Of the many functions that music serves in our daily lives, perhaps one of the best is its ability to make us feel good, to lift us up out of bad moods, to energize us, and make us feel like we can accomplish our goals with ease. These kinds of songs stick with us because, frankly, sometimes listening to them is a need more than a want. That’s certainly true of these four feel-good songs from 1968 that every baby boomer can still sing by heart.
“People Got To Be Free” by The Rascals
People have been singing about the importance of freedom—of self, religion, love, or otherwise—since time immemorial. The Rascals contributed their own song to this age-old canon with the 1968 release of “People Got To Be Free”, which appeared on Freedom Suite. The single topped the charts for over a month straight in the summer of 1968, becoming the group’s greatest commercial success.
“All the world over, so easy to see / People everywhere just wanna be free / Listen, please listen, that’s the way it should be / There’s peace in the valley, people got to be free.”
“Stoned Soul Picnic” by The 5th Dimension
The 5th Dimension released “Stoned Soul Picnic”, originally by Laura Nyro, in May 1968, giving it ample time to become an official song of the summer. Even if we weren’t really sure of what, exactly, a stoned soul picnic was supposed to be, the song’s indelible groove makes you want to go anyway. The song peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains an infectious earworm to this day.
“Can you surry, can you picnic? Woah / Can you surry, can you picnic? / Come on, come on and surry down to a stoned soul picnic.”
“Hello, I Love You” by The Doors
The Doors were undoubtedly one of the more hedonistic musical offerings of the late 1960s, and songs like “Hello, I Love You” emphasized this free love, devil-may-care attitude. Most baby boomers these days probably wouldn’t go up to someone, tell them they love them, and then ask for their name. But back in 1968, songs like “Hello, I Love You” made it seem like it was a viable possibility.
“Hello, I love you, won’t you tell me your name? / Hello, I love you, let me jump in your game.”
“Dance To The Music” by Sly And The Family Stone
Sly And The Family Stone gave the world some of the best feel-good songs of the late 1960s, and their 1968 hit “Dance To The Music” is no exception. The song first appeared as a single in the fall of 1967, eventually peaking at No. 8 on the Billboard pop chart. By 1968, it became one of the leading songs in the psychedelic soul movement that would continue to evolve into the following decade.
“Dance to the music, dance to the music, dance to the music, dance to the music!” Pretty easy lyrics for every baby boomer to still sing by heart.
Photo by Edmund Teske/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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