Gladys Knight
Encyclopedia
Gladys Maria Knight known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter
, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author
. She is best known for the hits she recorded during the 1960s and 1970s, for both the Motown and Buddah Records
labels, with her group Gladys Knight & the Pips
, the most famous incarnation of which also included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and her cousins Edward Patten
and William Guest.
", (recorded later by Marvin Gaye
), "Friendship Train" (1969), "If I Were Your Woman" (1970), "I Don't Want To Do Wrong" (1971), the Grammy Award
winning "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)
" (1972), and "Daddy Could Swear (I Declare)" (1973). In their early Motown career Gladys Knight and the Pips toured as the opening act for Diana Ross and The Supremes. Gladys Knight stated in her memoirs that Miss Ross kicked her off the tour because the audience's reception to Knight's soulful performance overshadowed her. Berry Gordy later told Gladys that she was giving his act a hard time.
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The act left Motown for a better deal with Buddah Records
in 1973, and achieved full-fledged success that year with hits such as the Grammy-winning "Midnight Train to Georgia
" (#1 on the pop and R&B chart), "I've Got to Use My Imagination," and "You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
". In the summer of 1974, Knight and the Pips recorded the soundtrack to the successful film Claudine
with producer Curtis Mayfield
. The act was particularly successful in Europe, and especially the United Kingdom. However, a number of the Buddah Belly hits followed a number of years after their success in the US. For example "Midnight Train to Georgia" hit the UK pop charts Top 5 in the summer of 1976, a full three years after its success in the U.S.
During this period of greater recognition, Knight made her motion picture acting debut in the film Pipe Dreams
, a romantic drama set in Alaska. The film failed at the box-office, but Knight did receive a Golden Globe Best New Actress nomination.
Knight and the Pips continued to have hits until the late 1970s, when they were forced to record separately due to legal issues, resulting in Knight's first solo LP recordings--Miss Gladys Knight (1978) on Buddah and Gladys Knight (1979) on Columbia Records
. Having divorced James Newman II in 1973, Knight married Barry Hankerson
(future uncle of R&B singer Aaliyah
), then Detroit mayor Coleman Young
's executive aide. Knight and Hankerson remained married for four years, during which time they had a son, Shanga Ali. Upon their divorce, Hankerson and Knight were embroiled in a heated custody battle over Shanga Ali.
In the early 1980s, Johnny Mathis
invited Gladys to record two duets – "When A Child Is Born" (previously a hit for Mathis) and "The Lord's Prayer".
Signing with Columbia Records
in 1980 and restored to its familiar quartet form, Gladys Knight & the Pips began releasing new material. The act enlisted former Motown producers Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson
for their first two LPs--About Love (1980) and Touch (1981). During this period, Knight kicked a gambling addiction to the game baccarat
.
In 1987, Knight decided to pursue a solo career, and she and the Pips recorded their final LP together, All Our Love (1987), for MCA Records
. Its lead single, "Love Overboard", was a successful hit and won a third Grammy for the act as well. After a successful 1988 tour, the Pips retired and Knight began her solo career. Gladys Knight & the Pips were inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame
in 1989 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
in 1996.
, Stevie Wonder
, and Elton John
on the 1986 AIDS benefit single, "That's What Friends Are For" which won a Grammy for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal. In 1989, Gladys Knight recorded the title track for the James Bond
movie Licence to Kill
, a top 10 hit both in the UK, reaching #6, and Germany.
Knight's third solo LP, Good Woman, was released by MCA in 1991. It rose to #1 on the R&B album chart and featured the #2 R&B hit "Men". The album also featured "Superwoman", written by Babyface and featuring Dionne Warwick
and Patti LaBelle
. Knight and LaBelle would collaborate the same year on "I Don't Do Duets", a duet with Patti LaBelle from LaBelle's album Burnin'
.
Her fourth solo LP, Just for You, went gold
and was nominated for the 1995 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album
.
