As I predicted, I got misty during Minnie Riperton’s Unsung profile tonight. I was just a kid when she passed away, but I remember thinking, “Oh no, that lady died.” Well, tonight I learned more about who that lady was.
Of course, Lovin’ You sticks out in my mind and I always really loved Memory Lane and Inside My Love, which is just so, so …what’s the word? It’s beyond sexy. It’s one of those songs that just makes you want to fall in love, slowly. But when my good friend downloaded Come to My Garden for me a while back, I was completely in awe when I heard her sing the lyrics to Les Fluer. I mean, that must be one of the most splendid songs ever written and recorded. Simply beautiful.
I vaguely remember the clips of her performing on Soul Train and on The Mike Douglas Show, but it was really interesting to hear about her work with The Gems and Rotary Connection (their version of Aretha’s Respect was fabulous!) and how much Stevie Wonder adored her voice. I loved watching the home videos and the performance pieces of her sporting that big ‘fro and those ridiculously-huge hoop earrings. As a sidebar, I had no idea that A Tribe Called Quest sampled her vocals. Who knew?
Years ago when Maya Rudolph stepped onto the Saturday Night Live stage, I was thrilled to know that she was Minnie’s daughter. Even as she brought the laughs, I always wondered about the sadness she must carry, which she spoke about tonight. I recently saw Maya, now pregnant with her second child, making the talk-show rounds for her new movie, Away We Go, and she talked about how her daughter sings along to Grandma Minnie’s songs. It’s crazy how life just goes on…it’s beautiful and sad at the same time. My heart nearly broke when her brother said that the last time he saw his mother, he was on his way to a baseball game and she was on a stretcher. Listening to her husband choke up as he spoke about her final days just about did me in.
Now that I’m a grown woman, I realize just how young 31 is. She accomplished a great deal during her short life and I can only imagine how much she would have loved to see her kids grow up and play with her grandchildren. And just to think about all the songs she could have sung, how many of those high notes she could have hit…
Although I knew how the story would end, I was especially touched by the words that Minnie spoke on the decades-old recording that played just before the fade-out…
“Feel really good about what you’re doing, regardless if it takes a long time or if it happens really quickly. Just have a good time – stay happy.”
Thanks so much, Minnie.