SISTERS KEEP IT IN THE FAMILY FOR A THIRD GENERATION
IT’S one of the most-loved moments of festive favourite Love Actually – Hugh Grant’s Prime Minister dancing his way through No 10.
His boogieing to Jump (For My Love) has been viewed millions of times since.
And as The Pointer Sisters get set to headline a festival in Glasgow this summer, Ruth Pointer says she knows of at least one superfan.
“It’s one of my husband’s favourite movies,” Ruth told iN10. “He sits and watches it all the time.
“I’ll come in from the kitchen and think, ‘ What, you’re watching it again?’ It’s a real family favourite.”
Not only does Ruth, now 72, not mind seeing one of the group’s classic songs replayed frequently on her TV, she has no problem performing it and other hits such as Automatic and I’m So Excited.
“I don’t know that our audience wants to hear anything other than our hits,” says Ruth. “And I enjoy singing them now more than ever.
“It’s so much fun to see the reaction of the audiences who remember those songs and those times with us.”
Ruth joined sisters June and Bonnie back in 1972 and there have been several line-upchanges since.
These days it’s her daughter Issa and granddaughter Sadako who keep the family feel alive.
“It’s working out really well with Issa and Sadako,” insists Ruth.
“It’s lovely that there are family members who can jump in there and pick up the slack.
“They create something a little different but it’s accepted by our audience and I’m overjoyed by that.
“I don’t think everyone is so fortunate.”
The younger generations obviously bring a fresh vitality and energy.
So, is there ever a temptation for Ruth, after more than four decades travelling the world, to just stay home and put her feet up?
“Oh, it’s getting there, darling!” laughs Ruth. “I know that time is coming.
“I look at my peers such as Tina Turner and Diana Ross and others that aren’t really out there like they used to be.
“We have family talks about a time when I might want to leave, and whether they’ll want to go on if I choose to do that. I’m sure both of them have the skills and the know-how.
“If they did want to do it then I’d love sitting back and watching them. I’d help in any way I could.”
Fans will be glad that Ruth hasn’t decided to stop collecting Air Miles yet and will be centre stage at Fiesta x FOLD.
The two-day festival takes place in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Park on the weekend of June 30 and July 1.
The Pointer Sisters will be joined on the Saturday by Earth, Wind and Fire while Emeli Sande will be a big draw on the Sunday.
It’ll be only Ruth’s second time in Scotland.
“I was with my sisters Anita, Bonnie and June that time,” she recalls.
“The thing that sticks in my mind most was a great Indian restaurant we went to. The food was absolutely fabulous.”
Music has always been in Ruth’s blood, from her early days.
Back then their parents – her mum and dad were both ministers – frowned on more modern music and it was at friends’ houses that they listened to and fell in love with Motown music.
Over the years The Pointer Sisters picked up three Grammy Awards and were given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
But coming to the music business as outsiders, Ruth admits some tough lessons were learned along the way.
“We didn’t know really people in the industry and we had no idea what being famous was like.
“So there wasn’t a lot of guidance on how to handle management, lawyers and finances. My parents weren’t exactly savvy business people.
“We went through our bumps and bruises with people who saw opportunities in us and took advantage of things we were naïve about.
“I see changes in today’s artists, who don’t work in the same ways we did.”
Ruth still has a passion for new music and is a big fan of some of today’s hottest acts.
“I love Beyonce,” she adds. “I watched her perform at Coachella and it blew me right out of my bed as I was watching about 5am because of the time difference.
“She is such a fierce, hardworking young woman.”