In 1992 Vernon Ray Blue II, choir master of the year asked Gladys to record his first single "He Lifted Me"
Knight joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1997. She had occasionally teased LDS Church president, the late Gordon B. Hinckley
, that his flock needs to inject some "pep" into their music. Knight created and now directs the Mormon-themed choir Saints Unified Voices
. SUV has released a Grammy Award-winning CD titled One Voice, and occasionally performs at LDS church firesides.
In 2005, a duet between Knight and Ray Charles
of "You Were There" was released on Charles' duets album Genius & Friends
.
In 2008, a duet between Knight and Johnny Mathis
was released on Mathis' album A Night to Remember. Knight is ranked number eighteen on VH1 network's list of the 100 Greatest Women of Rock.
In the spring of 2008, Knight appeared alongside Chaka Khan, Patti Labelle and Diana Ross at the 'Divas with Heart' concert in aid of cardiac research, at New York's Radio City Hall.
In 2008 Gladys, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller performed on American Idol
to raise money for charity. In March 2010, Randy Jackson
mentioned on a new episode of the same show that he is back in the studio with Gladys Knight working on a new album.
In 2009 Knight sang "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" and "The Lord's Prayer" at the funeral service for Michael Jackson
.
On December 21, 2010, Knight released the single "Settle" on iTunes and Amazon.
In September 2011, a new, updated recording of I (Who Have Nothing)
was released on iTunes and Amazon.
Speaking ahead of the Manchester show, Jackson said: "The UK was a very special place to my brother Michael and I'm so excited to be able to pay my respect to his fans here. To be able to do this whilst supporting our dear friend Gladys is a complete blessing." On the October 9 concert, his mother Katherine Jackson and his brothers Jackie and Marlon were acknowledged in the audience.
The UK Farewell Tour featured higher production value than previous "Gladys Knight, a mic and a light" appearances by Gladys in the UK. A glossy program was available and the show featured pre-produced animation on large on-stage screens. The tour was promoted by an appearance on the TV program Later... with Jools Holland where Gladys performed "If I Were Your Woman
" and "Help Me Make It Through the Night
".
At select performances on the UK Farewell Tour recordings of the concerts were made available for sale on USB flash drives.
Knight guest-starred on several television series throughout the 1980s and 1990s ,with roles on Benson
, The Jeffersons
, A Different World, Living Single
, The Jamie Foxx Show
and New York Undercover
. In 1985, she co-starred on the CBS
sitcom Charlie & Co.
with comedian Flip Wilson
. It lasted for one season. In April 2009, she made a special guest appearance and performed a song on Tyler Perry's House of Payne
. Knight has also made a number of television cameo appearances, including Las Vegas
, and 30 Rock
.
Knight's son Shanga owns a chain of chicken and waffles
restaurants based in Atlanta, bearing her name. Gladys Knight & Ron Winans' Chicken & Waffles currently have three locations in the Atlanta area. One location was featured on the Travel Channel original series Man v. Food
.
In 2009, Gladys was featured in Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself
and performed her song The Need To Be from the 1974 album I Feel a Song.
In 2008, she had a cameo in 30 Rock
as the rest of the cast sang Midnight Train To Georgia.
, in 1974. They had one son, Shanga Hankerson, and divorced in 1981. She married her daughter's principal, Les Brown in 1995 but separated and divorced in 1997. Also in 1997, she was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, following her son and daughter. Knight married current husband, William McDowell in 2001. They have sixteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
NotesDid not chart on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
charts (Billboard rules at the time prevented album cuts from charting). Chart peak listed represents the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
chart.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. She is best known for the hits she recorded during the 1960s and 1970s, for both the Motown and Buddah Records
Buddah Records
Buddah Records was founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's founding...
labels, with her group Gladys Knight & the Pips
Gladys Knight & the Pips
Gladys Knight & The Pips were an R&B/soul family musical act from Atlanta, Georgia, active from 1953 to 1989. The group was best known for their string of hit singles on Motown's "Soul" record label and Buddah Records from 1967 to 1975, including "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Midnight...
