Anita Pointer, an American singer-songwriter, best known as a founding member of the vocal group the Pointer Sisters, passed away at her home in Beverly Hills, California yesterday following a battle with cancer, according to her publicist, Roger Neal. She was 74 years old.
Anita Marie Pointer was born on January 23, 1948, in Oakland, California. Her father, the Rev. Elton Pointer, and her mother, Sarah Elizabeth Silas Pointer, had both migrated West from their original homes in Arkansas and, at the time of Anita's birth, ministered to a small, local congregation. Anita was one of six children that could all be regularly found singing to the point that their parents found them a vocal trainer to teach them how to harmonize--a skill that would come in handy when the sisters formed their own group.
The Pointer Sisters originally started as a quartet,--Anita, Ruth, Bonnie and June.. They performed wearing secondhand clothes that could have been worn to church in the 1940s--sometimes even sourcing their wardrobe from their mother's church friends. The aesthetic perfectly complimented the almost-antique sound the group had, despite many of their songs being fast-paced or "funky."
In the beginning, they found themselves as a backup group for musicians in the San Fransisco area, like Taj Mahal. One time, they were warned about upstaging a musical act they were supposed to be supporting because they...performed too well, I guess? That used to be a good thing... and the girls thought so, too, and soon after began recording.
In 1974, the ladies took home their first Grammy in a category that was rather unusual for a Black group of the time--Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group--thanks to their song "Fairytale," which Anita took lead vocals on, after co-writing it with her sister, Bonnie.
Shortly thereafter, Bonnie left to pursue her own solo career, leaving the group as a trio. They released a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Fire", which reached #2 on the charts, as a transitional track before truly arriving at their new sound in 1982 with their hit song, "I'm So Excited."
Anita announced Bonnie Pointer's death resulting from cardiac arrest at the age of 69 in 2020, saying in a statement that “The Pointer Sisters would never have happened had it not been for Bonnie."
Anita's daughter, June Pointer, died of cancer at the age of 52 in 2006.
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