Knight, Gladys

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Knight, Gladys

May 28, 1944

Gladys Knight, who was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, made her public singing debut at the age of four at Mount Mariah Baptist Church, where her parents were members of the choir. By the time she was five, Knight had performed in numerous Atlanta churches and toured through Florida and Alabama with the Morris Brown Choir. At the age of seven she won the Grand Prize on Ted Mack's nationally televised Original Amateur Hour.

In 1952 Knight formed a quartet with her brother Merald "Bubba" Williams and cousins William Guest and Edward Patten. The group, named "The Pips" after James "Pip" Woods, another cousin and the group's first manager, quickly established itself in Atlanta nightclubs. By the late 1950s, the group was a popular fixture on the national rhythm-and-blues circuit. The first recording came in 1961, when Vee Jay Records released the single "Every Beat of My Heart," which became a Top-Ten pop and number one rhythm-and-blues (R&B) hit. The following year Fury Records signed the group, changed its name to Gladys Knight and the Pips, and released their Top-Ten R&B single "Letter Full of Tears."

Though well known in R&B circles, Gladys Knight and the Pips did not become a major crossover act until 1965, when they signed with Motown Records and were featured on the label's touring reviews. Their 1967 Mo-town single, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," reached number two on the Billboard pop chart. The late 1960s brought the group mass acclaim for its polished, call-and-response singing style and slick, synchronized dance routines. The next big hit came in 1970 with the top-selling single, "You Need Love Like I Do." Six of the group's albums made the R&B charts: Nitty Gritty (1970); Greatest Hits (1970); If I Were Your Woman (1971); Standing Ovation (1972); Neither One of Us (1972); and All I Need Is Time (1972).

In 1972 Gladys Knight and the Pips had another big hit with "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)." In 1973 the group switched to the Buddah label for its top forty album, Imagination, which included two of the group's most enduring successes, "Midnight Train to Georgia," a number one pop single in 1973, and "I've Got to Use My Imagination." The group won two 1974 Grammy Awards for "Neither One of Us" and "Midnight Train to Georgia."

In the late 1970s the group's popularity began to wane. Legal conflicts with Motown forced Knight to record separately for a brief period in the late 1970s. The group reunited in 1980 and continued touring but was not able to record another chart-topping record until 1988, when "Love Overboard" reached the top twenty on the Billboard pop chart. The following year Knight once again left the group, this time voluntarily, to establish a solo career. The following year she released Good Woman, a solo LP that was moderately successful on black radio.

In 1993, Knight began appearing in the company of Les Brown, a highly acclaimed speaker best known for his motivational lectures and best-selling book Living Your Dreams. The two eventually wed on August 29, 1995, but divorced in 1997. That same year, Knight published her autobiography, Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story.

After her divorce from Brown, Knight converted to the Mormon religion, engaging actively and visibly in church functions. She also continued to perform on stage and to record. Her collection At Last was released in 2001. She produced the album with the assistance of her then sixteen-year-old grandson, Rishawn Newman. The album won a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Album in 2001. On April 12 of that year, Knight married William McDowell, a spa manager whom she had met in 1990.

In February 2005, Knight enjoyed a special honor, sharing the Grammy Award for best gospel performance for "Heaven Help Us All" with the late Ray Charles.

See also Music; Rhythm and Blues