Edward Patten

{{Short description|American soul singer (1939–2005)}} {{for|the United States Congressman|Edward J. Patten}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Edward Patten | image = Gladys Knight and the Pips on Soul Train.jpg | alt = | caption = Patten (second from left) with Gladys Knight & the Pips, 1974 | image_size = | landscape =  | background = solo_singer | birth_name = Edward Roy Patten | alias = | birth_date = {{birth date|1939|8|27}} | birth_place = [[Atlanta, Georgia]], U.S. | origin = | death_date = {{death date and age|2005|2|25|1939|8|27}} | death_place = [[Livonia, Michigan]], U.S. | genre = [[R&B music|R&B]], [[pop music]], [[soul music]] | occupation = Singer, songwriter, producer | instrument = | years_active =  | label = | associated_acts = [[Gladys Knight & the Pips]] | website =  }}

'''Edward Roy Patten''' (August 27, 1939 – February 25, 2005) was an American [[R&B]]/[[soul music|soul]] singer, best known as a member of [[Gladys Knight & the Pips]]. He was a cousin of [[Gladys Knight]].<ref name="nyt050226" /> Patten was a member of the group from 1959 until the disbandment in 1989. Patten was a multiple [[Grammy Award]] winner, and along with the group, he was inducted to the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in 1996.<ref name="rrhof" />

Edward was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Thomas S. Patten and Wilhelmina (née Maxwell). His father was a local musician, singer and bandleader.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Perrone |first=Pierre |date=2005-03-02 |title=Edward Patten |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/edward-patten-526869.html |access-date=2023-11-05 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> Edward grew up singing in the church and with local "doo wop" groups in Atlanta. While still a teenager, he married his first wife Katherine (née Smith) in Atlanta at the home of her parents. He had two children from this marriage, Stephanie A. and Steven A. Patten.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stephanie Patten Obituary (1957 - 2021) - Atlanta, GA - Atlanta Journal-Constitution |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/atlanta/name/stephanie-patten-obituary?id=9716979 |access-date=2023-11-05 |website=Legacy.com}}</ref>

It was in Atlanta that he was invited by William Guest to join the Pips after two members left the group to get married.<ref name=":0" /> Edward later traveled first to New York after the success of the single "Every Beat of My Heart", and later he and the group, now Gladys Knight and the Pips, moved to Detroit, Michigan, to join Motown Records. By this time the strain of the entertainment world had taken its toll on his marriage, and he and Katherine divorced, and he married Renee (née Brown). He and Renee had three children - Edward II, Elliott and Renee Patten.<ref name=":0" />

Even though Gladys Knight & the Pips officially disbanded in 1989, Patten remained very close to his bandmates and his lifelong friends throughout the rest of his life.

Patten had [[diabetes]] and [[hypertension]] and was later incapacitated by a stroke.<ref>{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TrUDAAAAMBAJ&dq=edward+patten+Atlanta&pg=PA56 |title=Jet Magazine |date=2005-03-14 |publisher=Johnson Publishing Company |pages=56 |language=en}}</ref> He died at age 65 of a [[stroke]] at St. Mary's Mercy Hospital in [[Livonia, Michigan]], where he resided.<ref>{{Cite magazine |author=Billboard Staff |date=2005-02-25 |title=Pips Member Edward Patten Dies |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/pips-member-edward-patten-dies-63946/ |access-date=2023-11-05 |magazine=Billboard |language=en-US}}</ref> He is interred at Detroit's historic [[Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit)|Woodlawn Cemetery]] at Eight Mile Road and Woodward Avenue.<ref name="nyt050226"/><ref name="jet050314"/>

==References== {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="rrhof">{{cite web |publisher=[[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] |title=Gladys Knight and the Pips Biography |url=http://rockhall.com/inductees/gladys-knight-and-the-pips/bio/ |access-date=March 7, 2012}}</ref> <ref name="jet050314">{{cite news |work=[[Jet (magazine)|Jet]] |title=Edward Patten of Gladys Knight & the Pips Dies |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TrUDAAAAMBAJ&q=%22william+guest%22+pips&pg=PA56 |date=March 14, 2005 |publisher=Johnson Publishing Company |access-date=March 7, 2012}}</ref> <ref name="nyt050226">{{cite news |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |title=Edward Patten, 66; Sang With the Pips |url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60610F83F590C758EDDAB0894DD404482 |date=February 26, 2005 |access-date=March 7, 2012}}</ref> }}

==External links== *{{Find a Grave|10540021}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patten, Edward}} [[Category:1939 births]] [[Category:2005 deaths]] [[Category:Singers from Atlanta]] [[Category:American soul musicians]] [[Category:Gladys Knight & the Pips members]] [[Category:Knight family (show business)]] [[Category:20th-century American singers]] [[Category:Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit)]] [[Category:American amputees]] [[Category:20th-century African-American male singers]] [[Category:American rhythm and blues singers]] [[Category:American soul singers]] [[Category:20th-century American male singers]] [[Category:21st-century African-American musicians]]