Together with a fourth brother, Vernon, the group performed gospel music until Vernon's death a few years after its formation. After moving to the New York City area in the late 1950s, the group had their first successes during these early years, first coming to prominence in 1959 with their fourth single, "Shout", written by the three brothers. Initially a modest charted single, the song eventually sold over a million copies. In the 1960s, the group recorded songs for a variety of labels, including the top 20 single "Twist and 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" on their own label, T-Neck Records.
Influenced by gospel and doo-wop music, the group began experimenting with different musical styles incorporating elements of rock and funk as well as pop balladry. The inclusion of younger brothers Ernie Isley (lead guitar, drums) and Marvin Isley (bass guitar), and Rudolph's brother-in-law Chris Jasper (keyboards, synthesizers), in 1973 turned the original vocal trio into a complete band and reached the height of their success. For the next full decade, they recorded a string of top-selling albums from 3 + 3 to Between the Sheets, including the number one album The Heat Is On.
The six-member band splintered in 1983, with Ernie, Marvin, and Chris Jasper forming the short-lived spinoff group Isley-Jasper-Isley. The oldest member, O'Kelly, died in 1986 and Rudolph and Ronald released a pair of albums as a duo before Rudolph retired to a life in the Christian ministry in 1989. Ronald reconvened the group two years later in 1991 with Ernie and Marvin; five years later, in 1996, Marvin Isley left the group due to complications of diabetes. The remaining duo of Ronald and Ernie achieved mainstream success with the albums Mission to Please (1996), Eternal (2001) and Body Kiss (2003). Eternal spawned the top twenty hit "Contagious". As of 2019, the Isley Brothers continue to perform under the lineup of Ronald and Ernie.
The Isley Brothers have sold over 18 million units in the United States alone. They have had several hit songs including four Top 10 singles on the United States Billboard chart. With their first major hit charting in 1959 ("Shout"), and their last one in 2001 ("Contagious"), they are among the few groups ever to have hit the Billboard Hot 100 with new music in five different decades. Sixteen of their albums charted in the Top 40 and thirteen of those albums have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum by the RIAA. The brothers have been honored by several musical institutions, including the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which inducted them in 1992. Five years later, they were added to Hollywood's Rockwalk, and in 2003 they were inducted to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. They received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Isley_Brothers
Studio albums
Shout! (1959)
Twist & Shout (1962)
Twisting and Shouting (1963)
This Old Heart of Mine (1966)
Soul on the Rocks (1967)
It's Our Thing (1969)
The Brothers: Isley (1969)
Get into Something (1970)
Givin' It Back (1971)
Brother, Brother, Brother (1972)
3 + 3 (1973)
Live It Up (1974)
The Heat Is On (1975)
Harvest for the World (1976)
Go for Your Guns (1977)
Showdown (1978)
Winner Takes All (1979)
Go All the Way (1980)
Grand Slam (1981)
Inside You (1981)
The Real Deal (1982)
Between the Sheets (1983)
Masterpiece (1985)
Smooth Sailin' (1987)
Spend the Night (1989)
Tracks of Life (1992)
Mission to Please (1996)
Eternal (2001)
Body Kiss (2003)
Baby Makin' Music (2006)
Power of Peace (2017)
It's Too Late
The Isley Brothers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's somethin' wrong here, there can be no denyin'.
One of us is changin', or maybe we've just stopped tryin'.
And it's too late, baby now, it's too late,
Though we really did try to make it.
Somethin' inside has died, and I can't hide,
And I just can't fake it, oh, no, no.
It used to be so easy, livin' here with you.
You were light and breezy, an' I knew just what to do.
Now you look so unhappy, and I feel like a fool.
And it's too late, baby now, it's too late,
Though we really did try to make it.
Somethin' inside has died, and I can't hide,
And I just can't fake it, oh, no, no.
There'll be good times again for me and you,
But we just can't stay together; don't you feel it too?
