1975 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Lovin’ You,’…
on March 31st, 1975 at 12:30 pm
1975 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Lovin’ You,” Minnie Riperton. The song is produced by Stevie Wonder.
Lyrics:
Lovin’ you is easy cause you’re beautiful
Makin’ love with you is all i wanna do
Lovin’ you is more than just a dream come true
And everything that i do is out of lovin’ you
La la la la la la la… do do do do do
No one else can make me feel
The colors that you bring
Stay with me while we grow old
And we will live each day in springtime
Cause lovin’ you has made my life so beautiful
And every day my life is filled with lovin’ you
Lovin’ you i see your soul come shinin’ through
And every time that we oooooh
I’m more in love with you
La la la la la la la… do do do do do
Minnie Julia Riperton (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American singer-songwriter best known for her five-and-a-half octave vocal range and her 1975 single “Lovin’ You”.
As a child Riperton studied music, drama, and dance at Chicago’s Lincoln Center. In her teen years, Riperton sang lead vocals for the Chicago-based girl group, The Gems. Her early affiliation with legendary Chess records afforded her the opportunity to sing backup for various established artist such as Etta James, Fontella Bass, Ramsey Lewis, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, and Muddy Waters. While at Chess Riperton also sang lead for the experimental rock/soul group Rotary Connection, from 1967 to 1971. In 1969 Riperton, along with Rotary Connection, played in the first Catholic Rock Mass at the Liturgical Conference National Convention, Milwaukee Arena, Milwaukee, WI. produced by James F. Colaianni. Riperton reached the apex of her short, but esteemed, career with her number-one hit single, “Lovin’ You”, on April 4, 1975. The single was the last release from her 1974 gold album entitled Perfect Angel.
Tragically, in 1976 Riperton was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a modified radical mastectomy. Facing a grim prognosis, Riperton continued recording and touring, and in 1977 Riperton became the spokesperson for the American Cancer Society. That same year Minnie also received the Society’s Courage Award presented to her at the White House by then-President Jimmy Carter. On Thursday, July 12, 1979 at 10:00 a.m., while lying in her husband’s arms, Riperton lost her valiant three-year struggle with cancer as she listened to a recording Stevie Wonder had made for her. On Sunday, July 15, 1979, following a funeral service attended by more than five hundred mourners, Riperton was interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.
