Jim Weatherly

Singer/songwriter Jim Weatherly achieved his greatest renown through million-selling recordings by Gladys Knight and the Pips of three compositions: "Midnight Train to Georgia," "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)," and "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me." He also scored his own Top 20 pop success with "The Need to Be." Collectables Records released those tracks and additional material on the compilation The Very Best of Jim Weatherly/The Need to Be on February 27, 2001.

Born James Dexter Weatherly on March 4, 1943, in Pontotoc, MS, the former All-American quarterback ultimately pursued songwriting as his profession. Ray Price delivered a 1973 number one country version of "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me," while Brenda Lee, Lynn Anderson, and Bob Luman likewise interpreted Weatherly material. In the mid-'60s he signed as a performer with 20th Century Records, then moved to RCA Records for releases throughout the '70s.

Gladys Knight and the Pips' final Motown hit before switching to Buddah Records was Weatherly's "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)." Joe Porter produced the track, with arrangements by Michael O'Martian and Artie Butler; the ballad reached number one R&B for four weeks and number two pop for two weeks during spring 1973 and earned a 1973 Grammy for best pop vocal group performance.

Buddah executive Neil Bogart suggested Tony Camillo as producer for the newly signed group. Their debut Buddah single, Weatherly's "Where Peaceful Waters Flow," climbed to number six R&B and number 28 pop in summer 1973. The follow-up became the act's signature recording. Weatherly had originally cut "Midnight Train to Houston" for Jimmy Bowen's Amos Records. Atlanta producer Sonny Limbo adapted the song for Cissy Houston, altering the title to "Midnight Train to Georgia"; her Janus Records rendition charted modestly in 1972. A demo subsequently reached Gladys Knight and the Pips, whose chugging version topped the R&B chart for four weeks and the pop chart for two weeks in fall 1973, securing a 1973 Grammy for best R&B vocal group performance. Roughly three years afterward, the Pips delivered a comedic rendition on NBC-TV's The Richard Pryor Show, performing their "woo-woos" and backing vocals around an unoccupied microphone stand in Knight's absence.

Weatherly's string of successes with Gladys Knight and the Pips led to a Buddah Records contract. His easy-listening single "The Need to Be" reached number 11 on the pop charts in late 1974. Additional country-chart entries included "I'll Still Love You" and "All That Keeps Me Going."