‘People Got to be Free’ by the Rascals – Classic Hit or Miss

"People Got to Be Free" is a song released in 1968 by The Rascals. Written by group members Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati and featuring a lead vocal from Cavaliere, it is a musically upbeat but impassioned plea for tolerance and freedom It became a big hit in the turbulent summer of 1968, spending five weeks atop the Billboard Pop Singles chart, the group's longest such stay. It was also the group's second-most successful single on the Billboard Black Singles chart, reaching number 14 and trailing only the previous year's "Groovin'"."People Got to Be Free" was RIAA-certified as a gold record on August 23, 1968, and eventually sold over 4 million copies.