Anita Pointer, who rose to fame in the 1970s as a member of the hit sibling singing group the Pointer Sisters, died Saturday at age 74. No cause of death was given but her publicist said she died surrounded by family.
“While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada, and her sisters June and Bonnie, and at peace,” said a statement jointly attributed to her four closest survivors — a sister, Ruth, brothers Aaron and Fritz, and her granddaughter Roxie McKain Pointer. “She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us. Please respect our privacy during this period of grief and loss. Heaven is a more loving beautiful place with Anita there.”
Anita had been a member of the Pointer Sisters from the time she joined June and Bonnie in the group in 1969 until she had to retire in 2015, reportedly due to ill health.
The Pointer Sisters had a hit album right out of the gate in 1973 as their debut album reached No. 11 on the charts. They reached their greatest chart peaks with a version of Bruce Springsteen’s “Fire” that reached No. 2 on the pop chart in 1978, “He’s So Shy,” which hit No. 3 in 1980, “Slow Hand,” another No. 2 hit in 1981, “I’m So Excited” and “Neutron Dance,” No. 3 hits in 1984-85, and “Automatic,” one of their first hits in the MTV era.
The group also had success on the legit stage and screen, touring with “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” based on the Fats Waller song catalog, and appearing in the hit 1976 film comedy “Car Wash.”
Pointer and her brother Fritz collaborated on a family memoir, titled “Fairytale,” in 2020.
The other two founding members of the group preceded Anita in death, with June Pointer passing away in 2006 and Bonnie Pointer following in 2020.
Ruth Pointer is the longest-standing member of the group, having joined in 1972, three years after June, Bonnie and Anita began performing together. Ruth now tours under the Pointer Sisters banner with two younger members, Issa Pointer, her daughter, who first joined in 2002, and Sadako Pointer, her granddaughter, who joined in 2009.
The lineup expanded or contracted at a few point during the Pointer Sisters’ early years. June and Bonnie were the first to sing together professionally as a pair in 1969, and the duo soon became a trio when Anita joined. In 1972, the addition of Ruth made it a quartet, just in time for their signing with the jazz label Blue Thumb. They reverted to the lineup most pop fans remember most, as a trio, when Bonnie dropped out in 1978 to go solo, right before the group really took off. That “classic” lineup remained until 2004, when June, who struggled with substance abuse issues, dropped out two years before she died.
Pointer’s only daughter, Jada Pointer, who had inspired the 1973 Pointer Sisters song “Jada,” died of cancer in 2003, after which Anita dedicated herself to raising her only grandchild, Roxie.
More to come…
Chris Willman
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