This was so much fun!! I’ll start by saying that, when I see my name next to yours, I feel the same way Mariah felt when Carole asked her to collaborate in ‘91 or when Aretha invited her to perform live in that ‘98 Divas live show you mention. I’m like “really? this legend with ME?” 🤣 It’s an incredible honour for which I am, as MC herself would say, “eternally grateful”.
What a fantastic overview of both, chronologically and so well intertwined and narrated, packed with interesting (and fun!) stuff.
Thank you for letting me be a part of this.
And now, let’s go everybody: get those whistle notes ready, at the count of 3! 😁♥️
I'm beyond humbled by your generous comparison, Andy....thanks! As Garth and Wayne might say, while visiting Brooklyn, "I'm not woithy!" Who better to rep the mighty Mimi than you? And, thank you for filling out the Carey part of the piece so expertly!
It'd be fun if Mr. Rudolph (now 77) and/or Maya could stumble across our effort....I think they'd be proud of what we've pulled together in illustrating Mariah's appreciation of Minnie's life and gifts! I'm all ready to whistle! I think it's in the car.....lemme go fetch it!
It’s all true and then some, and you are more than worth it!
It was my absolute pleasure, and in the process, I’ve learned so much about Minnie. I think it’s beautiful when a younger artist pays their respects to those who came before them and acknowledges their influence. Particularly with female artists whom the press always try to pit against each other. Thanks a lot once again for this fab collab!
You're right about Mariah offering props to Minnie.....repeatedly! I was so pleased to keep finding interviews and videos of her doing just that! Very generous and honest of her, and as you're such a perfect example, her young fans, now, can eagerly discover Minnie, and feel just that much closer to MC's music, and her particular talent! Not hard to imagine little millennial girls listening to Mariah, and running up to Mommy going, "Listen what I can do!!"
Great article, though far above my paygrade in terms of technical vocal analysis, so I haven't much to say on that subject.
A small correction -- MTV had been doing Unplugged since 1989, years before Mariah's appearance. And while Mariah's live Unplugged is indeed one of the best selling Unplugged live albums, it's not the first. Paul McCartney was the first artist to release a live Unplugged album --and his 1991 appearance is credited by the show's creator for having made both Unplugged and live Unplugged albums a Thing. 😎 Making things a Thing is what Macca does best, of course, and it's one of Paul's best live albums.
Thanks, Faith! Adding to Andy's reply, Mariah's 1992 appearance occurred in just the 3rd year of the show's 11-year run (1989-1999), so Andy's "among the first" assertion is, I think, still within a very general depiction of her appearance, when taking in the span of the show.
Plus, it's worth noting that Mariah's Unplugged appearance happened a mere two years into her career (with her 1990 debut album).
Thank you, Faith! I wasn’t sure whether Mariah’s was actually the first, that’s why I was tentative when passing my notes on to Brad. I was sure it was among the first, as hers was recorded a couple of months after Paul’s, and released roughly a year after his was released. Thanks for the info! I haven’t listened to Paul’s yet so I’ll be definitely checking it out!
Great collab piece, gents. To be honest, I haven't listened to enough of Mariah's music to comment on her, but I adore Minnie's angelic voice. The funky 'Adventures in Paradise' is a straight-up groover. Her heavenly vocals are also absolutely perfect on the lovely 'Les Fleur,' and beautifully complement the strings, brass, and crashing cymbals, making it the perfect hippie anthem.
Good on ya, Michael, for being hip to Minnie's solo career to that extent! You sound like you'd have a unique and fascinating POV to write about that part of her career! So few have/could/would! Consider this an encouragement!
Thanks, Brad. I have the 1st S/T Rotary Connection album as well as Minnie's solo LPs "Come To My Garden" and "Adventures in Paradise" in my collection. However, I don't own 'Perfect Angel,' which you highlight in your piece. I may well take you up on that recommendation! 😊
Thank you, Michael! Indeed Minnie was a goddess. I’ve known her through my Mariah fandom, and I’ve come to appreciate her work as a legendary artist who was a true pioneer in many respects.
I'm way late to this (and a ton of other posts from many great writers), but had to jump in and say how much fun this collab is! Papa Bear Brad did good by you, young cub Andres! I knew a bit about Minnie Ripperton, and and was thrilled to discover 3 of Minnie's albums and a Rotary Connection album (that I acquired) when my aunt went into assisted living.
