Isis -

Isis was an American brass-rock/funk big band from NYC, formed in 1972 by guitarist/singer Carol MacDonald and drummer Ginger Bianco, both of the seminal ’60s garage band Goldie & The Gingerbreads. They released two albums on Buddah in 1974/75 and a third on UA in 1977.

Members: Carol MacDonald (vocals, guitar), Ginger Bianco (drums, percussion), Suzi Ghezzi (guitar), Stella Bass (bass, vocals), Nydia “Liberty” Mata (percussion), Lauren Draper (trumpet, vocals), Lolly Bienenfield (trombone, vocals), Jeanie Fineberg (saxophone, flute, piccolo), Margo Lewis (keyboards), Ellen Seeling (trumpet), Edith Dankowitz (saxophone, flute, clarinet), Renate Ferrer (guitar), Faith Fusillo (guitar), Lynx (saxophone, guitar), Barbara Cobb (bass), Vivian Stoll (drums, vibraphone)

Background

Isis formed in 1972 in New York City when singer-guitarist Carol MacDonald and drummer Ginger Bianco assembled guitarist Suzi Ghezzi, bassist-singer Stella Bass, percussionist Nydia “Liberty” Mata, trombonist-singer Lolly Bienenfeld, trumpeter and French horn player Lauren Draper, and saxophonist-flutist Jean “Jeanie” Fineberg.

MacDonald and Bianco previously played in Goldie & the Gingerbreads, which singer Genya “Goldie” Zelkowitz formed with Bianco in New York in 1962 after seeing the drummer at Trude Heller’s. Organist Margo Lewis joined the developing group, and MacDonald became the permanent guitarist in 1963 after a succession of short-term players. The Gingerbreads cut the 1964 Spokane single “Skinny Vinnie” and secured an Atlantic/Atco deal after Atlantic president Ahmet Ertegun saw them perform at a New York party. The group established a parallel British career through extended European activity and shared bills with the Rolling Stones, Animals, Yardbirds, Hollies, and Kinks. Decca issued “Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat” in Britain in 1965, where the single reached No. 25 on the UK chart. Further releases included the 1966 singles “Think About the Good Times” and “Sailor Boy” and the 1967 Atco single “Walking in Different Circles.”

The Gingerbreads dissolved by 1968 when Zelkowitz adopted the name Genya Ravan and formed the horn-based Ten Wheel Drive with keyboardist Michael Zager and guitarist Aram Schefrin, a partnership that produced three Polydor albums. Ravan left for a solo career in 1972, while MacDonald and Bianco reunited that year around the larger brass-and-percussion format of Isis.

Several Isis recruits entered with prior musical training or recording experience. Ghezzi previously played with the Female Beatles. Bass learned guitar from her husband and shifted to electric bass as her principal instrument. Draper entered rock and jazz from a classical background on trumpet and French horn. Fineberg earned a master’s degree at Pennsylvania State University and pursued postgraduate jazz studies with David Baker at Indiana University. Mata played congas on the 1971 Laura Nyro and Labelle album Gonna Take a Miracle.

Isis developed original material on the New York club circuit and established regular work at Trude Heller’s in Greenwich Village. In 1973, they signed with Buddah Records. The Women’s Interart Center workshop filmed Isis at a Jan. 17, 1974, New York rehearsal, where the band performed material that included “Waiting for the Sonrise,” “Do the Football,” and “Servant Saviour.” Buddah paired Isis with producer George “Shadow” Morton for the self-titled debut, which entered trade-review circulation that June.

Between Isis and Ain’t No Backin’ Up Now

The first-album lineup changed as Isis prepared a second Buddah project. Renate Ferrer replaced Ghezzi on lead guitar, former Gingerbreads organist Margo Lewis joined on keyboards, and saxophonist-flutist Edith Dankowitz expanded the horn section. MacDonald also needed another trumpet player for the planned New Orleans sessions and contacted Indiana University student Ellen Seeling after tuba and baritone saxophonist Howard Johnson recommended her.

Seeling flew to New Orleans over her Christmas recess and joined Isis for approximately two weeks of recording. The sessions brought the group into Allen Toussaint’s New Orleans studio, where Toussaint produced and arranged part of the album. Jeff Lane and MacDonald produced additional material, while guitarist June Millington of Fanny appeared as a guest player. The resulting lineup retained MacDonald, Bianco, Bass, Mata, Bienenfeld, and Fineberg alongside Ferrer, Lewis, Dankowitz, and Seeling for the 1975 Buddah album Ain’t No Backin’ Up Now.

Discography: