The Pointer Sisters

Four sisters from Oakland who were forbidden to sing anything but gospel, and who spent the next twenty years refusing to stay in any category at all. Ruth, Anita, Bonnie and June Pointer were the daughters of Reverend Elton and Sarah Pointer of the West Oakland Church of God. Bonnie and June started performing in San Francisco clubs in 1969 as Pointers, a Pair; Anita left her job to join them, and Ruth completed the quartet in December 1972. Blue Thumb released their gold debut in 1973, built on Allen Toussaint's Yes We Can Can and a stage act drawn from forties jazz revival, Broadway and thrift-store clothes.

Then they made a country record. Fairytale, written by Anita and Bonnie, won the 1975 Grammy for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, made them the first Black vocal group to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, and was covered by Elvis Presley. Bonnie left in 1977. Working with producer Richard Perry, the remaining three took Bruce Springsteen's Fire to No. 2 in 1978 and then rebuilt themselves again for the eighties: He's So Shy, Slow Hand, I'm So Excited, Jump (For My Love), Automatic, Neutron Dance. Break Out went triple platinum in 1983. Thirteen top 20 singles on the Hot 100 between 1973 and 1985, three Grammy Awards, and a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 1994. June died in 2006, Bonnie in 2020, Anita on the last day of 2022. Ruth still tours.