"Soul Brothers"

With some musicians, I became a fan of their music by way of film.  As mentioned in a previous post for example, my discovery of Sam Cooke through the song "A Change is Gonna Come" in Malcolm X.  With the Isley Brothers, it was a scene from the Hughes Brothers film Menace II Society that started my Isley collection (prior to hearing the "Between the Sheets" sample for B.I.G.'s debut).  The scene where Caine confronts Chauncy for messing with his girl Ronnie played by Jada Pinkett Smith ("For the Love of You" playing in the background).  As I made my way through the Isley Brothers' catalogue over the years, I found certain songs that I was able to trace back to other scenes and Hip Hop samples that would inadvertently lead me towards what I would like most about their soulful sound.

Not too long ago I visited a Sams Store to purchase a few things and made my way to the photography counter to avoid the long lines.  As the clerk rang up my items, I could hear the Isley Brother's on the television behind me, a live version of "Who's that Lady" on Soul Train.  I asked, "...Is this on tv?"  Turned out, a DVD of 3 discs were being sold, stacked next to the big screen.  The DVDs included Soul Train performances from Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers, Aretha Franklin, The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, The Isley Brothers and many others.

I picked up a copy.