The whistle tone is quite an impressive tone, and hearing Minnie's voice separated out on Wings of Pegasus was mindblowing. What a talent. Also fun to hear/watch those live Mariah clips! I'd seen her perform live before, but it's been a long time and I was struck most by her effortless, joyful delivery.
As you probably know from my "Whistling" piece from last year, I can't even regular whistle, let alone whistle tone -- are there men who can hit the whistle tone?
Thank you, Steve! I echo Brad’s words in that we needed each other to come up with the end result (and I don’t need to clarify we also needed Brad’s writing skills 🤣).
Minnie was a real trailblazer, and Brad’s informative and comprehensive summary is a great starter-for-ten for those like me who knew a song or two (courtesy of Mariah’s praise) but needed a more complete overview of this fascinating artist.
The effortlessness of Mariah’s vocals is second to none. This is in my opinion what makes her so incredible and sets her apart from the rest (apart from her songwriting skills). But this efortlessness is particularly impressive when one considers how extremely difficult some of the stuff she does is (particularly her transitions). It was Simon Cowell I think who said: “To sing a Whitney Houston song is very hard, but to sing a Mariah Carey song is vocal suicide”. In terms of singing technique, Mariah is really superhuman.
Glad you like, Steve! Thanks! It was a natural with my unusual early-ness on Minnie, and Andy's shameless (but, certainly understandable) adoration of La Mariah!😁There was little I could say with any confidence or experience about Ms. Carey and her music, and I guessed Andy was equally little-versed on Minnie (except what he'd heard Mariah say, in reverence, about her). So, we joined forces to make the ultimate 🎵"just whistle a happy tone"🎵 piece!
That's really tremendous you got those rare Minnie albums (especially the Rotary Connection one!). There was really nothing quite like RC's sound, certainly at the time!
There are two whistle tone tutorials at the very bottom of the article: One by a gal for the ladies, and one by a guy for da doods! Nowhere near the range of a lady's whistle tone, he seems to affect it well enough, but allows that a man will have to inhale to hit something akin to a whistle tone. No way I'm trying it! However, a younger lad might have some success with practice!
I enjoyed your whistle'n'snap piece, and can't believe I'd missed it before. As we often do, our great minds thought alike in choosing the Betty Bacall gif to illustrate a whistle. Everytime you see it, you can answer her, "Yes, Betty, I know how to whistle! The snapping, not so much!"
Cannot wait to hear your thoughts! Your work on The Black Girl Genius of Mariah Carey remains one of the best (if not the best) piece of journalism work on Mariah I’ve come across in decades of being a hard-die fan.
I have some inexplicable mysteries in my life: my love for disco (which I write about in this week's episode of The Twelve Inch) and my appreciation for the oeuvre of Mariah Carey. Both have, we have to be honest, some larger than life edges so why exactly do I like both so much? 😃. Regarding the first, further research is needed 😁. As for the second, I found a possible explanation here: I was/am also a fan of Minnie Ripperton. The connection with Diva Carey is strong indeed. By the way, very curious about how that meeting went, Andy. One of my best friends did tour management for Mariah's Antwerp concert a number of years ago. The stories about the rider and what had to be arranged behind the scenes, regularly provide hilarious moments when my friend starts recounting after a good dinner!
And thanks to this article I started listening to the album “Amen” comes from. I only knew the Rotary Connection from “I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun”. Discovered something new again. Thanks Brad & Andy !
