Don’t think that you’ll ever go to a Ron Isley concert and not hear “Shout.”
Isley knows that the song most synonymous with him and his brothers, the anthemic call-and-response they wrote and recorded in 1959, will follow him to his grave.
And he’s perfectly OK with that.
“It’s been with us every time we go on stage. It was our first hit record. It never gets old,” he said last week from his home in St. Louis.
The 70-year-old soul legend is headlining a Sept. 3 Chastain date dubbed “The Reunion.” He’ll perform as The Isley Brothers with his brother Ernie and also share the bill with El DeBarge and Carl Thomas.
Isley wasn’t sure why the show is deemed a “reunion” since he does perform frequently with Ernie. But he assumed it was because Ernie joined the “Experience Hendrix Tour” last year, so casual fans might not realize they’re still a unit.
As for his other tour mates, “I know El very good. I’ve been knowing him at least 10 years; he’s been a good friend of mine. I talked to him at the BET Awards and we talked about doing a tour together and just about everything you can think of. Carl, I met once. We talked for awhile. But I haven’t seen him in a long time,” Ron Isley said.
An Isley Brothers show these days consists of eight musicians, three backup singers and three dancers onstage. The 90-minute outing will include only a couple of songs from Ron Isley’s first solo release, “Mr. I,” which arrived in November.
Instead, fans can revel in the nostalgic sweep of “It’s Your Thing,” “Between the Sheets,” “Contagious” and maybe even “This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You),” which Isley famously recast in 1989 with Rod Stewart.
Though Isley is revered for his contributions to the R&B canon, he’s weathered his share of lifestyle complications. In 2006, he was sentenced to 37 months in prison for federal tax evasion. In April 2010, Isley was released from a federal half-way house, where he spent part of his sentence.
In the year since, after coming home to his wife and 4-year-old son, Isley said he’s been making plans to travel extensively this year and next, with Africa -- where he’s never performed -- at the top of the list.
Currently, his son, Ron Jr., travels with him and is already a fan of the Isley catalog.
“He’s the greatest thing in my life,” Isley said. “He’s with me from the time he gets up to the time he goes to sleep. He’s usually by the side of the stage [when I’m performing]. He knows every song there is.”
Throughout his career, Isley has worked with artists ranging from Burt Bacharach to R. Kelly to his close friend Aretha Franklin. But there are still a couple of names on his collaboration list.
“I’ll probably do something with Alicia Keys and I’ve always wanted to do something with Al Green – that would be nice,” Isley said. “Alicia has talked to me several times, we just haven’t found the time to get together. Oh yeah, and Beyonce. She wanted me to do a duet with her three years ago, so I’m sure we’ll wind up doing something.”
Though it likely won’t be a remake of “Shout.”
Concert preview
The Isley Brothers with El DeBarge and Carl Thomas
7 p.m. Sept. 3. $35-$55. Chastain Park Amphitheatre, 4469 Stella Drive, Atlanta. 1-800-745-3000, www.livenation.com.
