Minnie Riperton (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American soul singer and songwriter best known for her 1974 single "Lovin' You", her five-octave vocal range, and her use of the whistle register.
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| The Gems |
Minnie Julia Riperton was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Thelma Inez (Matthews) and Daniel Webster Riperton, a Pullman porter. At a young age, Riperton, the youngest of eight children, began taking dancing and ballet. As a youth she studied music, drama, and dance at the city's Abraham Lincoln Center and later contemplated a career in opera. Once she reached high school, she began singing in the Hyde Park A Capella Choir. From there, she signed her first professional contract (age 16) and began singing with an all-girl group named "The Gems" on the Chess label.
The Gems released a handful of singles as well as lend backing vocals to acts including Fontella Bass, the Dells, and Etta James. After graduating high school, Riperton went to work at Chess as a receptionist where she practiced imitating instruments, notably the strings and violin and especially the flute. Following the Gems' dissolution, she also signed with the label as a solo act, releasing a single, "Lonely Girl," under the alias Andrea Davis.
Riperton then made a complete switch when she joined the psychedelic rock group "The Rotary Connection" in 1967 and was installed as the lead singer in 1968. The group debuted that year with a self-titled LP on Cadet Concept. The singles "Amen" and "Lady Jane" found a home on underground FM radio, but the group failed to make much of an impression on mainstream outlets. During her time with "The Rotary Connection", Riperton met songwriter and producer Richard Rudolph. They married in 1969 and had a son, Marc Rudolph. While still a member of the band, Riperton mounted a solo career . Together, Rudolph and Riperton worked on Riperton's first solo album, 1969's "Come to My Garden", which met with minimal success.
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| The Rotary Connection |
Riperton rejoined "The Rotary Connection" for their last album, 1971's "Hey Love". After finishing work with them, Riperton and Rudolph took a two-year sabbatical in Florida before relocating to Los Angeles, where she sang on Stevie Wonder's Fulfillingness' First Finale and toured as a member of his backing unit Wonderlove. After touring with Wonder, she returned to the studio to work on her second solo album, "Perfect Angel". Because of her work with Stevie Wonder, he agreed to help produce "Perfect Angel", which contained the international pop hit "Lovin' You". "Lovin' You", the melody of which had previously been recorded and then looped to soothe Riperton and Rudolph's daughter, Maya Rudolph.
The year 1974 proved to be big for Riperton, as her album "Perfect Angel" was certified gold by the RIAA. The single “ Lovin’ You” made Riperton a household name. Early reviews labeled her the "piccolo coloratura" because her coloratura soprano abilities were so astonishing that many people incorrectly attributed the notes to funky instrumentation. In 1975, she returned to the studio to produce 1975's "Adventures in Paradise" and, although it didn't mirror the success of "Perfect Angel", it was popular with R&B audiences. The album contained the song "Inside My Love", which has now become a classic with younger audiences. In 1976, while working on her fourth solo album, "Stay In Love: A Romantic Fantasy Set to Music", Riperton found that she was suffering from breast cancer. The following year, President Jimmy Carter presented her with the American Cancer Society's Courage Award, and she later became the chairwoman.
In 1978, Riperton signed a new contract with Capitol Records and began work on her last album, titled "Minnie". The album contained the hits "Memory Lane" and "Lover and Friend". Riperton continued performing despite her declining condition, with 1979's Minnie the final album completed during her lifetime. She died in L.A. on July 12 of that year. "Memory Lane," the biggest single off Minnie, was later nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. Unreleased vocal tracks with new instrumental backing comprised 1980's posthumous collection Love Lives Forever, which likewise resulted in a Grammy nomination, this time for "Here We Go," a duet with Peabo Bryson.
She eventually lost her battle with cancer and passed away on July 12, 1979. A year after her death, Capitol released a posthumous album, "Love Lives Forever", featuring her recorded vocals with various singers such as Peabo Bryson, Michael Jackson, Shanice and Stevie Wonder. Today, Riperton's influence can be heard in the voices of Mariah Carey, Chanté Moore and Ariana Grande. Her son, Marc Rudolph, is a music engineer. Her daughter, Maya Rudolph, is a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live (1975).
(Edited from IMDb bio and AllMusic)