Thank you so much for your very kind words! It makes a lot of sense that you got to Mariah through Minnie. While MC has always acknowledged Minnie, it's not widely known that she was a such a huge influence for her. I've been a lamb all my life (for those who don't know, this is how Mariah fans call ourselves) and I was fortunate enough to meet her on several occasions (officially backstage a couple of times, but I also waited hours and hours outside hotels, basically chasing her everywhere I could). I have so many stories, from her blowing kisses from her car at my most frantic and hysterical self, to her signing autographs and even winking at me from stage. What I will say is that she's always been so gracious and SO sweet with me and all the other fans who were there. What impressed me the most the first time I had a conversation with her (which was in Vegas) was the intensity of her gaze. Those big black eyes looking at you and how you can really see her soul. There is so much depth and emotion in the way she looks at you. I also understood very quickly how fragile and vulnerable she really is. After decades of listening to her music obsessively, that's when the true meaning of songs like Looking In really hit me. That first time, she was friendly diva at first, making me feel at ease in that photoshoot context (in which I don't need to say she's much more experienced than I am!), and as soon as I told her how clever and truthful her songwriting is, there was this sparkle in her eyes, as if she really needed to hear it. She looks at you like she's still that 18-year-old with a demo tape in her bag, desperate to get a record deal. She is a lot more humble and gracious with her fans than people give her credit for. But she's also a jokester, so I could see other fans going in with a humorous line or two and she would blend in very well. She very quickly adapts to your own energy, which, for a star of her magnitude, is quite rare. The picture in this article was a couple of years later and I was more relaxed then. I could talk to her about specific albums and when I told her her music has been the driving force of my life, again there was that sparkle in her eyes, like no one had ever told her that. You can tell her reaction is genuine, and it's puzzling because of her level of fame and the amount of times she must have heard that. All the times I've interacted with her have been unforgettable experiences. If you ever get the chance, it's truly worth it. No one ever looked at me the way she has. She's out of this world.
This morning I decided to play my personal Mariah Carey playlist. I have shuffle always activated and the first song was "Looking In". The lyrics translate perfectly what you wrote yesterday Andy 😃 What a great coincidence. Have a great Sunday !
Thanks for this, PeDupre, as well as your appreciation for the Aim Us'n'Andy collab (as I've decided to fondly call this)! You're hitting on not only what drove this collab, but what I appreciate, now, about Ms. Carey...her over-the-top, vocal love and appreciation about what Minnie means to her, and the influence she had on her!
I'm also inspired and impressed by how you've been on Minnie's talent and early output! We are a rare breed, indeed! I'm finding that "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun" apparently was a cast-off track during their existence, and appears to only have appeared on later "Best of" and compilation albums? Cool song...hadn't heard it before.
The RC's S/T debut (from whence "Amen" comes) was a bizarre album for my 13-year-old ears to take in upon its '68 release! I forgive myself for not "getting it" at the time! I was enjoying latter-day Beatles albums then, as well as British Invasion acts, and Top 40 pop bands like The Monkees and Grass Roots, et al!
A band that struck me as being one you might like, PeDupre, is Mother's Finest, from (mostly) the '70s, but they're actually still going, I believe, in some manner or other. They were a multi-racial band that did a rare mix of soul, funk'n'rock that reminds me a bit of some of RC's output.
Mother's Finest (and two other acts) actually had their Epic albums released the same week as Boston's ground-breaking debut! Boston went thru the roof, as you know, while we never heard again...really, from Herb Pedersen, MF, or Jim Peterik (except in the '80s with Survivor...he wrote and sang "Eye of the Tiger")!
Well i know « black gold.. » from the excellent cover by the masters at work project Nuyorican Soul. I discovered the rc version later. And Mother’s Finest is quite well known here in the Benelux. Piece of the action was a big hit end of the seventies.
Your piece masterfully delves into the fascinating world of whistle-register singing, offering a thoughtful comparison between Minnie Riperton and Mariah Carey. The detailed exploration of their careers, including rare insights and anecdotes, not only highlights their vocal prowess but also underscores their lasting impact on music. Great piece.
Thank you, Jon! You're very kind! It was exhilarating to work with Andy, with his intense appreciation of Ms. Carey's career! With my early exposure to Minnie's work with Rotary Connection, it made for a truly unique opportunity to dive deep into each artist, with our musical 💖s guiding us!
I do believe Andy's detective work and familiarity with Mariah's recorded catalog was invaluable! Don't let this get around, but, I do believe I'm now a Mariah fan, ready to Carey on!🎶
And thank you for your kind words about my work and contribution. I want to rock like you when I grow up, and these are my baby steps in trying to learn from the best!
Ready to Carey on! 🤣🤣 I think we’ve both become more appreciative of both Minnie and Mariah, and at the same time, of each other! Now all we need to do, the four of us, if we could bring Minnie back, is to set up a four-piece vocal act! Whistles included!
While I didn’t work nearly as hard as Brad did on this piece, I was so pleased to read your comment, and from my side, I feel very grateful. Brad did an amazing job collating a whole lot of data and information (which was scattered all over the place) and giving it life and coherence as a beautifully crafted unit.