, the most famous incarnation of which also included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and her cousins Edward Patten
Edward Patten
Edward "Eddie" Roy Patten was an Atlanta, Georgia-born R&B/soul singer, best known as a member of Gladys Knight & the Pips. He was lead singer Gladys Knight's cousin....
and William Guest.
Early life
Knight was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the daughter of Sarah Elizabeth (née Woods) and Merald Woodlow Knight, Sr., a postal worker. She first achieved minor fame by winning Ted Mack's Original Amateur Hour TV show contest at the age of 7 in 1952. The following year, she, her brother Merald, sister Brenda, and cousins William and Elenor Guest formed a musical group called The Pips (named after another cousin, James "Pip" Woods). By the end of the decade, the act had begun to tour, and had replaced Brenda Knight and Eleanor Guest with Gladys Knight's cousin Edward Patten and friend Langston George.Success with The Pips
Gladys Knight & the Pips joined the Motown roster in 1966, and, although regarded as a second-string act, scored several hit singles, including "I Heard It Through the GrapevineI Heard It through the Grapevine
"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a landmark song in the history of Motown. Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1966, the single was first recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles...
", (recorded later by Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
), "Friendship Train" (1969), "If I Were Your Woman" (1970), "I Don't Want To Do Wrong" (1971), the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
winning "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)
Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)
"Neither One of Us " is a song recorded by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Released in 1973 from the album, Neither One of Us, the song spent four weeks at number one on the Soul Singles chart during the spring of that year. The song was also one of their biggest crossover hits, peaking at number 2 on...
" (1972), and "Daddy Could Swear (I Declare)" (1973). In their early Motown career Gladys Knight and the Pips toured as the opening act for Diana Ross and The Supremes. Gladys Knight stated in her memoirs that Miss Ross kicked her off the tour because the audience's reception to Knight's soulful performance overshadowed her. Berry Gordy later told Gladys that she was giving his act a hard time.
Buddah Records
Buddah Records was founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's founding...
in 1973, and achieved full-fledged success that year with hits such as the Grammy-winning "Midnight Train to Georgia
Midnight Train to Georgia
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is a 1973 number-one hit single by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records...
" (#1 on the pop and R&B chart), "I've Got to Use My Imagination," and "You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
"You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me" — also known simply as "Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me" — is a song written by Jim Weatherly, and enjoyed two runs of popularity, each by an artist in a different genre.-Ray Price country version:...
". In the summer of 1974, Knight and the Pips recorded the soundtrack to the successful film Claudine
Claudine (film)
Claudine is a 1974 American film produced by Third World Films and released to theatres by 20th Century Fox. Starring James Earl Jones, Diahann Carroll, and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Claudine was written by Lester Pine and Tina Pine, and directed by John Berry...
with producer Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly...
. The act was particularly successful in Europe, and especially the United Kingdom. However, a number of the Buddah Belly hits followed a number of years after their success in the US. For example "Midnight Train to Georgia" hit the UK pop charts Top 5 in the summer of 1976, a full three years after its success in the U.S.
During this period of greater recognition, Knight made her motion picture acting debut in the film Pipe Dreams
Pipe Dreams (1976 film)
Pipe Dreams is a 1976 film starring soul singer Gladys Knight in her acting debut as a woman who attempts to regain the love of her husband played by real-life spouse Barry Hankerson. In this drama, her husband must choose between reuniting with her or giving in to pressure of the local boss, Mike...
, a romantic drama set in Alaska. The film failed at the box-office, but Knight did receive a Golden Globe Best New Actress nomination.
Knight and the Pips continued to have hits until the late 1970s, when they were forced to record separately due to legal issues, resulting in Knight's first solo LP recordings--Miss Gladys Knight (1978) on Buddah and Gladys Knight (1979) on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. Having divorced James Newman II in 1973, Knight married Barry Hankerson
Barry Hankerson
Barry Hankerson is an American record producer and manager who founded and runs Blackground Records. He was once a television producer and a politician in Detroit, Michigan. He managed and produced The Winans and produced Ron Milner's play Don't Get God Started in 1988.At one time Hankerson was...
