Lead singer of Gladys Knight and the Pips (two cousins and her brother Bubba; named after another cousin), whose stint at Motown Records yielded the original "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" (high-intensity, as opposed to the brooding experiment that Marvin Gaye made famous). Later known for "Midnight Train to Georgia". The group parlayed their successes into a short-lived variety show; Gladys later branched out into acting, in films and a CBS sitcom.