Pointer

The Pointer Sisters are an American R&B singing group from Oakland, California that achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Spanning over four decades, their repertoire has included such diverse genres as pop, disco, 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.

In 1974, The Pointer Sisters were at their hottest when they performed live in Kinshasa, Zaire in front of an audience of 80,000. It was a three-day black music and sports festival where the fight of the century between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali was taking place.In this awesome and sexy cabaret show. The Pointer Sisters found themselves as much in awe of the audience as the audience was of them. Academy Awards winner, Leon Gast (When We Were Kings) shot this exceptional and extraordinary film.

Considered one of the top violinists in the jazz field, the late Noel Pointer also established a solid following for himself among soul and funk music lovers thanks to a series of great albums recorded between 1977 and 1993 (one year before his passing at the young age of 39). Released in 1980 and making its worldwide CD debut with this 2012 reissue, CALLING was the Brooklyn-born musician’s fourth album for United Artists. The LP was a musical departure for Noel, who worked with noted producer/arranger Richard Evans on the project since it included Noel on several tracks on vocals while the choice of material reflected a spiritual approach reflected in several of the tracks including ‘Higher Than Heaven,’ ‘Peace On Earth’ and the title track.

Keeping their forward momentum at warp speed, the Pointer Sisters brought the effusive Steppin' to bear in summer 1975. Having already danced into the spotlight across their first three albums, it was no surprise when the David Rubinson-produced LP, which boasted one of the era's best cut-out sleeves (slingback high-heeled tap sneakers!), cruised to number three R&B. Keeping their feet planted firmly in the older soul tradition which had served them so well, the Pointer Sisters continued to look ahead, carving their own niche in a genre soon to be glutted with contenders. This set is a thriller, from the opening funk groove of the number one hit "How Long (Betcha' Got a Chick on the Side)," which remains a delicious collision of mid-period soul, funk.