’! She knows what you‘re trying to say, but you didn’t say anything. If she kinda squeeze you back, or smile at you in a certain type of way, you know that ‘Okay, I’m gettin‘ over!’ But if she kinda pushes away, you know that you‘ve gotta work toward it a little bit more.”

Whether it’s an evening of romance or a blockbuster album, Ronald Isley clearly has no problem with “working toward it,” even after almost 50 years in the music biz. If Eternal fails to give the Isleys their much-deserved Supernatural-type breakthrough, it‘s still almost certain to jack their “decades of hits” total to a mind-boggling six.

“Santana, if he had stopped doing what he did, he wouldn’t have had the big album,” Ronald says. “As long as I can step out there in the spotlight, there‘s no doubt in my mind that I’m gonna be able to play ‘That Lady,’ and that Ernie‘s gonna be able to play it. If anything, Ernie’s gonna play it behind his back, or with his teeth! You never know when it‘s gonna be your turn, but you got to be in it to win it.”