Today is the birthday of Gladys Knight, a soulful singer whose name instantly conjures three more words – “… and the Pips.”
That may be a tough notion for any diva to accept, but if Wikipedia is to be believed, at one point in her early career the entire band carried the nickname of her Uncle, James Woods.
And yes, that means she was just another Pip.
History could have led anywhere from there. At least it didn’t turn into “The Pips – featuring Gladys Knight.”
Knight was born in Atlanta in 1944, and gave her home state perhaps the finest pop music theme song of all fifty contenders with this classic.
It sounds odd to say it this way, but the song was created with a different title – “Midnight Plane to Houston.” Writer Jim Weatherly allowed the change to suit a singer who was actually named Houston – Cissy, Whitney’s mother. Cissy Houston recorded it as “Midnight Train To Georgia” on her debut album as she tried to de-Pipify herself after singing backup for characters like Elvis and Aretha Franklin.
Why is it that hopping a late plane to Houston sounds excruciating, while catching an overnight train to Georgia is romantic?
One can only imagine what it was like to sing that song over and over and over and over and over again as it became a worldwide hit. I hope somewhere along the way, Gladys Knight felt a powerful sense of affirmation. After all, having a trio of choreographed “yes men” sing your exact words moments after you say them to thousands of adoring fans is the very thing that leads many corporate CEO’s to strive for that corner office.
What would your backup group be called?
Trail Baboon 
The Weasels
Wes and The Weasels
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Very 1950’s!
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Wessew and the pallendromes.
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The Looies.
Since I cannot sing, the Loosies minus Clyde
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First thing in the head yhis moening is Madislandgirl and the Lighthouses.
I think I’ll get some coffee.
Sectional races today and Saturday-conversation here is dominated by the numbers. Thank goodness all the major academic projects are done so the boy can be as race-happy as he likes.
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The Dustbunnies
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Very 1960’s! Mod!
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Good morning. I can’t see myself as a lead singer with back up singers. If, by some stretch of my imagination, I could see myself in this role I would call my group Jim and the Jokers.
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So if you can’t imagine it, would it be Jim and the Fantasies?
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Jim, I am just back from walking the dogs. Which of course, provides me with thinking time. If you are not comfortable with a suave, dancing group, you could be Jim and the Dutch cloggers, and dress them in knickers and vests. It would be culturally consistant.
Never give me time to think. This is what happens.
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I could never be a cool lead singer with a back up group. That said, I think i would not call my back ups the Dutch Cloggers. Maybe the Devilish Dutchmen. They would need to dress in a way that would be a parody of traditional dress. Maybe hippy style with Dutch wooden shoes that they stomped around in as a back up dance.
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Ho9w about Jim and the nematodes?
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That is a good one.
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Rise and Belt out a Song Baboons!
If the name is about my not-so-lovely singing voice, The Coverups
If it is about my life attitude, The Pragmatics
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Just be careful. It sounds very similar to Wendy and the Plasmatics…a band you would not want to be confused with.
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Now that you are certified in DBT, you could be Jaque and the Borderlines
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That one made me snort–a 10 on Barb’s snort-o-meter.
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Think of the conflicts and drama!
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The Scandinavians. They will have awesome harmonies, but won’t make eye contact while they sing.
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Will they hold hands while they sing?
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Only while looking at their shoes.
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Well, I could think of several- Renee and the Flickertails (ND State rodent). I am still dealing with the aftermath of laryngitis, so it could be Renee and the Phlegmatics. Or the Sciatics, Husband says his could be Chris and the Dithers. or the Fantods.
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Baboons are FUNNY this morning. So far today it would be the Lawnmowers, but something else may come up.
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Or maybe the Weedwhackers.
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Their sound would be a high pitched drone, and it would be hard to hear the lead singer.
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LIKE this. A 10 on the snort-o-meter. I need to find a group with similar qualities.
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Maybe Bocker and the Rockers.
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The Librarians. Whenever I sing, they raise a finger to their lips and go “Shhh”…
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Sounds very alternative to alternative.
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I’m laughing so hard I’m crying.
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My group would just be the Scattertones. We’d dress to mismatch each other, a metaphor for the sound.
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Steve and the Simies
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Clyde and the Birchwoods.
Dale and the Pleasants
Dr. Kyle and the Mutates
Bubby and the Spandex
Bubby and the drifters
Bubby and the Spam
Dale and the All-Girl Baboonettes
Blevin and the Dithers
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tim and the lower case
Steve and the Westward Hos
Barbara and the Robins
Barbra and the Ravines
Sherilee and the Verilies
The Captain and Me Hardies
Rafferty and the Paranoids
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You are ON today.
