Masterpiece
Studio album by
The Isley Brothers
ReleasedApril 29, 1985
Recorded1984-1985
VenueDevonshire Sound Studios
(North Hollywood, Los Angeles)
Length47:49
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerThe Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers chronology
Greatest Hits, Vol. 1
(1984) 		Masterpiece
(1985) 		Smooth Sailin'
(1987)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [1]

Masterpiece is the 23rd album released by The Isley Brothers on Warner Bros. Records on April 29, 1985. For the first time since 1973, the Isley Brothers were a trio composed of the original members O'Kelly, Rudolph and Ronald Isley. It was the last album with O'Kelly Isley; he died a year after the album's release from a heart attack. The fall of 1985 also saw the elder Isleys release Masterpiece.[2] The album is dedicated to their late brother Vernon Isley and their parents Sally & O'Kelly Isley Sr. The album liner notes were written by Elaine Isley.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."May I?"Ronald Isley, Rudolph Isley, O'Kelly Isley, Elaine Jasper Isley5:07
2."My Best Was Good Enough"Skip Scarborough4:20
3."If Leaving Me Is Easy"Phil Collins6:30
4."You Never Know When You're Gonna Fall in Love"Rex Salas, Monty Seward4:19
5."Stay Gold"Stevie Wonder, Carmine Coppola4:11
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Colder Are My Nights"David Williams, Pat Leonard6:00
7."Come to Me"Robert Brookins, Tony Haynes4:53
8."Release Your Love"David Ritz, Kelly McNulty5:32
9."The Most Beautiful Girl"Billy Sherrill, Rory Bourke, Norris Wilson6:57

Personnel

The Isley Brothers
with
Technical personnel & arrangements

Chart performance

The album charted at #140 in the US Billboard 200 while only charting at #19 on the R&B album chart. "Colder Are My Nights" peaked at #12 on the R&B charts, while "May I?" charted at #42 in 1986.

Charts

References

  1. ^ Elias, Jason. "The Isley Brothers - Masterpiece (1985) album review, credits & releases". AllMusic. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
  2. ^ A Touch of Classic Soul 2: The Late 1970s Marc Taylor - 2001 - Page 173 They got off to a good start with "Colder Are My Nights" reaching number 12 on the R&B charts. The brothers followed with "May I?", a pleading love song that was mildly successful in the spring of 1986. However, any joy from the album was negated when Kelly Isley died of a heart attack on March 31, 1986 at age 48.
  3. ^ "The Isley Brothers Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  4. ^ "The Isley Brothers Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  5. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1986". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2021.

External links

The Isley Brothers
Authority control databases
Categories