The Isley Brothers are a genre unto themselves. Six decades, three distinct eras, one family. They started singing gospel in Cincinnati churches, had a hit with Twist and Shout before the Beatles covered it, and by the 1970s had transformed into a self-contained funk band -- Ronald's silk-smooth tenor, Ernie's Hendrix-trained guitar, the younger brothers on bass and drums. Nobody did what the Isleys did for as long as they did it.

Twist and Shout was their first hit in 1962; the Beatles made it immortal but the Isleys' original has more grit. Then the Motown years. Then the T-Neck years -- their own label, their own sound, their own rules. That Lady. Fight the Power. For the Love of You. Between the Sheets. Ernie Isley -- the youngest brother who learned guitar from Jimi Hendrix when Hendrix lived with the family -- played solos that could melt speakers.

They survived lineup changes, the death of brother O'Kelly in 1986, and the shifting winds of popular music. Between the Sheets was sampled by Notorious B.I.G. and a generation of hip-hop producers. The Isley Brothers outlasted every trend because they were never following trends. They were family. The family kept playing.

The Isley Brothers -- Twist and Shout to That Lady to Between the Sheets. Six decades. One family. Ernie learned guitar from Hendrix. Sampled by Biggie.