Love Lives Forever

Love Lives Forever
Studio album by Minnie Riperton
Released	October 18, 1980
Recorded	1978 (Minnie's Vocals) 1980 (overdubs)
Genre	Soul, R&B
Length	37:33
Label	Capitol
Producer	Richard Rudolph, Johnny Pate
Minnie Riperton chronology
Minnie (1979) Love Lives Forever (1980) The Best of Minnie Riperton (1981)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Love Lives Forever is the sixth and final studio album by American soul singer Minnie Riperton. Released posthumously, it was co-produced by her husband Richard Rudolph and released on her then-label Capitol Records. It consists of unused vocal sessions, put in music and vocally completed by artists she admired or with whom she shared her musical style. Even though most of the selections are set in a midtempo rhythm, they are calm in mood.

This album was the first of its kind, in that all of Minnie's vocals were stripped from their earlier, original music tracks and completely redone. Completed with new musicians, vocalists and arrangements. Producer Quincy Jones described this difficult project best as "keeping the bridge, but moving the water."

The song "Here We Go" was released as a single and hit the top twenty. The single peaked at 14 on the Billboard R&B charts in as many weeks. The second release was "Give Me Time." Not as successful as its predecessor, it still has the untarnished texture for which Riperton's vocals were known and features Stevie Wonder on harmonica.

The back cover contains a quote about Riperton of each artist who participated, and their signature (being a thumbprint for Stevie Wonder). Wonder's quote inspired the album title. Stevie, being a very close friend of Minnie, wrote these lines for her: "I miss you because I cannot touch you...but then again, I guess that I can because you're touching me...so, Love lives forever."

The album title would later be used in the final scene of the 2009 film "Michael Jackson's This Is It".

Track listing

1. "Here We Go" (Minnie Riperton, Richard Rudolph, Arthur Phillips) – 6:12
   • Roberta Flack and Peabo Bryson – additional vocals
   • Tom Scott – tenor sax solo
2. "I'm in Love Again" (Riperton, Rudolph) – 4:05
   • Michael Jackson – additional vocals
   • Hubert Laws – flute solo
3. "Strange Affair" (Riperton, Rudolph, Marlo Henderson) – 8:55
   • Michael Boddicker – synthesizer
4. "Island in the Sun" (Riperton, Rudolph) – 4:45
   • Tom Scott – tenor sax solo
5. "Give Me Time" (Leonard Caston, Jr., Lila Hurtado) – 4:25
   • Stevie Wonder – harmonica solo
   • Gerry Vinci – violin solo
6. "You Take My Breath Away" (Riperton, Rudolph, Randy Waldman) – 4:35
   • George Benson – additional vocals
7. "The Song of Life (La-La-La)" (Riperton, Rudolph, Caston, Weider) – 4:10
   • Patrice Rushen – vocals, electric piano

Additional personnel

• Minnie Riperton - vocals
• Tennyson Stephens – acoustic piano
• Greg Phillinganes – keyboards, synthesizers
• Lee Ritenour, Paul Jackson – guitar
• Gayle Levant – harp
• Abraham Laboriel – bass
• Harvey Mason – drums
• Gerry Vinci – concertmaster
• Maxine Waters, Julia Waters, Stephanie Spruill – backing vocals
• Lenny Castro, Paulinho da Costa – percussion

Charts

References