He was an organist at the First Baptist Church of Cincinnati attended by O’Kelly, Rudolph and Ronald Isley who became known as The Isley Brothers in the late 1950s.
In 1959 they recorded their first chart single “Shout” and even though their producers Hugo and Luigi provided most of the musicians, the brothers requested Professor Stephens performed keyboards on the song.
The song, which has since been covered by many artists and was a hit in the UK for Lulu, was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
Sources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shout_(Isley_Brothers_song)
- https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2014/jan/07/10-of-the-best-isley-brothers
- https://www.songfacts.com/facts/the-isley-brothers/shout
- http://howgooditis.com/transcripts/transcript-56-shout/
- https://4therecordcom.home.blog/2020/03/03/johnny-okeefe-1958-1973-part-1-3/