Midnight Train to Georgia - wikipedia Midnight Train to Georgia This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( December 2007 ) `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' Single by Gladys Knight & the Pips from the album Imagination B - side `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' ( instrumental ) `` Window Raisin ' Granny '' ( optional ) Released August 1973 Format 7 '' vinyl single Recorded 1973 Genre Soul Length 4 : 38 ( album version ) 3 : 55 ( single version ) Label Buddah Songwriter ( s ) Jim Weatherly Producer ( s ) Tony Camillo & Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips singles chronology `` All I Need Is Time '' ( 1973 ) `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' ( 1973 ) `` I 've Got to Use My Imagination '' ( 1973 ) `` All I Need Is Time '' ( 1973 ) `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' ( 1973 ) `` I 've Got to Use My Imagination '' ( 1973 ) `` 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. Written by Jim Weatherly, and included on the Pips ' 1973 LP Imagination, `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' won the 1974 Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus and has become Knight 's signature song. Contents 1 Background 2 Chart history 2.1 Weekly charts 2.2 Year - end charts 3 Appearance in other media 4 Personnel 5 Track details 6 Notable cover versions 7 References 8 External links Background The song was originally written and performed by Jim Weatherly under the title `` Midnight Plane to Houston '', which he recorded on Jimmy Bowen 's Amos Records. `` It was based on a conversation I had with somebody... about taking a midnight plane to Houston, '' Weatherly recalls. `` I wrote it as a kind of a country song. Then we sent the song to a guy named Sonny Limbo in Atlanta and he wanted to cut it with Cissy Houston... he asked if I minded if he changed the title to `` Midnight Train to Georgia ''. And I said, ' I do n't mind. Just do n't change the rest of the song. ' '' Weatherly, in an interview with Gary James, stated that the phone conversation was with Farrah Fawcett and he used Fawcett and his friend Lee Majors, whom she had just started dating, `` as kind of like characters. '' Weatherly, at a program in Nashville, said he was the quarterback at the University of Mississippi, the NFL did n't work out for him, so he was in LA trying to write songs. He was in a Rec football league with Lee Majors and called Majors one night. Farrah Fawcett answered the phone and he asked what she was doing. She said she was `` taking the midnight plane to Houston '' to visit her family. He thought that was a catchy phrase for a song, and in writing the song, wondered why someone would leave LA on the midnight plane - which brought the idea of a `` superstar, but he did n't get far. '' Gospel / soul singer Cissy Houston recorded the song as `` Midnite Train to Georgia '' ( spelled `` Midnight... '' on the UK single ) released in 1973. Her version can also be found on her albums Midnight Train to Georgia : The Janus Years ( 1995 ), and the reissue of her 1970 debut album, Presenting Cissy Houston originally released on Janus Records. Weatherly 's publisher forwarded the song to Gladys Knight and the Pips, who followed Houston 's lead and kept the title `` Midnight Train to Georgia. '' The single debuted on the Hot 100 at number 71 and became the group 's first number - one hit eight weeks later when it jumped from number 5 to number 1 on October 27, 1973, replacing `` Angie '' by the Rolling Stones. It remained in the top position for two weeks. It was replaced by `` Keep On Truckin ' ( Part 1 ) '' by Eddie Kendricks. It also reached number one on the soul singles chart, their fifth on that chart. On the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number ten. In her autobiography, Between Each Line of Pain and Glory, Gladys Knight wrote that she hoped the song was a comfort to the many thousands who come each year from elsewhere to Los Angeles to realize the dream of being in motion pictures or music, but then fail to realize that dream and plunge into despair. In 1999, `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It currently ranks # 432 on Rolling Stone 's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Chart history Weekly charts Chart ( 1974 ) Peak position Australia KMR 52 Canada RPM Top Singles 5 UK ( OCC ) 10 US Billboard Hot 100 US Billboard Adult Contemporary 19 US Billboard R&B US Cash Box Top 100 Year - end charts Chart ( 1973 ) Rank Canada 120 US Billboard Hot 100 49 US Cash Box 15 Appearance in other media The song was featured during a scene in the 1978 film The Deer Hunter by director Michael Cimino, in which the character Nick ( Christopher Walken ) - having left the military hospital - is visiting a strip club in Saigon as the girls gyrate to `` Midnight Train to Georgia ''. `` Episode 210 '' of the NBC sitcom 30 Rock features an extensive parody of the song, punctuated by a cameo from Knight herself. The song was also featured in the episode `` The Choice '' of House, and the episode `` Swimming Pools... Movie Stars '' of Will & Grace. Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr. reenacted The Pips ' dance moves from a live performance of the song for the American Idol finale. NBC invited Gladys Knight to the season two finale of Las Vegas. She sang `` Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me '' and `` Midnight Train To Georgia ''. In the movie He Was a Quiet Man, Elisha Cuthbert and Christian Slater do a gig of this song at a restaurant when Venessa ( Cuthbert ) gets released to home care from the hospital. Bob McConnel ( Slater ) does the Pips. The song was also mentioned in `` The Ice of Boston '', a song on The Dismemberment Plan 's 1997 album The Dismemberment Plan Is Terrified. In 2013, the song is mentioned and later sung by cast members of the ABC sitcom Modern Family in the episode entitled, The Late Show. Featured in the 2014 film, The Equalizer, as a nod to a Gladys Knight & the Pips reference made early in the film. It was also used during an episode of Scandal in 2015. Personnel Lead vocals by Gladys Knight Background vocals by Merald `` Bubba '' Knight, Eddie Patten, and William Guest Written by Jim Weatherly Produced by Tony Camillo Co-produced by Gladys Knight, Merald `` Bubba '' Knight, Eddie Patten, and William Guest Track details Initial track recorded at Venture Sound Studios, Hillsborough, New Jersey, 1973 : Drums : Andrew Smith Bass : Bob Babbitt Guitar : Jeff Mironov ( playing a 1955 Fender Stratocaster ) Wurlitzer electric piano : Tony Camillo Overdubs recorded at Venture Sound Studios : Acoustic piano : Barry Miles Hammond organ : Tony Camillo Percussion : Tony Camillo Violin : Norman Carr Cello : Jesse Levy Trumpet : Randy Brecker Saxophone : Michael Brecker Trombone : Meco Monardo Vocals were recorded at Artie Fields Studio in Detroit. Gladys Knight recorded her lead vocals in a single take. She later recorded a punch - in of a single line in New York City. Recorded and mixed by Ed Stasium Notable cover versions Regina Love - The Voice ( U.S. season 9 ) Knockouts ( 2015 ) Aretha Franklin - Aretha Sings the Great Diva Classics ( 2014 ) Garth Brooks - Blame It All On My Roots ( 2013 ) Cissy Houston - Presenting Cissy Houston ( 2012 ) re-issue Neil Diamond - Dreams ( 2010 ) Joan Osborne - Breakfast in Bed ( 2007 ) Renée Geyer - Tenderland ( 2003 ). Indigo Girls - 1200 Curfews ( 1995 ) Starrkeisha - YouTube ( 2016 ) 30 Rock - original television cast ( 2010 ) References Jump up ^ `` Midnight Train to Georgia ''. Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2010 - 04 - 10. ^ Jump up to : Junior, Chris M. ( 14 April 2010 ). `` Hop aboard the midnight train to Georgia with Gladys Knight & The Pips ''. Goldmine. F + W. Retrieved 27 August 2017. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). Top R&B / Hip - Hop Singles : 1942 - 2004. Record Research. p. 330. Jump up ^ Between Each Line of Pain and Glory : My Life Story, by Gladys Knight. p. 187. Jump up ^ `` Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada ''. Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Missing or empty url = ( help ) ; access - date = requires url = ( help ) Jump up ^ Joel Whitburn 's Top Pop Singles 1955 - 1990 - ISBN 0 - 89820 - 089 - X Jump up ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 10, 1973 Jump up ^ Canada, Library and Archives ( July 13, 2017 ). `` Image : RPM Weekly ''. Jump up ^ Musicoutfitters.com Jump up ^ Cash Box Year - End Charts : Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 1973 Jump up ^ `` AMERICAN IDOL Finale : Jack Black, Ben Stiller and Robert Downey Jr aka ' The Pips ' ''. Give Me My Remote. 2008 - 05 - 21. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 08. Jump up ^ Video on YouTube Jump up ^ `` The Ice Of Boston Lyrics - Dismemberment Plan ''. Sing365.com. 2002 - 08 - 25. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 08. Jump up ^ Austin, Dan. `` Alhambra Theatre -- Historic Detroit ''. Historicdetroit.org. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 08. External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics BBC.co.uk Sold on Song : `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' Preceded by `` Angie '' by The Rolling Stones Billboard Hot 100 number one single October 27, 1973 ( two weeks ) Succeeded by `` Keep on Truckin ' ( Part 1 ) '' by Eddie Kendricks Preceded by `` Keep on Truckin ' ( Part 1 ) '' by Eddie Kendricks Billboard 's Hot Soul Singles number one single October 20, 1973 ( four weeks ) Succeeded by `` Space Race '' by Billy Preston Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight Merald `` Bubba '' Knight William Guest Edward Patten Brenda Knight Eleanor Guest Langston George Chris Morante Studio albums Everybody Needs Love Neither One of Us Imagination I Feel a Song 2nd Anniversary The One and Only Soundtrack albums Claudine Compilation albums The Ultimate Collection Singles `` Every Beat of My Heart '' `` Giving Up '' `` Take Me in Your Arms and Love Me '' `` Everybody Needs Love '' `` I Heard It Through the Grapevine '' `` The End of Our Road '' `` It Should Have Been Me '' `` I Wish It Would Rain '' `` The Nitty Gritty '' `` If I Were Your Woman '' `` Help Me Make It Through the Night '' `` Neither One of Us ( Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye ) '' `` The Look of Love '' `` Midnight Train to Georgia '' `` I 've Got to Use My Imagination '' `` Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me '' `` I Feel a Song ( In My Heart ) '' `` The Way We Were / Try to Remember '' `` Save the Overtime ( For Me ) '' `` Hero '' `` Love Overboard '' `` Baby, Do n't Change Your Mind '' Related topics Discography Aaliyah Barry Hankerson Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Midnight_Train_to_Georgia&oldid=804870607 '' Categories : 1973 songs 1973 singles Gladys Knight & the Pips songs Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles Billboard Hot R&B / Hip - Hop Songs number - one singles Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Songs about California Songs written by Jim Weatherly Songs about Georgia ( U.S. state ) Songs about trains Buddah Records singles Hidden categories : Pages using web citations with no URL Pages using citations with accessdate and no URL Articles needing additional references from December 2007 All articles needing additional references Articles with hAudio microformats Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch 日本 語 Edit links This page was last edited on 11 October 2017, at 16 : 51. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when did midnight train to georgia come out
Answer: 1973