Still I'm glad for what we had and how I once loved you.
And it's too late, baby now, it's too late,
Though we really did try to make it. (we can't make it)
Somethin' inside has died, and I can't hide,
And I just can't fake it, oh, no, no, no, no, no, no.
It's too late baby, it's too late now darling
It's too late.
The lyrics to The Isley Brothers' song "It's Too Late" reflect the end of a relationship that has slowly deteriorated over time. The singer has stayed in bed all morning, which is very unlike them, and they know that something is wrong. They acknowledge that one of them has changed, or maybe they simply stopped trying, and they both feel that it's just too late to save their relationship.
At one time, living with each other was easy, and they knew what to do to keep the relationship happy and healthy. However, now the other person appears unhappy and unfulfilled, and the singer feels foolish for not being able to make things right. Despite their attempts to make it work, "something inside has died," and the singer can no longer hide how they feel.
The final verse suggests that the two will eventually have good times again, but they both know that they can't stay together. They are resigned to the fact that their relationship has run its course, but they are still grateful for what they had and for the love they once shared.
Line by Line Meaning
Stayed in bed all mornin' just to pass the time.
I have nothing better to do than lie in bed all morning because something feels wrong and I can't quite put my finger on it.
There's somethin' wrong here, there can be no denyin'.
There is a clear sense that something is wrong in our relationship and we can't ignore it any longer.
One of us is changin', or maybe we've just stopped tryin'.
Either one of us has changed, or we've simply become complacent in our relationship and we're not putting in the effort we used to.
And it's too late, baby now, it's too late, Though we really did try to make it. Somethin' inside has died, and I can't hide, And I just can't fake it, oh, no, no.
Our relationship has run its course and even though we tried to make it work, something inside of me has died and I can no longer pretend that everything is okay.
It used to be so easy, livin' here with you. You were light and breezy, an' I knew just what to do. Now you look so unhappy, and I feel like a fool.
Our relationship used to be effortless and enjoyable, but now I can see that you're unhappy and I feel foolish for not realizing it sooner.
There'll be good times again for me and you, But we just can't stay together; don't you feel it too? Still I'm glad for what we had and how I once loved you.
Even though we can't be together anymore, I'm hopeful that we'll both find happiness in the future. Despite everything, I'm grateful for the love we shared.
And it's too late, baby now, it's too late, Though we really did try to make it. (we can't make it) Somethin' inside has died, and I can't hide, And I just can't fake it, oh, no, no, no, no, no, no.
No matter how hard we tried, our relationship has come to an end and I can no longer pretend that everything is okay. Something inside of me has died and I can't hide it anymore.
It's too late baby, it's too late now darling It's too late.
Our relationship has ended and there's nothing we can do to fix it. It's too late to turn back now.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DAVID JOHANSEN, JOHNNY THUNDERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ronlawray1563
Born 1940, so know l'm an Old Hat, BUT l have Memories of the Isleys going back to the early 60's.
When you get a chance, you young people, listen to their rendition of 'Twist and Shout' which came out in the mid 60's.....Will make you forget all about the Beatles recording.
@longdrive33
When the Isleys left Motown Records because of creative differences,you can see why.When this first came out,black people froze on this song. they couldn't believe their Motown bopping group went nuts. Little did we know we were about to witness an unbelievable amount of musical genius. Where others faded,they kept their music fresh and up with the times. Most of the time,leading the pack. What a group!!!!!
@Greyareas27
Very well said. I agree 100%.
@jeffreyhurst7231
I still remember running across this song when I was in high school 1975/76. Ernie was my guitar hero.
@patriciasmith295
Always on POINT. Thank you very much
@TheWonderfuldre
Ernie isley!
When will they recognize?
@TheWonderfuldre
Indeed!
@jsamc
That is a prime example of systemic racism in the Arts.
@user-rw1xx4zb4z
They never will!!!!!
@TheWonderfuldre
@@user-rw1xx4zb4z Damn shame.