Thanks so much, Andy! Your debatable lack of "hard work" was more than surpassed by your impossible-to-measure account of Mariah's music and your impassioned writing about it (and her)!
Put it this way: I couldn't have done it without you...I mean, can you picture me writing about her, with virtually no experience (beyond the sporadic TV exposure on an award show I may have been watching) really hearing her music?
If you've got the passion and experience with the music and the artists, it doesn't feel like "hard work"---oops, now you know the secret of FR&B! Welcome to the Fun Factory!😉
Cadet Concept was a subsidiary of Chess Records. Marshall Chess used it as an outlet for releasing contemporary music that his father Leonard and uncle Phil didn't dig.
Yep....and, that's how I was able to get the Rotary Connection albums! Dad was a jazz freak, and I guess got all the Chess jazz promos from the station, and either listened to RC (and heard it was rock, not jazz), and passed it along to me, or got it with a short stack of jazz, saw it was Brad-worthy, and gave it to me! I used to peruse his Downbeat issues from time to time, too!
It may only be slight hyperbole, but it seems like every day…certainly every week (late-’60s-early-’70s, jr. high thru hi school) was a vinyl Christmas!
Thanks, Dan! Andy was my inspiration and motivator! When I realized just how much of an influence Minnie had on Mariah, I knew I not only wanted to highlight Minnie's career, but I had to bring Andy's knowledge and admiration of Mariah into the fold, as well! Like fried shrimp and tartar sauce, you can't have one (Mariah) without the other (Minnie)!
This was so much fun!! I’ll start by saying that, when I see my name next to yours, I feel the same way Mariah felt when Carole asked her to collaborate in ‘91 or when Aretha invited her to perform live in that ‘98 Divas live show you mention. I’m like “really? this legend with ME?” 🤣 It’s an incredible honour for which I am, as MC herself would say, “eternally grateful”.
What a fantastic overview of both, chronologically and so well intertwined and narrated, packed with interesting (and fun!) stuff.
Thank you for letting me be a part of this.
And now, let’s go everybody: get those whistle notes ready, at the count of 3! 😁♥️
I'm beyond humbled by your generous comparison, Andy....thanks! As Garth and Wayne might say, while visiting Brooklyn, "I'm not woithy!" Who better to rep the mighty Mimi than you? And, thank you for filling out the Carey part of the piece so expertly!
It'd be fun if Mr. Rudolph (now 77) and/or Maya could stumble across our effort....I think they'd be proud of what we've pulled together in illustrating Mariah's appreciation of Minnie's life and gifts! I'm all ready to whistle! I think it's in the car.....lemme go fetch it!
It’s all true and then some, and you are more than worth it!
It was my absolute pleasure, and in the process, I’ve learned so much about Minnie. I think it’s beautiful when a younger artist pays their respects to those who came before them and acknowledges their influence. Particularly with female artists whom the press always try to pit against each other. Thanks a lot once again for this fab collab!
You're right about Mariah offering props to Minnie.....repeatedly! I was so pleased to keep finding interviews and videos of her doing just that! Very generous and honest of her, and as you're such a perfect example, her young fans, now, can eagerly discover Minnie, and feel just that much closer to MC's music, and her particular talent! Not hard to imagine little millennial girls listening to Mariah, and running up to Mommy going, "Listen what I can do!!"
Exactly! It’s beautiful how older artists get a new lease on life courtesy of younger artists introducing them to younger generations 😊
Great article, though far above my paygrade in terms of technical vocal analysis, so I haven't much to say on that subject.
A small correction -- MTV had been doing Unplugged since 1989, years before Mariah's appearance. And while Mariah's live Unplugged is indeed one of the best selling Unplugged live albums, it's not the first. Paul McCartney was the first artist to release a live Unplugged album --and his 1991 appearance is credited by the show's creator for having made both Unplugged and live Unplugged albums a Thing. 😎 Making things a Thing is what Macca does best, of course, and it's one of Paul's best live albums.
https://open.spotify.com/album/7KvVAe42ZV1LcfaW96mBNk?si=aj86NJ9URq6AwBHF3VWQZA
Thanks, Faith! Adding to Andy's reply, Mariah's 1992 appearance occurred in just the 3rd year of the show's 11-year run (1989-1999), so Andy's "among the first" assertion is, I think, still within a very general depiction of her appearance, when taking in the span of the show.
