Classic Day – Chicago’s Own

Vocalists have this tendency to often lose the audience within the realm of approachability and being able to hold a listener’s attention. While not a commercial success in its own right, Come To My Garden from Minnie Riperton becomes a metamorphosis for a debut record.

The introductory track “Les Fleurs” is immediately the best stand out for the record. Riperton is an angelic nymph here and one of the most beautiful driving forces of vocalization. She begins as this gentle and welcoming tour guide that through tension building and escapism, flows like a mighty river.

The backing layered vocals that appear from herself and both Elsa Harris and Kitty Hayward are a trifecta of narrative bliss. “Les Fleurs” might not only be one of the best works coming from Riperton but are one of the better depths recorded by a vocalist.

Due largely in part to the instrumentation of Maurice White on the percussion and the piano skills of Ramsey Lewis, which paint this well-articulated skyline for Riperton to float upon.

Other later tracks pull a reserve like on “Memory Band” where the instrumentation is more reserved but has a bigger spotlight on Riperton. While godly and profound in her delivery, Riperton is able to use these falsetto vocals and intense layering as a drawing piece in her music.

While depth is not always the conquering notion to sound, the performances on Come To My Garden are a joy to watch unfold like a complicated layout to a physical garden. Roses disguised as hidden gems through the tracklisting appear and disappear at a moment’s notice. “Memory Band” while being four minutes long still has enough of a weight to construct a solid foundation for Riperton to survive fully on.

Even near the end of the record with “Only When I’m Dreaming,” there is serious attention to creating a tonality of dreamlike states. The backing vocals that jut with “Only when I’m dreaming” in a faster tempo behind Riperton is there a desire to expand and completely eradicate the human conscious.

Instead, Riperton formats to this ethereal being of epic proportions where the love for performance and ability is the forefront of the eyes. A sampler’s heaven stash, Riperton is manufactured to be the underground soul for vocalists both past and present.

Come To My Garden is inspiring while never being unreachable. Riperton’s performances are more striking than the lasts and while initially, the best track seems to appear, Come To My Garden is the songbird’s paradise.

Listen To Come To My Garden Here!!! – Spotify/Amazon/iTunes