William Guest (singer) William Guest (singer) William Franklin Guest (July 2, 1941 – December 24, 2015) was an American R&B/soul singer best known as a member of Gladys Knight & the Pips. Guest was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and was a cousin of Gladys Knight. Following his stint with The Pips, he and fellow Pip Edward Patten formed Patten and Guest Productions, and following Patten's death in 2005, he continued to manage artists though the Crew Entertainment company he formed with members of Patten's family. Guest died on December 24, 2015, of congestive heart failure in Detroit, Michigan, his home for fifty years.
Gladys Knight & the Pips label which featured acts who had more of an R&B flavor than a pop flavor. Their first Motown single, "Just Walk in My Shoes", was a hit in England, but the group was disappointed in having The Andantes sing over the Pips in the song, resulting in the group demanding that the Andantes not be featured on the group's recordings. They also were one of the few Motown acts that didn't regularly perform on the label's Motortown Revues, with an exception being a Christmas showcase at the Fox Theater in Detroit, recorded for the album, "Motortown Revue Live". A second