Come to My Garden

Come to My Garden is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton which was produced, arranged and orchestrated by Charles Stepney and released in 1970 under GRT Records. It was re-released in 1974 on the Janus label, in the same time frame as Riperton's album Perfect Angel and her hit "Lovin' You."[4]

Come to My Garden
Studio album by
Minnie Riperton
ReleasedNovember 1970
RecordedNovember 24–26, 1969
Ter Mar Studios
(Chicago, Illinois)
Genre
LabelGRT
ProducerCharles Stepney
Minnie Riperton chronology
Come to My Garden
(1970)		 Perfect Angel
(1974)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Billboard(favourable)[2]
Cashbox(favourable)[3]

The album was first released on CD in 1990, and has since been made available in digital form. None of the CD editions have material transferred directly from the original master tapes. All CD editions were mastered in UK, USA and other countries using LP records and different noise reduction methods. It is quite possible that original tapes that belonged to GRT were lost forever.

The album peaked at number 160 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart in 1974.[5] Some versions of the CD release do not include the last track, "Whenever, Wherever." Riperton said she wanted a sound like the great Dionne Warwick / Burt Bacharach collaborations for the album.

Background

Minnie Riperton was presented as a solo artist by Ramsey Lewis on Saturday, December 26, 1970, at Chicago's famed London House. She performed several numbers from the album accompanied by Charles Stepney, the album's producer. Although commercially unsuccessful, Come to My Garden is considered a masterpiece by critics. "Les Fleur"[lower-alpha 1] is probably the album's best known song, and "Expecting" remains a favourite among fans.

The heavy rock aspect of Riperton's band Rotary Connection is absent here, replaced by lush orchestrations and a jazzy soft-pop feel that complements Riperton's multi-octave voice. The songs, mostly by Stepney and Riperton's husband Richard Rudolph, are mostly minor-key ballads, with alternately sorrowful and poetic lyrics. The singer-songwriter-y results recall early albums by Roberta Flack as well as the contemporary work by Riperton's future employer/mentor Stevie Wonder.

Track listing
Side 1
  1. "Les Fleur"[lower-alpha 1] (Charles Stepney, Richard Rudolph) – 3:18
  2. "Completeness" (Stepney, Rose Johnson) – 3:32
  3. "Come to My Garden" (Rudolph) – 3:19
  4. "Memory Band" (Stepney) – 4:05
  5. "Rainy Day in Centerville" (Stepney, Rudolph) – 5:22
Side 2
  1. "Close Your Eyes and Remember" (Stepney, Rudolph) – 3:38
  2. "Oh, By the Way" (Stepney, Rudolph) – 2:58
  3. "Expecting" (Stepney, Jon Stocklin) – 3:51
  4. "Only When I'm Dreaming" (Stepney, Sidney Barnes) – 3:24
  5. "Whenever, Wherever" (Stepney, Johnson) – 3:34[7]

Personnel

Legacy

The album has been featured in various samples and covers.

Notes
  1. For unknown reasons the original record label spelled the song as "Les Fleur,"[6] although the French plural of "La Fleur" (flower) would normally be spelled "Les Fleurs." Many reissues and compilations use the latter spelling.

References
  1. Allmusic review
  2. Special Merit Picks. 82. Billboard Magazine. December 6, 1970. p. 65.
  3. Cashbox Album Reviews. 32. Billboard Magazine. November 28, 1970. p. 28.
  4. https://www.discogs.com/Minnie-Riperton-Come-To-My-Garden/release/3561181
  5. "Minnie Riperton – Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 21, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  6. "Minnie Riperton – Come To My Garden". www.discogs.com. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
  7. Vinyl edition of Come to My Garden on discogs.com
  8. CD edition of Come to My Garden on discogs.com
  9. Chick, Stevie (June 29, 2016). "Minnie Riperton – 10 of the best". The Guardian.
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