Robbed Hit of the Week 2/4/13 - Gladys Knight & The Pips' "Save The Overtime (For Me)"...

Gladys Knight & The Pips - "Save The Overtime (For Me)"
from the album Visions (1983)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #66

This week's "robbed hit" is by soul legend, and I mean legend, Gladys Knight, who with her backing group the Pips were Motown's ace in the hole in the 60s, with a voice miles over Diana's, and a repetoire beating Marvin's original early 60s work.  The group, who simply started as "The Pips" on Vee-Jay Records, had their first hit single with "Every Beat Of My Heart", which made the top-10 on the pop chart and topped the R&B chart in 1958. By the time she made it to Motown, she managed the almost impossible feat of recording (and pre-dating) a version of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" that is as classic and as different from Marvin Gaye's take.

After a string of hit singles and two more #1 R&B singles with the classics "If I Were Your Woman" and "Neither One Of Us (Wants The First To Say Goodbye)", Gladys and the Pips left Motown for Buddah records. There they were rewarded with their first and only #1 pop single to date, "Midnight Train To Georgia", and followed that with three more R&B charttoppers in "I've Got To Use My Imagination", "Best Thing That's Ever Happened To Me", and "I Feel A Song (In My Heart)". However, by the time disco came into full force, The Pips' classic soul fell out of favor, and after 1975 failed to get a top-40 hit for the remainder of the 70s and early 80, during which Gladys and the guys were separated by record label contracts for a short time.

Reunited in the 80s and on Columbia Records, Gladys & the Pips recorded their 10th studio album, Visions, which contained the smooth dance-soul of "Save The Overtime (For Me)", which returned them to the top of the R&B chart for the first time in almost 20 years. Produced by two of the Sylvers, it captured the current club aspect of R&B yet still capturing their classic vocal interplay...

While it topped the R&B chart, "Save The Overtime.." stalled on the pop chart at #66. But Gladys and the Pips would be reinvigorated, and in a couple more albums would return to the top-40 with "Love Overboard". And it's a personal favorite of mine....


The single also made the top-20 on Billboard's dance chart...

That's it for tonight...I'll be back tomorrow with another Song of the Day, candletime, and my French and German music recaps. Good night!