Singer and songwriter Rudolph Isley, a founding member of multi-million selling American group The Isley Brothers, has died at 84.
"Rudolph Isley, a founding member of the world-famous Isley Brothers, died peacefully in his sleep on the morning of 11 October 2023," reads a statement from his lawyer Brian Caplan.
"He died at his home, with his devoted wife Elaine by his side. They had been married for 68 years. Rudolph was a deeply religious man who loved Jesus."
"Heaven has gained another angel," The Isley Brothers posted on Facebook.
"Remember to hold your loved ones close. We will miss our brother but we know he's in a better place. Forever in our hearts."
Loading
Rudolph wasn't the lead singer of The Isley Brothers, but this group was always more about the sum of its parts rather than individual greatness.
A founding member along with his brothers Ronald and Kelly, Rudolph was one of the Isley's key songwriters, penning songs that would influence some of the world's biggest acts and that reverberated through popular culture for decades.
As a backing vocalist, Rudolph was the perfect companion for his frontman brother Ronald. His versatility allowed him to add an extra hit of grit and testosterone where needed, and support with silky crooning when that was more appropriate.
Isley left the band in the late 1980s, but their most influential work was already done by that point. Here are five examples of how Rudolph Isley helped shape popular music as we know it.
'Shout'
Loading
The first Isley Brothers hit, released in 1959, may still be their most enduring. You know this song, whether you think you do or not.
It's been covered by everyone from The Beatles to Johnny O'Keefe to Billy Joel to Green Day. It featured in Sister Act and Animal House, it remains the fight song for the Buffalo Bills NFL team, and
It's a juggernaut of a song that feels like it's bigger than any one group. Yet it all started with Rudolph Isley and his two younger brothers.
'Footsteps in the Dark'
Loading
This sleek slow-jam marked a big change in Rudolph and his brothers' songwriting, as they toned down the heavy funk and psychedelia of their early-70s hits and slipped into something far smoother.
It has always been a fan favourite, but it didn't crack the mainstream until 1992 – 15 years after its release – when it served as the primary sample for Ice Cube's chart-busting anthem 'It Was A Good Day'.
It's just one example of how Rudolph Isley's songwriting has remained part of the soundtrack for generations of music lovers.
'It's Your Thing'
Loading
The guitar progression that opens this 1969 classic is one of the most iconic introductions of all time. You need only listen to the first four seconds of the song all you'll be hooked.
This freedom anthem can (and has) been co-opted for anyone who needs a soundtrack to their liberation.
For The Isleys, their alleged tormentor was former label boss, Motown's Berry Gordy. After the band broke free from their contract with Gordy, they wrote this song as a response to his demanding nature.
'It's your thing, do what you wanna do
I can't tell you, who to sock it to'
It paved the way for what would be a boom in popular funk in the 1970s, as artists like James Brown, Temptations, The Meters and Sly and the Family Stone took cues from the way the Isleys mashed together psych rock, classic funk, and modern jazz and created their own genre-defying anthems.
'Live it Up (Pt. 1)'
Loading
The intensity of Rudolph and O'Kelly Isley's backing vocals are perhaps the most memorable thing about 1974 single 'Live it Up'.
In a tune packed with brilliant, complex interlocking rhythms and screaming guitar solos, their simple, punctuating pops of 'Live, Live it up!' are testament to the effectiveness of simplicity.
'That Lady'
Loading
If you want a masterclass in backing vocals, pay attention to Rudolph Isley and his brothers on this glorious 1973 version of their amazing tune 'That Lady'. They switch from sweet singing to a kind of rough, attention-grabbing bark and back again with effortless class.
Beastie Boys took a slice of the tune for their 1989 record 'Paul's Boutique', but its biggest second life has come courtesy of Kendrick Lamar who used the song as the basis for his multi-Grammy Award winning 2015 song 'i'.
Rudolph Isley may be gone, but the impact he and his brothers had on popular music doesn't look like fading any time soon.
For the best in funk, soul, R&B and more, listen to Sky High right now.