(future uncle of R&B singer Aaliyah
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton , who performed under the mononym Aaliyah , was an American R&B recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside...
), then Detroit mayor Coleman Young
Coleman Young
Coleman Alexander Young served as mayor of Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan from 1974 to 1993. Young became the first African-American mayor of Detroit in the same week that Maynard Jackson became the first African-American mayor of Atlanta.-Pre-Mayoral career:Young was born in Tuscaloosa,...
's executive aide. Knight and Hankerson remained married for four years, during which time they had a son, Shanga Ali. Upon their divorce, Hankerson and Knight were embroiled in a heated custody battle over Shanga Ali.
In the early 1980s, Johnny Mathis
Johnny Mathis
John Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts...
invited Gladys to record two duets – "When A Child Is Born" (previously a hit for Mathis) and "The Lord's Prayer".
Signing with Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
in 1980 and restored to its familiar quartet form, Gladys Knight & the Pips began releasing new material. The act enlisted former Motown producers Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson
Ashford & Simpson
Nickolas Ashford , and Valerie Simpson , were a husband and wife songwriting/production team and recording artists....
for their first two LPs--About Love (1980) and Touch (1981). During this period, Knight kicked a gambling addiction to the game baccarat
Baccarat
Baccarat is a card game, played at casinos and by gamblers. It is believed to have been introduced into France from Italy during the reign of King Charles VIII , and it is similar to Faro and Basset...
.
In 1987, Knight decided to pursue a solo career, and she and the Pips recorded their final LP together, All Our Love (1987), for MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
. Its lead single, "Love Overboard", was a successful hit and won a third Grammy for the act as well. After a successful 1988 tour, the Pips retired and Knight began her solo career. Gladys Knight & the Pips were inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame
Georgia Music Hall of Fame
The Georgia Music Hall of Fame, located in downtown Macon, Georgia, preserves and interprets the state's rich musical heritage through programs of collection, exhibition, education and performance...
in 1989 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
in 1996.
Solo music career
While still with The Pips, Knight joined with Dionne WarwickDionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
, Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
, and Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
on the 1986 AIDS benefit single, "That's What Friends Are For" which won a Grammy for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal. In 1989, Gladys Knight recorded the title track for the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movie Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill, released in 1989, is the sixteenth entry in the Eon Productions James Bond series and the first one not to use the title of an Ian Fleming novel. It marks Timothy Dalton's second and final performance in his brief tenure in the lead role of James Bond...
, a top 10 hit both in the UK, reaching #6, and Germany.
Knight's third solo LP, Good Woman, was released by MCA in 1991. It rose to #1 on the R&B album chart and featured the #2 R&B hit "Men". The album also featured "Superwoman", written by Babyface and featuring Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
and Patti LaBelle
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry...
. Knight and LaBelle would collaborate the same year on "I Don't Do Duets", a duet with Patti LaBelle from LaBelle's album Burnin'
Burnin' (Patti LaBelle album)
Burnin' is a 1991 album by Patti LaBelle. It won the category of "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" at the Grammy Awards of 1992 jointly with a single by Lisa Fischer, an unusual event in the history of the Grammy Awards....
.
Her fourth solo LP, Just for You, went gold
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
and was nominated for the 1995 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album
Grammy Award for Best R&B Album
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre...
.
In 1992 Vernon Ray Blue II, choir master of the year asked Gladys to record his first single "He Lifted Me"
Knight joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1997. She had occasionally teased LDS Church president, the late Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 12, 1995 until his death...
, that his flock needs to inject some "pep" into their music. Knight created and now directs the Mormon-themed choir Saints Unified Voices
Saints Unified Voices
Saints Unified Voices is an American Gospel music choir. The Saints Unified Voices Foundation, the governing organization of the choir, is directed by a 12-member board of directors, which includes Gladys Knight...
. SUV has released a Grammy Award-winning CD titled One Voice, and occasionally performs at LDS church firesides.