Plus, it's worth noting that Mariah's Unplugged appearance happened a mere two years into her career (with her 1990 debut album).
Here's the Wiki history of Unplugged: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Unplugged
Thank you, Faith! I wasn’t sure whether Mariah’s was actually the first, that’s why I was tentative when passing my notes on to Brad. I was sure it was among the first, as hers was recorded a couple of months after Paul’s, and released roughly a year after his was released. Thanks for the info! I haven’t listened to Paul’s yet so I’ll be definitely checking it out!
Great collab piece, gents. To be honest, I haven't listened to enough of Mariah's music to comment on her, but I adore Minnie's angelic voice. The funky 'Adventures in Paradise' is a straight-up groover. Her heavenly vocals are also absolutely perfect on the lovely 'Les Fleur,' and beautifully complement the strings, brass, and crashing cymbals, making it the perfect hippie anthem.
Good on ya, Michael, for being hip to Minnie's solo career to that extent! You sound like you'd have a unique and fascinating POV to write about that part of her career! So few have/could/would! Consider this an encouragement!
Thanks, Brad. I have the 1st S/T Rotary Connection album as well as Minnie's solo LPs "Come To My Garden" and "Adventures in Paradise" in my collection. However, I don't own 'Perfect Angel,' which you highlight in your piece. I may well take you up on that recommendation! 😊
Thank you, Michael! Indeed Minnie was a goddess. I’ve known her through my Mariah fandom, and I’ve come to appreciate her work as a legendary artist who was a true pioneer in many respects.
I'm way late to this (and a ton of other posts from many great writers), but had to jump in and say how much fun this collab is! Papa Bear Brad did good by you, young cub Andres! I knew a bit about Minnie Ripperton, and and was thrilled to discover 3 of Minnie's albums and a Rotary Connection album (that I acquired) when my aunt went into assisted living.
The whistle tone is quite an impressive tone, and hearing Minnie's voice separated out on Wings of Pegasus was mindblowing. What a talent. Also fun to hear/watch those live Mariah clips! I'd seen her perform live before, but it's been a long time and I was struck most by her effortless, joyful delivery.
As you probably know from my "Whistling" piece from last year, I can't even regular whistle, let alone whistle tone -- are there men who can hit the whistle tone?
https://open.substack.com/pub/earworm/p/peter-bjorn-and-john-young-folks-e5d?
Thank you, Steve! I echo Brad’s words in that we needed each other to come up with the end result (and I don’t need to clarify we also needed Brad’s writing skills 🤣).
Minnie was a real trailblazer, and Brad’s informative and comprehensive summary is a great starter-for-ten for those like me who knew a song or two (courtesy of Mariah’s praise) but needed a more complete overview of this fascinating artist.
The effortlessness of Mariah’s vocals is second to none. This is in my opinion what makes her so incredible and sets her apart from the rest (apart from her songwriting skills). But this efortlessness is particularly impressive when one considers how extremely difficult some of the stuff she does is (particularly her transitions). It was Simon Cowell I think who said: “To sing a Whitney Houston song is very hard, but to sing a Mariah Carey song is vocal suicide”. In terms of singing technique, Mariah is really superhuman.
Glad you like, Steve! Thanks! It was a natural with my unusual early-ness on Minnie, and Andy's shameless (but, certainly understandable) adoration of La Mariah!😁There was little I could say with any confidence or experience about Ms. Carey and her music, and I guessed Andy was equally little-versed on Minnie (except what he'd heard Mariah say, in reverence, about her). So, we joined forces to make the ultimate 🎵"just whistle a happy tone"🎵 piece!
That's really tremendous you got those rare Minnie albums (especially the Rotary Connection one!). There was really nothing quite like RC's sound, certainly at the time!
There are two whistle tone tutorials at the very bottom of the article: One by a gal for the ladies, and one by a guy for da doods! Nowhere near the range of a lady's whistle tone, he seems to affect it well enough, but allows that a man will have to inhale to hit something akin to a whistle tone. No way I'm trying it! However, a younger lad might have some success with practice!
