Isley was just 14 when played bass on the Brothers' hit "It's Your Thing," but came into his own as a guitarist in the early '70s. He wrote several hits and introduced fuzz guitar to a generation of R&B fans who had never experienced the power of rock guitar. VINTAGE GUITAR 74 February 2018 Ernie Isley: Karen I. Hirsch/ZUMA. ontrary to what longtime fans may have heard, Ernie Isley didn't take guitar lessons from Jimi Hendrix. Though Ernie hung out with Hendrix in the Isley's home while Jimi was a member of the family band, it was before Ernie had picked up the guitar. That brush with the legend may have inspired the youngest Isley, and certainly, his surroundings led the way to a long career as a multiinstrumentalist, prolific songwriter - and guitar hero in his own right.