In 2005, a duet between Knight and Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
of "You Were There" was released on Charles' duets album Genius & Friends
Genius & Friends
Genius & Friends is a 2005 studio album by rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, consisting of previously unreleased duets between Charles and musicians recorded during 1997 to 2005...
.
In 2008, a duet between Knight and Johnny Mathis
Johnny Mathis
John Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts...
was released on Mathis' album A Night to Remember. Knight is ranked number eighteen on VH1 network's list of the 100 Greatest Women of Rock.
In the spring of 2008, Knight appeared alongside Chaka Khan, Patti Labelle and Diana Ross at the 'Divas with Heart' concert in aid of cardiac research, at New York's Radio City Hall.
In 2008 Gladys, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller performed on American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
to raise money for charity. In March 2010, Randy Jackson
Randy Jackson
Randall Darius "Randy" Jackson is an American bassist, singer, record producer, music manager, A&R executive, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is best known as a judge on American Idol and executive producer for MTV's America's Best Dance Crew...
mentioned on a new episode of the same show that he is back in the studio with Gladys Knight working on a new album.
In 2009 Knight sang "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" and "The Lord's Prayer" at the funeral service for Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
.
On December 21, 2010, Knight released the single "Settle" on iTunes and Amazon.
In September 2011, a new, updated recording of I (Who Have Nothing)
I (Who Have Nothing)
"I " is a song originally released in English by Ben E. King in 1963."I " is based on the Italian song "Uno Dei Tanti," with music by Carlo Donida and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. "Uno Dei Tanti" was released by Joe Sentieri in 1961...
was released on iTunes and Amazon.
UK Farewell Tour
In October 2009, Gladys started her farewell tour of the United Kingdom which featured Tito Jackson as her supporting act and special appearances by Dionne Warwick.Speaking ahead of the Manchester show, Jackson said: "The UK was a very special place to my brother Michael and I'm so excited to be able to pay my respect to his fans here. To be able to do this whilst supporting our dear friend Gladys is a complete blessing." On the October 9 concert, his mother Katherine Jackson and his brothers Jackie and Marlon were acknowledged in the audience.
The UK Farewell Tour featured higher production value than previous "Gladys Knight, a mic and a light" appearances by Gladys in the UK. A glossy program was available and the show featured pre-produced animation on large on-stage screens. The tour was promoted by an appearance on the TV program Later... with Jools Holland where Gladys performed "If I Were Your Woman
If I Were Your Woman (song)
"If I Were Your Woman" is a song recorded Gladys Knight & the Pips. The song was written by Pam Sawyer, Clay McMurray, and Gloria Jones and it was produced by McMurray. Released in late 1970 from the album of the same title, it spent one week at number-one on the Best Selling Soul Singles chart in...
" and "Help Me Make It Through the Night
Help Me Make It Through the Night
"Help Me Make It Through the Night" is a country music ballad composed by Kris Kristofferson and released on his 1970 album Kristofferson.Kristofferson said that he got the inspiration for the song from an Esquire magazine interview with Frank Sinatra...
".
At select performances on the UK Farewell Tour recordings of the concerts were made available for sale on USB flash drives.
Acting and other work
Benson (TV series)
Benson is an American television sitcom which aired from September 13, 1979, to April 19, 1986, on ABC. The series was a spin-off from the soap opera parody Soap ; however, Benson discarded the...
, The Jeffersons
The Jeffersons
The Jeffersons is an American sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, through June 25, 1985, lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes. The show was produced by the T.A.T. Communications Company from 1975–1982 and by Embassy Television from 1982-1985...
, A Different World, Living Single
Living Single
Living Single is an American television sitcom which aired for five seasons on the Fox network from August 29, 1993 to January 1, 1998. The show centered on the lives of six friends who share personal and professional experiences while living in a Brooklyn brownstone.Throughout its run, Living...