I enjoyed your whistle'n'snap piece, and can't believe I'd missed it before. As we often do, our great minds thought alike in choosing the Betty Bacall gif to illustrate a whistle. Everytime you see it, you can answer her, "Yes, Betty, I know how to whistle! The snapping, not so much!"
cannot wait to read this
Cannot wait to hear your thoughts! Your work on The Black Girl Genius of Mariah Carey remains one of the best (if not the best) piece of journalism work on Mariah I’ve come across in decades of being a hard-die fan.
“Loving you is easy coz you’re beautiful!”
Minnie had the voice of an angel. Taken from us way too soon.
Isn't that the truth! Thanks for reading and commenting, Dan!
I have some inexplicable mysteries in my life: my love for disco (which I write about in this week's episode of The Twelve Inch) and my appreciation for the oeuvre of Mariah Carey. Both have, we have to be honest, some larger than life edges so why exactly do I like both so much? 😃. Regarding the first, further research is needed 😁. As for the second, I found a possible explanation here: I was/am also a fan of Minnie Ripperton. The connection with Diva Carey is strong indeed. By the way, very curious about how that meeting went, Andy. One of my best friends did tour management for Mariah's Antwerp concert a number of years ago. The stories about the rider and what had to be arranged behind the scenes, regularly provide hilarious moments when my friend starts recounting after a good dinner!
And thanks to this article I started listening to the album “Amen” comes from. I only knew the Rotary Connection from “I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun”. Discovered something new again. Thanks Brad & Andy !
Thank you so much for your very kind words! It makes a lot of sense that you got to Mariah through Minnie. While MC has always acknowledged Minnie, it's not widely known that she was a such a huge influence for her. I've been a lamb all my life (for those who don't know, this is how Mariah fans call ourselves) and I was fortunate enough to meet her on several occasions (officially backstage a couple of times, but I also waited hours and hours outside hotels, basically chasing her everywhere I could). I have so many stories, from her blowing kisses from her car at my most frantic and hysterical self, to her signing autographs and even winking at me from stage. What I will say is that she's always been so gracious and SO sweet with me and all the other fans who were there. What impressed me the most the first time I had a conversation with her (which was in Vegas) was the intensity of her gaze. Those big black eyes looking at you and how you can really see her soul. There is so much depth and emotion in the way she looks at you. I also understood very quickly how fragile and vulnerable she really is. After decades of listening to her music obsessively, that's when the true meaning of songs like Looking In really hit me. That first time, she was friendly diva at first, making me feel at ease in that photoshoot context (in which I don't need to say she's much more experienced than I am!), and as soon as I told her how clever and truthful her songwriting is, there was this sparkle in her eyes, as if she really needed to hear it. She looks at you like she's still that 18-year-old with a demo tape in her bag, desperate to get a record deal. She is a lot more humble and gracious with her fans than people give her credit for. But she's also a jokester, so I could see other fans going in with a humorous line or two and she would blend in very well. She very quickly adapts to your own energy, which, for a star of her magnitude, is quite rare. The picture in this article was a couple of years later and I was more relaxed then. I could talk to her about specific albums and when I told her her music has been the driving force of my life, again there was that sparkle in her eyes, like no one had ever told her that. You can tell her reaction is genuine, and it's puzzling because of her level of fame and the amount of times she must have heard that. All the times I've interacted with her have been unforgettable experiences. If you ever get the chance, it's truly worth it. No one ever looked at me the way she has. She's out of this world.
This morning I decided to play my personal Mariah Carey playlist. I have shuffle always activated and the first song was "Looking In". The lyrics translate perfectly what you wrote yesterday Andy 😃 What a great coincidence. Have a great Sunday !
What a way to start the day! And what a funny coincidence, indeed! Some things are just magical. Have a great Sunday too!
Thanks for sharing this wonderfull story Andy.
Thanks for this, PeDupre, as well as your appreciation for the Aim Us'n'Andy collab (as I've decided to fondly call this)! You're hitting on not only what drove this collab, but what I appreciate, now, about Ms. Carey...her over-the-top, vocal love and appreciation about what Minnie means to her, and the influence she had on her!
I'm also inspired and impressed by how you've been on Minnie's talent and early output! We are a rare breed, indeed! I'm finding that "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun" apparently was a cast-off track during their existence, and appears to only have appeared on later "Best of" and compilation albums? Cool song...hadn't heard it before.
The RC's S/T debut (from whence "Amen" comes) was a bizarre album for my 13-year-old ears to take in upon its '68 release! I forgive myself for not "getting it" at the time! I was enjoying latter-day Beatles albums then, as well as British Invasion acts, and Top 40 pop bands like The Monkees and Grass Roots, et al!
