The Isley Brothers: A Funky Family

It was the summer of '79, and Tucson’s disco radio station, 13-KHYT, just couldn’t play the Isley Brothers often enough. It seemed every time I tuned in, there was the churning funk of “I Wanna Be With You,” with its vocoder hook repeating the title over and over, alternating with a semi-whisper of the Isleys chanting “You and me, babe, gettin’ it on, you and me.” Even though I loved disco, I grew to hate the tune, and generally avoided the Isley Brothers’ music whenever I could.