Get Together (Chet Powers song)

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"Get Together," also known as "Let's Get Together," is the name of a song written by Chet Powers (Dino Valente) in the early 1960s. The song is a plea for peace, presenting the duality of love (compassion) versus fear (hatred), and the choice we have between them.

The song was originally recorded as "Let's Get Together" by the The Kingston Trio and released on June 1, 1964 on their album Back in Town. While it wasn't released as a single, this version was the first to bring the song to the attention of the general public. The Kingston Trio often performed it live.

A version of the song first broke into the top forty in 1965, when We Five, produced by Kingston Trio manager Fran Werber, released "Let's Get Together" as the follow-up to their top ten hit "You Were on My Mind." While it did not achieve the same level of success as the other, "Let's Get Together" provided the group with a second top forty hit on the Billboard Hot 100 when it peaked at number thirty-one. It would be their last.

Jefferson Airplane recorded a version which was released on August 15, 1966 on their debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off. In 1966 Chet Powers, in an effort to raise money for his legal defense on drug charges, sold the rights to the song to Frank Werber.

In 1967, The Youngbloods released their version of the song under the title "Get Together." It became a minor Hot 100 hit for them, peaking at number sixty-two. However, renewed interest in the Youngbloods version came when it was used in a television public service announcement as a call for brotherhood by the National Conference of Christians and Jews. Re-released as a single in 1969, it became a top ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100. This version remains the most-remembered today. The Youngbloods' version of the song has been featured in several films, including Forrest Gump and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Oddly, the version by the Youngbloods was included in a list of songs deemed inappropriate by Clear Channel following the September 11, 2001 attacks.

[edit] Selective list of recorded versions

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