Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Isley and his family moved to a home in Englewood, New Jersey in the summer of 1959.
By 1971, Marvin began performing bass guitar on The Isley Brothers' album, Givin' It Back.
In addition to playing bass, he also provided percussion and also wrote or co-wrote some of the group's hits including "Fight the Power", "The Pride" and "Between the Sheets".
Breaking away from the Isleys in 1984, he, Ernie and Chris formed the trio, Isley-Jasper-Isley, who had a hit in 1985 with "Caravan of Love".
[1] Marvin Isley died on June 6, 2010, from complications of diabetes at the Seasons Hospice within Weiss Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois, at age 56.