Alex Henderson

Isley Jasper Isley
Caravan of Love [Expanded Edition]

1984 marked a major turning point in the long history of the Isley Brothers. It was in 1984 that the Isley Brothers’ 3 + 3 lineup officially came to an end, thus paving the way for the beginning of Isley Jasper Isley. And to fully appreciate how important Ernie Isley, Chris Jasper and the late Marvin Isley were to the Isley Brothers, one must examine the ways in which they helped shape the Isleys’ sound during their years with the group.

It is no exaggeration to describe the Isley Brothers as one of the most enduring outfits in the history of R&B. Formed in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1954, the Isley Brothers are still active 62 years later in 2016—and Ronald Isley (b. May 21, 1941) has been their lead singer for 61 of those years, starting in 1955. The Isleys were popular long before the debut of the 3 + 3 lineup in 1973 and enjoyed a long list of major hits in the 1960s and early 1970s, but the 3 + 3 lineup made them even more popular.

The 3 + 3 lineup started when long-time members Ronald Isley, O’Kelly Isley (b. December 25, 1937, d. March 31, 1986) and Rudolph Isley (b. April 1, 1939) were joined by three additions to the group in 1973: guitarist Ernie Isley (b. March 7, 1952), keyboardist Chris Jasper (b. December 30, 1951) and bassist Marvin Isley (b. August 18, 1953, d. June 6, 2010). And the 3 + 3 lineup changed the Isley Brothers in some significant ways.

First, the Isley Brothers went from being a trio to being a sextet and became a self-contained band rather than a group that needed session players. Second, the addition of Ernie, Chris and Marvin greatly enhanced the rock elements in their music. The Isley Brothers were rock-influenced long before 1973, but the 3 + 3 lineup was even more overtly mindful of rock—especially when Ernie, who made no secret of his love of Jimi Hendrix and Carlos Santana, took a guitar solo. 

The 3 + 3 lineup was an immediate success, sending the Isley Brothers to #2 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart and #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States with “That Lady” in 1973. And many other smash hits followed for 3 + 3, from silky quiet storm ballads to forceful, driving funk classics like “Fight the Power,” “The Pride,” “Livin’ in the Life” and “Take Me to the Next Phase.” Many of the great funk bands of the 1970s were famous for their horn sections; the Isleys, instead, brought a lot of rock to their funk by featuring Ernie’s distinctive guitar solos instead of trumpets, trombones and saxophones.

But after over a decade with the 3 + 3 lineup, Ron, O’Kelly and Rudolph returned to being a trio in 1984, while Ernie, Chris and Marvin left to form Isley Jasper Isley—which debuted with Broadway’s Closer to Sunset Boulevard, released by Columbia/CBS Records (now Columbia Records/Sony Music) that year. And in 1985, Columbia released the second Isley Jasper Isley album, Caravan of Love.

As Isley Jasper Isley, Ernie, Chris and Marvin shared the lead vocals as well as the songwriting. But the material they provided on this album was not a radical departure from their work with the Isley Brothers: they still favored R&B with a pronounced rock edge. The album’s title track—an uplifting gem that combined an Impressions-like melody with 1980s synthesizers and featured Jasper on lead vocals—became their biggest hit, soaring to #1 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart in the U.S. And the following year, “Caravan of Love” became a major hit a second time when British alternative rock/indie rock group the Housemartins recorded an a cappella cover that reached #1 on the U.K. pop charts.

It isn’t hard to understand why Isley Brothers fans had such an easy time getting into this album; the writing is quite similar. And that is evident on the aggressive funk-rock of “Dancing Around the World,” “High Heel Syndrome” and “Liberation” as well as relaxed mid-tempo grooves such as “Insatiable Woman,” “I Can Hardly Wait” and “If You Believe In Love.” Isley Jasper Isley came about because of the creative differences they had with Ron, but Caravan of Love often feels like an Isley Brothers album with Ernie, Chris and Marvin in place of Ron on lead vocals.

When Caravan of Love came out in 1985, Ron, Rudolph and O’Kelly were recording for Warner Bros. Records as the Isley Brothers. But after O’Kelly died of a heart attack at 48 in 1986, Ron and Rudolph carried on as a duo on 1987’s Smooth Sailin’ and 1989’s Spend the Night (which was Rudolph’s last album before leaving the group).

After Caravan of Love, Isley Jasper Isley recorded a third album, Different Drummer, in 1987, before breaking up the following year. Jasper launched his solo career with 1988’s Super Bad and went on to record at least ten more solo albums for his own label, Gold City Records. The Isley Brothers, meanwhile, remained active in the 1990s and 2000s with various lineups.

Marvin and Ernie reunited with Ron in 1991, and Ron and Ernie are still performing together as the Isley Brothers in 2016. Marvin, after the reunion with Ron, remained with the Isley Brothers until 1997—when he retired from the group because of his battle with diabetes. Sadly, Marvin’s diabetes became so severe that both of his legs had to be amputated, and he was 56 when complications from diabetes claimed his life on June 6, 2010.

Without question, the Isley Brothers are an R&B institution. Very few groups will last 62 years, and amazingly, Ron joined the group when he was only 12 and is still on board at 75.

In contrast to the Isley Brothers’ 62-year history, the four years that Ernie, Chris and Marvin spent as Isley Jasper Isley isn’t a long time. But they recorded some memorable grooves during their time together, and after 31 years, Caravan of Love is still remembered as the most successful of their three albums. 

—Alex Henderson, October 2016

Alex Henderson’s work has appeared in Billboard, Spin, Salon.com, Creem, The L.A. Weekly, AlterNet, JazzTimes, Jazziz, The Raw Story, Cash Box, HITS, CD Review, Skin Two, Black Beat, The Pasadena Weekly, Black Radio Exclusive (BRE), Music Connection, The New York City Jazz Record and many other well-known publications. Henderson (alexvhenderson.com) also contributed several thousand CD reviews to the popular Allmusic.com website and The All Music Guide’s series of music reference books.