I Heard It Through the Grapevine

Gladys Knight & the Pips recorded the track on June 17, 1967 at Hitsville U.S.A. Studio A in Detroit, with Norman Whitfield producing. The session captured the first released version of Barrett Strong and Whitfield’s Motown composition. Released in 1967 on Motown’s Soul label, the single became Gladys Knight & the Pips’ breakthrough hit at the company and their first major crossover success. It reached No. 1 on the R&B chart and No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. The recording became a Motown standard and later earned induction into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame in 2018. It remains the definitive early hit version of the song and a key reference point in the group’s catalog.