The rules of the lesson said to avoid performance artists because it would be easy to complete your list with rap artists, actors, athletes and anyone who has been overhyped by the media, but I had to include the Pointer Sisters. No other group has had such an effect on me and my personality. Of course, I heard the Pointer Sisters in the late 70’s when they came out with such hits as Slow Hand and Fire, but it was their album Break Out in 1983 that was what finalized their permanent position in my life.
They started as a duet with June and Bonnie performing in
clubs in 1969. Anita joined the group
and in 1972 Ruth became a member. They
won a Grammy in 1975 for Best Country Vocal Performance for Fairytale, a song
written by Anita Pointer, a first for an all African-American female
group. They were also the first all
African-American female group to perform at the Grand Ol’ Opry.
Bonnie left the group in 1978, but the other three carried
on and enjoyed immense success in the late 70’s and early 80’s. They won two Grammys in 1985 for Jump, Best Pop
Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Automatic for Best Vocal
Arrangement for Two or More Vocals. They
were nominated for six more Grammys, including one for Contact, Best R&B
Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Their last studio albums was Only Sisters Can Do That in
1993. June, the baby sister, left the
group in 2004 and passed away in 2006 from cancer.
The Pointer Sisters continue to perform today with Ruth, her
daughter Issa and her granddaughter Sadako.
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