Ernie Isley

Ernest "Ernie" Isley (born March 7, 1952) is a member of the American musical ensemble, The Isley Brothers.

Biography

Ernie was born in Cincinnati, where his older brothers formed The Isley Brothers, first as a gospel group, then as a secular singing group. In 1960 his family moved to Englewood/Teaneck, New Jersey. He currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri.

Jimi Hendrix lived in the Isley home and played guitar for The Isley Brothers for two years, 1963-65. Ernie started playing drums at 12. His first live gig as a member of his brothers' band was as a drummer in 1966 at the age of 14. Ernie was influenced by José Feliciano's version of "Light My Fire" and in 1968 got his first guitar. He is a self-taught musician. In 1968 he did his first professional recording, playing bass on the Isleys' breakthrough funk smash "It's Your Thing", released in 1969. He played electric guitar, acoustic guitar, and drums on the group's early 1970s' albums Get Into Something, Givin' It Back, and Brother, Brother, Brother, before fully joining The Isley Brothers in 1973, becoming a multi-instrumentalist playing acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums and percussion.

Ernie Isley (politician)

Ernest Douglas "Ernie" Isley (born June 29, 1937) is a former school principal and provincial and municipal level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1979 to 1993. He is the former mayor for the town of Bonnyville, Alberta, Isley served that post after being acclaimed in a by-election on March 7, 2006, until being defeated by Gene Sobolewski on October 21, 2013.

Early life

Isley served for seven years as Principal for Bonnyville Centralized High School before running for provincial office.

Provincial political career

Isley was elected to the Alberta Legislature in the 1979 Alberta general election. He won the electoral district of Bonnyville defeating four other candidates to hold it for the Progressive Conservatives. He won his second term and a larger plurality facing two other candidates to win the 1982 Alberta general election. His third time running for office in the 1986 Alberta general election, would see him win his third term with a reduced but comfortable plurality. He would again defeat two other candidates, his strongest challenger was New Democrat candidate Thomas Tucker.