"Lay Away" is a 1972

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

single released by

The Isley Brothers The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American soul group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of the brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, ...

on their

T-Neck T-Neck Records was a record label founded by members of the R&B/soul group The Isley Brothers in 1964, which became notable for distributing the first nationally-released recordings of Jimi Hendrix, their guitarist, and which later became a suc ...

imprint. Released as the first record off their '' Brother, Brother, Brother'' album, the song depicted the narrator's description of how his lover's love was so special that he wanted to have for keeps just in case (hence the lyrics ''going back to get (your love) on a rainy day/your love is safe in my lay-away''). The song took the riff of

Honey Cone Honey Cone is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul music, soul girl group. Originally formed by lead singer Edna Wright (sister of Darlene Love) with Carolyn Willis and Shelly Clark in 1968. They are known for their List of Billboard Hot ...

's "

Want Ads "Want Ads" is a song that was a million-selling No.1 pop and R&B hit recorded by female group, Honey Cone for their second album '' Sweet Replies'' and also appears on their third album '' Soulful Tapestry''. The song, recorded on the Detroit-ba ...

" especially in the bridges. The song was significant for showcasing brother

Ernie Ernie is a masculine given name, frequently a short form (hypocorism) of Ernest, Ernald, Ernesto, or Verner. It may refer to: People * Ernie Accorsi (born 1941), American football executive * Ernie Adams (disambiguation) * Ernie Afaganis ...

on lead guitar for the first time on an Isley Brothers record. Written and produced by elder brothers

O'Kelly O'Kelly or Kelly is an Irish surname. It derives from the Kings of Uí Maine. Notable people with the surname include: * Aloysius O'Kelly (1853–1936), Irish painter, brother of James Joseph O'Kelly * Auguste O'Kelly (1829–1900), music publ ...

, Rudolph and

Ronald Ronald is a masculine given name derived from the Old Norse ''Rögnvaldr'',#H2, Hanks; Hardcastle; Hodges (2006) p. 234; #H1, Hanks; Hodges (2003) § Ronald. or possibly from Old English ''Regenweald''. In some cases ''Ronald'' is an Anglicised ...

, the song charted at number fifty-four pop and number six R&B in the spring of 1972.

Credits

*Lead vocals by

Ronald Isley Ronald Isley ( ; born May 21, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Isley is the lead singer and founding member of the family music group The Isley Brothers. Early life Born in 1941 to Sallye Bernice (née Bell) and O ...

*Background vocals by O'Kelly Isley, Jr. and

Rudolph Isley Rudolph "Rudy" Bernard Isley (April 1, 1939 – October 11, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter and Christian minister and one of the founding members of The Isley Brothers. Life and career Rudolph "Rudy" Bernard Isley was born on April 1, ...

*Instrumentation by the Isley Brothers: **

Ernie Isley Ernest Isley (born March 7, 1952) is an American musician best known as a member of the musical ensemble The Isley Brothers, and also the splinter group Isley-Jasper-Isley. Biography Ernie was born in Cincinnati, where his older brothers formed ...

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

s **

Chris Jasper Christopher Howard Jasper (December 30, 1951 – February 23, 2025) was an American singer, composer and producer. Jasper was a member of the Isley Brothers from 1973 to 1983, and Isley-Jasper-Isley from 1984 to 1987. He was also a successful s ...

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

Marvin Isley Marvin Isley (August 18, 1953 – June 6, 2010)
– accessed June 2010 was an American musician best known as the young ...

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

*Other instrumentation by assorted musicians

References

External links

1972 singles The Isley Brothers songs Songs written by Rudolph Isley Songs written by O'Kelly Isley Jr. Songs written by Ronald Isley T-Neck Records singles {{1970s-single-stub