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thas no way to refer to steves chick back up singers
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Dr baboon and the pearls
Loomis beechly and the shoreliners
Bubbly and the prolonged pubescence
Dr kyle & the genetic variance
Skyler Tyler Wyler and the poetic rhyme stylers
Scoop and the byliners
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Gladys Knight was interviewed by Johnny Carson a couple times. very bright and sparkly person.
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Sandy and the Disappointments
We were supposed to go to a annual family reunion at Jax but she is too sick to go.
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😦
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While Gladys Knight will forever be associated with The Pips, it should be noted that she could certainly hold her own. As shown in this clip when Gladys appeared on The Muppet Show sans Pips.
If I were to have a backing group, I’d seriously think about having an alias myself. My name is pretty common and doesn’t necessarily lend itself to that spark that gets people’s attention. Let’s see…good band names, especially backing bands…hmmm…
Phantom Twist
Melody Mashers
Knitter Knockers
The Substraights
The Clamor Jammers
The Solo Ensemble
The Dischord Junket
Pauperprize
The Door Jam Band
Demented Gophers
Just off the top of my head.
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With or without the hat?
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Currently without.
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Oo, oo, the Pauperazzi.
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My personal favorite is The Solo Ensemble.
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The fedora lounge lizard and the reptillians
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…the u u’s
As in “Hey you. No that you, the other you.”
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Greg and the new guys
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Lots of good ones today.
I have a single backup group both for tim and for tgith: The Mad Hatters.
Since my last name is Sinclair, my group would either be the Claires or the Sinners.
Or, since I will be retiring in 36 days (but who’s counting?) I could be Lisa and the ShortTimers.
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Mad Hatters is already taken. Former bassist for Led Zeppelin, John Paul Jones, said, while he was putting together his bluegrass/rock group with Dave Grohl, that all the good band names were taken. They settled on Them Crooked Vultures.
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how about sinclair and the dinosauers i remember the blow up ones form the gas stations
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Anybody here have a historical memory. My group would be called the Fubars.
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How about The Snafu Queue?
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Not living history, but I read a lot.
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The Chainsaw Gang. As in Little Jail Bird and the Chainsaw Gang.
Using Barbara’s idea of a very loud backup group so the lead singer is inaudible.
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edith and the husquavarnas
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The Chainsaw Gang. As in Little Jail Bird and the Chainsaw Gang.
Using Barbara’s idea of a very loud backup group so the lead singer is inaudible.
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I only typed this comment once – why does it show up twice?
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It was doubly good.
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i doesnt
it doesnt
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Mr. Tuxedo and the Cumberbunds
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My grandson was briefly part of a garage band that couldn’t come up with a name and ended up as the TBDs.
Did anyone else see a group that played at the smaller theater space at the Ordway years ago? They were an Australian bluegrass group called Blue Grassy Knoll and they played while Buster Keaton silent movies were showing. A great show.
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AKA Occasional Caroline
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caroline and the wolftones
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My brother’s junior high school (or maybe high school) band was called the Fourth Moode. My father mentioned them in a family letter and commented, “What is a “moode” and what happened to the other three?” The band had no answers.
Same brother played in a later band called Dancing with Henry. However there was neither a Henry nor dancing.
His current band’s name escapes me but I think there’s a fish in the name.
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My God do we sound old!! I don’t even know what the names of bands are, much less the back up singers. James Taylor, Jim Croce, Simon & Garfunkel, Cat Stevens, Karole King and a touch of John Denver are about the only old time favorites of mine. I still play them because they’re the only songs I know the lyrics to.
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Speaking of old, how about the Foggy Fogies?
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Ouch.
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How about cb and the seabees
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Ha! of course! (I didn’t know that was done by the Hollies…)
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If you haven’t seen it in the theater, rent it – Twenty Feet From Stardom.
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tim and the tom toms
or the timettes
guys or gals.
i see spins and hand jive with powder blue tuxs and frilly shirts
and then theres the guy back ups
no one did dale
dale and the bloggers
dale and the cosmic crusties
dale and his band of merry blogmates
con mand and the lost planet bloggers
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plain jane and the danes
ben and the light show men
clyde and the sominn slide
jim and seedy slims
renee and the soup spooners
barbara and the dictionaries
edith and the jailbirds
jacque and the shrunken heads
linda and the quotations
holly and the jukeboxes
donna and the lost carlos
the mona lisas
anna and the kings
sherrilee and the bookworms
the guy in the hat and the hat racks
wes and the sewing machine
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tim and the multitaskers
tim and hippie-dippy dharma bums
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Plain Jane and the Danes really rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?
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And of course steve and his westward ho’s
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Mig and the free weekend gig
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Dale and the trail
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Dale and his trail
Dale left a trail
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Dale and the quips
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Liam and the precocious munchkins
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A creative group today. Like, like, like all down the list.
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Changing the subject . . . . a great act is Sharon Jones And The Dap Kings. Sharon is fantastic.
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