While probably best suited for the casual listener, this
Isley Brothers collection still contains a potent mix of the band's biggest hits from the '70s and '80s. Showing the group's flexibility,
Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 includes quiet storm funk ballads like
"For the Love of You," the proto-new jack swing of
"Between the Sheets," and soul anthems like
"Fight the Power" and
"Live It Up." The group's signature songs are here too, including early-'70s chart-toppers like the
Stax-inspired
"It's Your Thing" and the stratospheric pop-funk cut
"That Lady"; the latter features
Ernie Isley on one of the most incredible funk guitar solos on wax (the
Hendrix elements being almost a given since the guitar great cut his teeth in
the Isleys' mid-'60s touring band). And there are more urbane smooth-groove tunes like
"Footsteps in the Dark" and
"Groove with You" to top things off.
Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 is a good collection for curious soul and funk fans. Listeners looking for a more thorough selection of
Isley hits, though, should check out
Rhino's two-volume
The Isley Brothers Story; while the first disc covers early smashes from the late '50s and '60s like
"Shout," "Twist and Shout," and the
Motown hit
"This Old Heart of Mine," the second includes all the cuts on this collection, plus several more prime tracks the band made while on the
T-Neck label. [The 2002
Epic/Legacy CD reissue adds five tracks, four of them number one R&B hits from 1977-1980, the other
Isley/Jasper/Isley's 1985 number one R&B hit
"Caravan of Love."] ~ Stephen Cook