, The Jamie Foxx Show
The Jamie Foxx Show
The Jamie Foxx Show is an American television sitcom that aired on the WB Network from August 28, 1996 to January 14, 2001. The series starred Jamie Foxx, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan, Ellia English, and Garrett Morris.-Synopsis:...
and New York Undercover
New York Undercover
New York Undercover is an American police drama that aired on the FOX television network from 1994 to 1998. The series starred Malik Yoba as Detective J.C. Williams and Michael DeLorenzo as Detective Eddie Torres, two undercover detectives in New York City's 4th Precinct who were assigned to...
. In 1985, she co-starred on the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
sitcom Charlie & Co.
Charlie & Co.
Charlie & Co. is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 18, 1985 to May 16, 1986. Created by Allan Katz, the series starred Flip Wilson and Gladys Knight. Charlie & Co. is regarded as CBS' answer to The Cosby Show, which was a ratings success for NBC at the time...
with comedian Flip Wilson
Flip Wilson
Clerow Wilson, Jr. , known professionally as Flip Wilson, was an American comedian and actor. In the early 1970s, Wilson hosted his own weekly variety series, The Flip Wilson Show...
. It lasted for one season. In April 2009, she made a special guest appearance and performed a song on Tyler Perry's House of Payne
Tyler Perry's House of Payne
Tyler Perry's House of Payne is an American comedy-drama television series created and produced by playwright, director, and producer Tyler Perry. The show revolves around a multi-generational family living under one roof in Atlanta, Georgia led by patriarch Curtis Payne and his wife Ella...
. Knight has also made a number of television cameo appearances, including Las Vegas
Las Vegas (TV series)
Las Vegas was an American television series broadcast by NBC from September 22, 2003 to February 15, 2008. The show focuses on a team of people working at the ficticional Montecito Resort & Casino dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and...
, and 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
.
Knight's son Shanga owns a chain of chicken and waffles
Chicken and waffles
Chicken and waffles is a dish combining waffles, a breakfast food, with fried chicken. It is served in certain specialty restaurants in the United States....
restaurants based in Atlanta, bearing her name. Gladys Knight & Ron Winans' Chicken & Waffles currently have three locations in the Atlanta area. One location was featured on the Travel Channel original series Man v. Food
Man v. Food
Man v. Food is an American food reality television series. It premiered on December 3, 2008, on the Travel Channel. The program is hosted by actor and food enthusiast Adam Richman. In each episode, Richman explores the "big food" offerings of a different American city before facing off against a...
.
In 2009, Gladys was featured in Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself
I Can Do Bad All By Myself (film)
Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All by Myself is a 2009 romantic musical comedy-drama film which was released on September 11, 2009. The film was directed, produced, and written by Tyler Perry, who also makes an appearance in the film as his signature character Madea...
and performed her song The Need To Be from the 1974 album I Feel a Song.
In 2008, she had a cameo in 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
as the rest of the cast sang Midnight Train To Georgia.
Personal life
Knight has been married four times and has three children of her own. In 1960, Knight married her high school teacher, Jimmy Newman. Newman got her pregnant in 1962 and Gladys gave birth to a son, Jimmy III, that year. She retired from the road to raise her child while The Pips toured on their own. After giving birth in 1963 to a daughter, Kenya, Knight returned to recording with the Pips in order to support her family. Newman and Knight divorced in 1973. She lived in Detroit neighborhood (Sherwood Forest) and her children attended Gesu Catholic Grade School. She married producer and Blackground Records founder, Barry HankersonBarry Hankerson
Barry Hankerson is an American record producer and manager who founded and runs Blackground Records. He was once a television producer and a politician in Detroit, Michigan. He managed and produced The Winans and produced Ron Milner's play Don't Get God Started in 1988.At one time Hankerson was...
