A home in Alpine that sold for $3 million after being on the market for nearly a decade was once owned by one of the Isley Brothers. NorthJersey.com

Who's going to win the big Verzuz R&B battle between the Isley Brothers and Earth, Wind and Fire at 8 p.m. EST Sunday, April 4.

Put your money on Jersey Teaneck's Isleys will be victorious. After all, if it weren't for the Isley Brothers, the Beatles would still be Liverpool.

That's the word from Paul McCartney, who told guitar legend Ernie Isley of the debt the Fab Four owed the Isleys when they met at the Apollo in the Hamptons benefit in 2012. The Beatles, of course, covered the Isley Brothers hits Twist and Shout and Shout early in their career.

The Isleys had just finished performing Shout at the benefit.

Ron and Ernie Isley.(Photo: Submitted)

We came back off the stage, taking selfies and signing autographs, said Ernie Isley to the USA Today Network New Jersey in 2019. My wife Tracy said to me Paul McCartneys over there and I said, 'Where?' She points and he was about four tables away. I squeezed through the tables, tapped him on his shoulder and he stood up at his full height and gave me bear hug that cut my wind off.

We were both yelling in each other's ears at the same time and I said something like, 'Paul, you and Ringo, George and John were wonderful.' He said, 'Ernie, if it werent for the Isley Brothers, the Beatles would still be in Liverpool.' "

There was more rock 'n' roll to come that night.

Ernie and brother Ron Isley were joined by McCartney, Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Usher and Jennifer Hudson on stage to sing Twist and Shout.

It was the only time the Isley Brothers and a Beatle had ever performed the song live, and it was great, Ernie Isley said. It was great.

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McCartney repeated his acknowledgment of the Isleys from the stage. Ringo Starr also told Ernie Isley of the Isley Brothers influence on the Beatles at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015.

Ernie, its because of the Isley Brothers that we were able to hit our stride, said Ringo, as relayed by Ernie Isley.

The Isley Brothers(Photo: Provided)

Shout and Twist and Shout by the Isley Brothers are two of the seminal tracks in rock 'n' roll history. They were recorded while the Isleys, natives of Cincinnati, were based in Teaneck.

They changed some of the lyrics for their version, said Ernie Isley of the 1962 session for the Isley's Twist and Shout, which predates his joining the band. They only had a chance do one take on the record when they got to the ahh ahh ahh shake it up baby!, (Ron's) voice cracked a little bit. He hated it but he kept going and they wanted to do second take but it was decided time was up and that was good enough.

Bert Berns, the co-writer of the song, produced the Isley Brothers version.

They sort of left the studio feeling little discouraged, but it turned out that version was the record that so many have since copied, Ernie Isley said.

Including the Beatles, who opened their ground-breaking 1965 concert at Shea Stadium with Twist and Shout.

Of course, the Isley Brothers legacy is steeped in much more than Beatles covers. The band was on the vanguard of R&B, funk, hip-hop, quiet storm, Afro punk and more. Their hits include This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You), Summer Breeze, That Lady, Live It Up, Fight the Power, Harvest for the World, Between the Sheets, Contagious and That Lady.

Ernie Isley's playing on That Lady is considered one of the greatest lead guitars in rock 'n' roll this side of Jimi Hendrix. He must have picked up a few pointers from Hendrix when Hendrix was a member of the band and lived at the Isley'shome in the early 60s.

Earth, Wind & Fire are certainly shining stars themselves, known for hit records like September, Lets Groove Boogie Wonderland, and "Shining Star." Like the Isley Brothers, they're in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But the Isley Brothers, well, what can you say about a band that has two of the music's greatest guitarists, Jimi Hendrix and Ernie Isley, in it?

That's tough to beat. The Verzuz takes place via Instagram and the Triller app.

We have managed to change with the musical terrain, the musical climate, and still keep our ID, Ernie Isley said.

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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at @chrisfhjordan; cjordan@app.com.

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Isley Brothers will defeat Earth, Wind and Fire in Verzuz battle, just ask the Beatles - Asbury Park Press