Isleys’ Bedroom Tunes Replace R&B; Classics

Ronald Isley no longer wants to shout; he’d much prefer to croon a languid bedroom tune. Oh, the obligatory rousing finale on Saturday at the Celebrity Theatre in Anaheim included a few choruses of that grand old 1959 party anthem “Shout.” But Isley, now virtually a solo act despite the Isley Brothers billing (technically justified by the presence of younger brother Marvin on bass), has pretty much rejected the family’s rocking past in favor of his current incarnation as a seductive smoothie. It was disappointing to hear Isley all but ignore a fine legacy of high-energy R&B; classics that includes such ‘60s hits as “It’s Your Thing” and the original “Twist and Shout.”

Angela Winbush’s opening set also was heavily slanted toward the elegant, shimmering romantic balladry of R&B;’s “quiet storm” approach. Thanks to Winbush’s exceptional vocal range and sense of drama, her version of the storm was no dull drizzle. It was, however, too showy and baroque, devaluing the songs in favor of vocal display. The same bill appears Sunday at the Universal Amphitheatre.