Album Notes

This Top 10 Platinum smash, originally released in 1978 on The Isley Brothers' own T-Neck label, has remained criminally out of print on CD in the U.S. … until now! Boasting the #1 hit "Take Me To The Next Phase (Part 1 & 2)" and "Groove With You," and classic, frequently sampled jams like "Coolin' Me Out," Showdown was the perfect follow-up to The Isley Brothers' groundbreaking Go For Your Guns album. The 3 + 3 lineup--combining the vocals of the 3 elder brothers (Ronald, Rudolph and Kelly) with the writing and producing skills of younger brothers Ernie and Marvin and brother-in-law Chris Jasper--was on fire at this point, producing hit after hit while innovating constantly. Perhaps their funkiest album, Showdown was built to rock the house, as Chris Jasper explains in his detailed, all new liner notes.

“If there was an overall theme or concept for the Showdown album, it was that I wanted each song to be a song that we could play on stage--that would go over well with an audience--not just a ballad that was really smooth,” Jasper writes. That aim was masterfully achieved, as the livewire Showdown album unveils eight energetic slabs of Isley funk at its finest. Even the sole ballad, “Groove With You,” is strongly rhythmic.

Showdown has been digitally remastered from the first generation tapes by 3 time Grammy Award winner Joe Palmaccio, who previously oversaw the reissues of The Isley Brothers’ CDs 3 + 3, Live It Up, The Heat Is On and Harvest For The World on Legacy.