, in 1974. They had one son, Shanga Hankerson, and divorced in 1981. She married her daughter's principal, Les Brown in 1995 but separated and divorced in 1997. Also in 1997, she was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, following her son and daughter. Knight married current husband, William McDowell in 2001. They have sixteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Awards, honors and achievements
- Grammy AwardGrammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s- 1986 Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal – "That's What Friends Are For" – Dionne WarwickDionne WarwickDionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
, Elton JohnElton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Gladys Knight & Stevie WonderStevie WonderStevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
. - 2001 Best Traditional R&B Vocal Album – "At Last"
- 2004 Best Gospel Performance – "Heaven Help Us All" – Ray CharlesRay CharlesRay Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
& Gladys Knight. - 2005 Best Gospel Choir Or Chorus Album – One Voice – Gladys Knight & The Saints Unified Voices.
- 1986 Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal – "That's What Friends Are For" – Dionne Warwick
- Other awards
- 1992 Gladys Knight was awarded an Essence Award for Career Achievement.
- 1995 Gladys Knight was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of FameHollywood Walk of FameThe Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
in Los Angeles. - 1997: Gladys Knight received the Pinnacle Award during 5th Annual Trumpet Awards presentation in Atlanta, Georgia.
- 2005: Gladys Knight received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the BETBlack Entertainment TelevisionBlack Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
cable network. - 2006: Gladys Knight received a Legendary Award from the Las Vegas Music Awards.
- 2007: Gladys Knight received Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Artist during The 38th NAACP Image Awards.
- 2007: Gladys Knight was declared the "Empress of Soul" and presented with the 16th Annual Ella Award by the Society of SingersSociety of SingersSociety of Singers, known appropriately as "SOS" is the only nonprofit 5013 charitable organization devoted exclusively to helping professional singers.-Foundation:...
- 2008: Gladys Knight and Stevie WonderStevie WonderStevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
were presented with the Best Living Legend Award at the 1st Annual The BETBlack Entertainment TelevisionBlack Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
Honors. - 2008: Gladys Knight received the Lifetime Diva Award at the Stardust Music Awards in March.
- 2008: Gladys Knight was honored by The National Black Arts Festival and The Coca Cola Company at the 2008 Legends Celebration.
- 2009: Gladys Knight was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Chart positions | US certifications |
Record label | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
US Gospel Billboard charts The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine... |
US Jazz Billboard charts The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine... |
||||
| 1978 | Miss Gladys Knight | — | 57 | — | — | — | Buddah Buddah Records Buddah Records was founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's founding... |
| 1979 | Gladys Knight | 201 | 71 | — | — | — | Columbia Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company... |
| 1991 | Good Woman | 45 | 1 | — | — | — | MCA MCA Records MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003... |
| 1994 | Just for You | 53 | 6 | — | — | Gold | |
| 1998 | Many Different Roads | — | — | 21 | — | — | |
| 2001 | At Last | 98 | 30 | — | — | — | |
| 2005 | One Voice (with Saints Unified Voices Saints Unified Voices Saints Unified Voices is an American Gospel music choir. The Saints Unified Voices Foundation, the governing organization of the choir, is directed by a 12-member board of directors, which includes Gladys Knight... ) |
— | 95 | 2 | — | — | Many Roads |
| 2006 | A Christmas Celebration (with Saints Unified Voices) | 155 | 59 | 1 | — | — | |
| Before Me | 93 | 18 | — | 4 | — | Verve Verve Records Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve... |
|
| "—" denotes the album failed to chart | |||||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
US A/C |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
||||
| 1978 | "I'm Coming Home Again" | — | 54 | — | — | ||
| 1979 | "Am I Too Late" | — | 45 | — | — | ||
| 1981 | "When a Child Is Born When a Child Is Born "When a Child is Born" is a popular Christmas song. The original melody was "Soleado", a tune from 1972 by Ciro Dammicco , composer for the Italian group Daniel Santecruz Ensemble. The English language lyrics were written later by Fred Jay.... " (with Johnny Mathis Johnny Mathis John Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts... ) |