A band that struck me as being one you might like, PeDupre, is Mother's Finest, from (mostly) the '70s, but they're actually still going, I believe, in some manner or other. They were a multi-racial band that did a rare mix of soul, funk'n'rock that reminds me a bit of some of RC's output.
I put their '76 Epic Records debut (they had one album on another label prior to that one...RCA or Atlantic) in this article you might find interesting: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/breaking-boston-behind-the-scenes?utm_source=publication-search
Mother's Finest (and two other acts) actually had their Epic albums released the same week as Boston's ground-breaking debut! Boston went thru the roof, as you know, while we never heard again...really, from Herb Pedersen, MF, or Jim Peterik (except in the '80s with Survivor...he wrote and sang "Eye of the Tiger")!
Well i know « black gold.. » from the excellent cover by the masters at work project Nuyorican Soul. I discovered the rc version later. And Mother’s Finest is quite well known here in the Benelux. Piece of the action was a big hit end of the seventies.
Your piece masterfully delves into the fascinating world of whistle-register singing, offering a thoughtful comparison between Minnie Riperton and Mariah Carey. The detailed exploration of their careers, including rare insights and anecdotes, not only highlights their vocal prowess but also underscores their lasting impact on music. Great piece.
Thank you, Jon! You're very kind! It was exhilarating to work with Andy, with his intense appreciation of Ms. Carey's career! With my early exposure to Minnie's work with Rotary Connection, it made for a truly unique opportunity to dive deep into each artist, with our musical 💖s guiding us!
I do believe Andy's detective work and familiarity with Mariah's recorded catalog was invaluable! Don't let this get around, but, I do believe I'm now a Mariah fan, ready to Carey on!🎶
And thank you for your kind words about my work and contribution. I want to rock like you when I grow up, and these are my baby steps in trying to learn from the best!
Take the pebble from my hand, Little Weedhopper! I'll be your Minnie to your Mariah!
Ready to Carey on! 🤣🤣 I think we’ve both become more appreciative of both Minnie and Mariah, and at the same time, of each other! Now all we need to do, the four of us, if we could bring Minnie back, is to set up a four-piece vocal act! Whistles included!
I'll be for that!🎤🎶
While I didn’t work nearly as hard as Brad did on this piece, I was so pleased to read your comment, and from my side, I feel very grateful. Brad did an amazing job collating a whole lot of data and information (which was scattered all over the place) and giving it life and coherence as a beautifully crafted unit.
Thanks so much, Andy! Your debatable lack of "hard work" was more than surpassed by your impossible-to-measure account of Mariah's music and your impassioned writing about it (and her)!
Put it this way: I couldn't have done it without you...I mean, can you picture me writing about her, with virtually no experience (beyond the sporadic TV exposure on an award show I may have been watching) really hearing her music?
If you've got the passion and experience with the music and the artists, it doesn't feel like "hard work"---oops, now you know the secret of FR&B! Welcome to the Fun Factory!😉
Cadet Concept was a subsidiary of Chess Records. Marshall Chess used it as an outlet for releasing contemporary music that his father Leonard and uncle Phil didn't dig.
Yep....and, that's how I was able to get the Rotary Connection albums! Dad was a jazz freak, and I guess got all the Chess jazz promos from the station, and either listened to RC (and heard it was rock, not jazz), and passed it along to me, or got it with a short stack of jazz, saw it was Brad-worthy, and gave it to me! I used to peruse his Downbeat issues from time to time, too!
I’m always fascinated by your dad’s legacy to you through records. I would kill to travel back in time and experience all those gems in the flesh!
It may only be slight hyperbole, but it seems like every day…certainly every week (late-’60s-early-’70s, jr. high thru hi school) was a vinyl Christmas!
Music to my ears! 🥰
Excellent post! Thanks for all of the details about Riperton I didn't know.
Thanks, Dan! Andy was my inspiration and motivator! When I realized just how much of an influence Minnie had on Mariah, I knew I not only wanted to highlight Minnie's career, but I had to bring Andy's knowledge and admiration of Mariah into the fold, as well! Like fried shrimp and tartar sauce, you can't have one (Mariah) without the other (Minnie)!
M&M! 🤣