Intro

Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.

Today's episode is on the all-female band The Pointer Sisters who were yet another successful example of starting off with gospel music, then migrating over to other genres such as pop, disco and dance among others.

The group really hit their straps in the 1980s with the trio of June, Ruth, and Anita producing a myriad of hits. But sadly, June passed away in 2006, Bonnie in 2020, and Anita just recently at the age of 74, leaving Ruth as the only surviving Pointer Sister.

With that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Save_The_World_Awards_2009_show20_-_The_Pointer_Sisters.jpg

Wikipedia Summary

The Pointer Sisters are an American girl group from Oakland, California, which achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Their repertoire has included such diverse genres as R&B, pop, jazz, electronic music, bebop, blues, soul, funk, dance, country, and rock. The Pointer Sisters have won three Grammy Awards and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994. The group had 13 US top 20 hits between 1973 and 1985.

The group had its origins when sisters June and Bonnie Pointer began performing in clubs in 1969 as "Pointers, a Pair". The line-up grew to a trio when sister Anita joined them. Their record deal with Atlantic Records produced several unsuccessful singles. The trio grew to a quartet when sister Ruth joined in December 1972. They then signed with Blue Thumb Records, recorded their debut album, and began seeing more success, winning a Grammy Award in 1975 for Best Country Vocal Performance for "Fairytale" (1974). Bonnie left the group in 1978 to commence a solo career with modest success.

The group achieved its greatest commercial success in the 1980s as a trio consisting of June, Ruth, and Anita. They won two more Grammys in 1984 for the top 10 hits "Automatic" and "Jump (For My Love)". The group's other U.S. top 10 hits are "Fire" (1979), "He's So Shy" (1980), "Slow Hand" (1981), the remixed version of "I'm So Excited" (1984), and "Neutron Dance" (1985).

June Pointer, the youngest sister, struggled with drug addiction for much of her career, leaving the group in April 2004 prior to her death from cancer in April 2006, at the age of 52.[1] She was replaced by Ruth's daughter Issa Pointer. This trio had a number two hit in Belgium in 2005, covering "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" with Belgian singer Natalia. Between 2009 and 2015, the group consisted of Anita, Ruth, Issa, and Ruth's granddaughter Sadako Pointer. While all four women remained in the group, they most often performed as a trio rotating the lineup as needed. In 2015, Anita was forced to retire due to ill health, leaving Ruth the sole member of the original sibling line-up.

In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them as the 80th most successful dance artists of all-time.[2] In December 2017, Billboard ranked them as the 93rd most successful Hot 100 Artist of all-time[3] and as the 32nd most successful Hot 100 Women Artist of all-time.[4]

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pointer_Sisters]

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Pointer_Sisters.png

Mnemonic

The Pointer Sisters – Group Members Mnemonic – Sisters Jump In BAR

(Picture the Pointer Sisters playing a gig in a bar and performing their song Jump, in which they jump every time it’s mentioned in the song)

1. Sadako Pointer - Member

2. June Pointer – Past Member

3. Issa Pointer - Member

4. Bonnie Pointer – Past Member

5. Anita Pointer – Past Member

6. Ruth Pointer - Member

Five Fun Facts

1. The parents of The Pointer sisters were both ministers at the West Oakland Church of God in Oakland California. This led to a strict religious and somewhat austere upbringing where music and movies were not allowed except for gospel.

Now, for the benefit of all listeners, there is actually a really good documentary on The Pointer Sisters showing tonight, so needless to say “I’m so Excited”. However, I am also so excited to learn that scientists have now tested cloning on humans. So much so, I’m beside myself!

2. The group started as a pair with Bonnie and June, after which Anita joined. They then became a quartet with the addition of Ruth Pointer.

3. In 1977 The Pointer Sisters had a short breakup after which Bonnie left the group to pursue a solo career in 1978.

4. The Pointer Sisters had their fair share of labels. They started with “Atlantic Records”, then went onto “Blue Thumb Records”, “ABC Records” then “Planet Records”, “RCA Records”, “Motown Records” and finally with “SBK Records”.

5. The Pointer Sisters are still active. Ruth now tours with her daughter, Issa, and her granddaughter Sadaka.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pointer_Sisters_aangekomen_op_Schiphol_voor_optreden_in_Nederland_de_Pointer_Si,_Bestanddeelnr_927-4783.jpg

Three Question Quiz

Q.1. The Pointer Sisters (quartet) made their movie debut in 1976 as the Wilson Sisters in what movie? The options are Car Wash, Jump or The Pointer Pachyderms

Q.2. The Pointer Sisters song “The Neutron Dance” was on the soundtrack to which successful movie? Hint: The movie is about a cop

Q.3. The Pointer Sisters first gold single, “Fire” is a cover. Which famous male artist wrote the song? Hint: He was born in the same country

Bonus Q. Did the Pointer Sisters participate in USA for Africa's 1985 "We Are the World" charity single?

Mnemonic Recap

The Pointer Sisters – Group Members Mnemonic – Sisters Jump In BAR

(Picture the Pointer Sisters playing a gig in a bar and performing their song Jump, in which they jump every time its mentioned in the song)

1. Sadako Pointer - Member

2. June Pointer – Past Member

3. Issa Pointer - Member

4. Bonnie Pointer – Past Member

5. Anita Pointer – Past Member

6. Ruth Pointer - Member

Three Question Quiz Answers

Q.1. The Pointer Sisters (quartet) made their movie debut in 1976 as the Wilson Sisters in what movie? The options are Car Wash, Jump or The Pointer Pachyderms

A. Jump

Q.2. The Pointer Sisters song “The Neutron Dance” was on the soundtrack to which successful movie? Hint: The movie is about a cop

A. Beverly Hills Cop starring Eddie Murphy

Q.3. The Pointer Sisters first gold single, “Fire” is a cover. Which famous male artist wrote the song? Hint: He was born in the same country

A. Bruce Springsteen

Bonus Q. Did the Pointer Sisters participate in USA for Africa's 1985 "We Are the World" charity single?

A. Yes. They also recorded the song “Just a Little Closer” for the “We Are The World” album.

Word of the Week

tour de force

[ toor duh -fawrs ]

noun

a feat requiring unusual strength, skill, or ingenuity.