— | — | — | 74 | ||
| 1985 | "That's What Friends Are For That's What Friends Are For "That's What Friends Are For" is a 1982 song written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager and introduced by Rod Stewart for the soundtrack of the film Night Shift.-Dionne Warwick cover:... " (with Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health.... , Elton John Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor... & Stevie Wonder Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist... ) |
1 | 1 | 1 | 16 | ||
| 1986 | "Loving on Borrowed Time (Love Theme from Cobra)" (with Bill Medley Bill Medley William Thomas Medley is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers.... ) |
— | — | 16 | — | ||
| 1989 | "License to Kill" | — | 69 | 18 | 6 | ||
| 1990 | "If I Knew Then What I Know Now" (with Kenny Rogers Kenny Rogers Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur... ) |
— | — | 10 | — | ||
| 1991 | "Men" | — | 2 | — | — | ||
| "Superwoman" (with Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health.... & Patti LaBelle Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry... ) |
— | 19 | — | — | |||
| "Meet Me in the Middle" | — | 78 | — | — | |||
| 1992 | "Where Would I Be" | — | 66 | — | — | ||
| 1994 | "I Don't Want to Know" | 113 | 32 | — | — | ||
| "End of the Road Medley End of the Road "End of the Road" is a 1992 Grammy Award-winning, number-one song recorded in May 1992 by Boyz II Men for the Motown label. Written and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Antonio "L.A." Reid and Daryl Simmons. It is Boyz II Men's most successful single and replaced Diana Ross and Lionel... " |
— | 76 | — | — | |||
| 1995 | "Next Time" | — | 30 | — | — | ||
| 1996 | "Missing You Missing You (1996 song) "Missing You" is a song by Brandy, Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan, and Tamia, recorded for the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off. Written andy produced by Gordon Chambers and Barry Eastmond, it was released as a single in August 1996 . The collaboration peaked at number 2 in New Zealand... " (with Brandy Brandy Norwood Brandy Rayana Norwood , known professionally as Brandy, is an American singer-songwriter, producer, actress, and dancer. In 2009, she introduced her rap alter-ego Bran'Nu.... , Tamia Tamia Tamia Hill , and known professionally as Tamia, is a four-time Grammy-nominated Canadian R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, model, entrepreneur and philanthropist, as well as an occasional actress.She is best known for her 2000 hit "Stranger In My House" and Fabolous' 2003... & Chaka Khan Chaka Khan Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career... ) |
25 | 10 | 30 | — | ||
| 2010 | "Settle" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011 | "I (Who Have Nothing) I (Who Have Nothing) "I " is a song originally released in English by Ben E. King in 1963."I " is based on the Italian song "Uno Dei Tanti," with music by Carlo Donida and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. "Uno Dei Tanti" was released by Joe Sentieri in 1961... " |
— | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes the single failed to chart | |||||||
NotesDid not chart on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
charts (Billboard rules at the time prevented album cuts from charting). Chart peak listed represents the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart is the airplay component chart of the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. It is not the R&B subset of The Hot 100 Airplay, but rather a separate panel of R&B stations in urban markets used for the R&B/Hip-Hop chart...
chart.
Published works
- Knight, Gladys. At Home With Gladys Knight, McGraw-Hill, 2001 – ISBN 1-58040-075-2
- Knight, Gladys. Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story, Hyperion Press, 1998 – ISBN 0-7868-8371-5
External links
- Official website
- Gladys Knight (b. 1944), New Georgia Encyclopedia
- Saints Unified Voices
- Article explaining the creation of Saints Unified Voices
- Sharing the Gospel Through Music –
- City Press (S.Africa) article
- Capetown (S.Africa) article
- Gladys Knight featured at the Hawaii Romance Festival, May 2008
- Early article referencing Gladys Knight as Empress of Soul.
- Ottawa Sun, "Empress of Soul closes out Jazzfest in style."
- Buffalo Resort and Casino To Host "The Empress of Soul" Gladys Knight.
- The Empress of Soul:Gladys Knight's Love and Life...
- Article highlighting Georgia's musical heritage, referencing "Empress of Soul," Gladys Knight.
- Internet Movie Data Base
- Legendary Empress of Soul Gladys Knight Returns To The Orleans Showroom.