Robert Knight (born Robert Henry Peebles; April 24, 1940 – November 5, 2017) was an American singer, best known for his 1967 recording of the song " Everlasting Love".

Career

Robert Peebles was born in

Franklin, Tennessee Franklin is a city in and county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 83,454 ...

, United States, in 1940 according to family and official records, though some sources give the year 1945. As Robert Knight, he made his professional vocal debut with the Paramounts, a

quintet A quintet is a group containing five members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single ...

consisting of school friends. Signed to

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...

in 1960, they recorded "Free Me" in 1961, a US R&B hit single that outsold a rival version by

Johnny Preston John Preston Courville, known professionally as Johnny Preston (August 18, 1939 – March 4, 2011), was an American rock and roll singer, best known for his international number one hit in 1960, "Running Bear". Life and career Born in Port Arth ...

. After this initial success, their subsequent releases flopped, resulting in a breakup of the group. They also broke their recording contract with Dot and were prevented from recording for years. Knight attended

Tennessee State University Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tenness ...

, where he studied chemistry and sang with the Fairlanes, a vocal trio. In 1967, after Knight was seen performing with the Fairlanes in Nashville at a

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

fraternity, he was offered a contract as a solo artist by the Rising Sons

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...

. His first recording, " Everlasting Love", written by label owners

Buzz Cason James E. "Buzz" Cason (born November 27, 1939 in Nashville, Tennessee, United States) is an American rock singer, songwriter, record producer, and author. He was a founding member of The Casuals, Nashville's first rock and roll band. Together ...

and

Mac Gayden McGavock Dickinson "Mac" Gayden (born June 5, 1941) is an American rock and country music, country singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is also president of Wild Child Records, formed in 2004. Background Mac Gayden was born in ...

, was a success, reaching number 14 on the US R&B chart and number 13 on the Hot 100 on 18-25 November 1967. This enduring song was an even bigger success in the UK the following year when a version by Love Affair reached number 1, preventing Knight's version from progressing further than No. 40. Knight scored two further pop hits at home, "Blessed Are the Lonely" and "Isn't It Lonely Together". In 1973/1974, thanks to heavy rotation by Northern soul music admiring deejays he hit the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

again with the re-issue of his late 1968 recording "

Love on a Mountain Top "Love on a Mountain Top" is a 1968 song by singer Robert Knight. The song was written by Buzz Cason and Mac Gayden, who also penned "Everlasting Love". However, it only charted regionally in the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh area. Re-discovered by ...

", reaching number 10 in early 1974 in the

. The song was also written by Cason and Gayden. The re-issued "Everlasting Love" went even higher in the UK in 1974, reaching the Top 20, and

Carl Carlton Carl Carlton (born May 21, 1953) is an American R&B, soul, and funk singer-songwriter, best known for his hits "Everlasting Love" and " She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)". Career Carlton was born in Detroit, Michigan, and beg ...

's version peaked at number 6 on the Hot 100 on 23-30 November 1974, seven years to the week after Knight's version peaked. His final UK chart record was "Better Get Ready for Love" which reached number 53 in May 1974.BMRB Chart 1970-1976 Top 50 plus Top 10 Breakers. He also worked for

as a chemical lab technician, a chemistry teacher, and a member of the grounds crew. Knight died at home in Nashville, Tennessee, aged 77, 13 days before the 50-year anniversary of the first week of the Hot 100 peak date of his version of "Everlasting Love".

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Notes

References

External links

Oldies.com Biography on Robert Knight

CMT.com artists page: Robert Knight
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Robert 1940 births 2017 deaths Tennessee State University alumni American male singers African-American male singers People from Franklin, Tennessee Vanderbilt University people Singers from Tennessee Northern soul musicians Dot Records artists Monument Records artists