THE YOUNG RASCALS

The Rascals

The Rascals Picture Page

GOOD LOVIN'

The Rascals started with the hit,"Good Lovin'", which even in the ninety's is still popular.  From here they moved on to hit after hit such as "I've Been Lonely Too Long" and "How Can I Be Sure". They reached the top of their popularity with the song "People Got to be Free",however they had many great songs after this point. Also at this point I feel the group made better albums than singles. My favorite albums are "Once Upon A Dream","See" and "Freedom Suite". The group consisted of Felix, Eddie, Dave and Gene however Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati did most of the writing. In 1997, the Rascals were inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame.

Tom Brady

GROVIN ' On A SUNDAY AFTERNOON!!

INFORMATION

The Young Rascals started in a nightclub in South Hampton Long Island   NY called The Barge  when they were descovered by Sid Bernstein who had just finished with the promotion of The Beatles Concert in Shea Stadium in August 1965. At this time he saw the group profrom their R& B stlye rock music  dressed in their knickers , eton collars , and short ties . He became the group's manger and got them a record deal with Atlantic Records.  The group consisted of Felix Cavaliere , Dino Danelli , Eddie Bragati , and Gene Cornish .  The Young Rasclas first single was a song called " I Ain't Gonna Eat Out of My Heart Anymore"  and then they followed the single with the song called "Good Lovin'  "  In the spring of 1967 the group officaal changed their name to the Rascals . Their largest single was in 1968 and was called "People Got To Be Free"  IN 1970 Eddie left the group and the group left Atlantic Records in 1971 and went to Columbia records where they changed their style even more to the jazz side of their music. The group  only made two albums for Columbia and hey dismantled in 1972 .   Currently there are two groups touring as the Rascals and both are worth seeing . Felix's Rascals and The New Rascals with Gene and Dino both in this group.

 

Once Upon A Dream

This album contains many great songs such as: Easy Rollin', Rainy Day, My Hawaii, My World, Silly Girl, Sattva, plus many other great songs!!!!!

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Rascals Album - Island Of Real

Both Columbia Albums ,"Peaceful World " And "Island Of Real " just released on CD from Sundazed records. Check imports for other Rascals Albums. Rhino has released some of the albums on CD and we are hoping for the rest to be released in the USA soon. Please e-mail Rhino and express your wishes to have all the albums released on CD.

FOR THE COLUMBIA RELEASES BY THE GROUP GO TO THE SUNDAZED RECORDS WEBSITE TO PURCHASE THE CD's

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Some Rascals Songs

Good Lovin'

Mustang Sally

Lonely Too Long

Grovin'

A Girl Like You

How Can I Be Sure

It's Wonderful

A Beautiful Morning

People Got To Be Free

Heaven

See

Easy Rollin'

A Ray Of Hope

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STORY OF THE GROUP
AS TOLD BY RHINO

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.
                                         

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.
                           

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

In 1964, keyboardist/singer Felix Cavaliere was playing organ with JOEY DEE AND THE STARLITERS, who were drawing huge crowds as the house band at The Peppermint Lounge, due to the success of their hit single "The Peppermint Twist".
After Mr Dee and his group returned from a tour of Europe, where they had, in fact, opened for THE BEATLES, a new lead singer and tambourine shaker by the name of Eddie Brigati joined the group. Mr Brigati was actually replacing his older brother, David Brigati, in THE STARLITERS' lineup. Another addition to THE STARLITERS around this time was the Ottawa-born guitarist Gene Cornish, who been stranded in New York after his Canadian group, THE UNBEATABLES, known for their novelty single "I Wanna Be A Beatle", had left him behind to return to their Great Northern homeland.

Tired of backing Mr Dee, these three decided to band together and form their own group in January 1965. They recruited a New Jersey-based jazz drummer, Dino Danelli, who had come up to New York from New Orleans, where he had been a member of RONNIE SPEAKES AND THE ELRODS. He had also toured with jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and was a veteran of many R&B road shows.

Mr Cavaliere once stated that, early on, that he felt this new group's sound was based around a concept that combined "Marvin Gaye's voice, Ray Charles' piano, Jimmy Smith's organ, Phil Spector's production and THE BEATLES' [song]writing". "Put them all together" Mr Cavaliere said, "and you've got what I wanted to do". And that, Dear Netizens, is precisely what he did.

In February 1965, this As-Yet-Unnamed group locked themselves up in Mr Cavaliere's basement and "25 hours and 25 songs later" debuted at a local nightclub, The Choo-Choo Club, in nearby Garfield, New Jersey. After word got around about the band, they began to develop an enthusiastic following. Walter Hyman, a Broadway producer, persuaded his friend, Sid Bernstein, the promoter who brought THE BEATLES to America in 1964 for their shows at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium, to come out and see them perform at a club called The Barge, in Westhampton, Long Island. The Barge was a floating club that had also been the launching pad for bands like THE VANILLA FUDGE, THE HASSLES (featuring Mr Billy Joel), and THE VAGRANTS (featuring Leslie West of MOUNTAIN).

Liking what he heard, Mr Bernstein wasted no time in signing them to a management deal and began scouting to land them a recording contract. As a novelty, he had them dress up in knickerbockers, or "knickers", if you prefer, Jackie Cooper-style caps and choirboy shirts with Eton collars. They looked a bit like characters from "The Little Rascals"/ "Our Gang" TV series, and so Mr Bernstein officially began hawking his new charges as THE YOUNG RASCALS.

Mr Bernstein soon had them booked, for a four-week engagement, at Harlow's Discotheque in Manhattan. Then, in August 1965, at THE BEATLES' concert at Shea Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York, over fifty-six thousand screaming fans were surprised to see a cryptic message appear on the giant electric scoreboard in centerfield. It read "The Rascals Are Here". Bernstein, you see, was the promoter of the Shea Stadium concert, and it was his idea to put THE RASCALS' name out before their potential fans to stir up early interest in the group. It worked. Delightfully.

Within a month, Mr Bernstein had set off a bidding war among the major record labels, and on 28 October 1965 ‚ reportedly at THE YOUNG RASCALS' appearance at The Phone Booth, a club in the "discotheque district" of Manhattan's East Side ‚ Atlantic Records' label founder Ahmet Ertegun signed the group to a recording contract, offering them a $10,000 advance.

THE YOUNG RASCALS became the first Rock act on a label that had, up to that point, primarily focused on Jazz or Rhythm And Blues artists. Their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" launched the group into the Top 100. THE RASCALS' next release was a remake of THE OLYMPICS' hit "Good Lovin'", and became the group's first million seller.
The group's first album, 'The Young Rascals', released in March 1966, featured lead vocals by all three of the group's vocalists, Mr Cavaliere, Mr Brigati, and Mr Cornish, and contained many excellent covers of songs that were originally hits for SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES, BOB DYLAN, THE BEATLES, WILSON PICKETT, to mention just a few.
THE YOUNG RASCALS were soon back in the recording studio, laying down new tracks for their next album, 'Collections', which released in January 1967. This time around, they had written six original songs, including the classic hit "I've Been Lonely Too Long", the powerful rocker "Come On Up", and "Love Is A Beautiful Thing". The group's popularity soared, and soon they hit the concert trail with extended tours of the United States, Canada, and Europe.

In July 1967, THE RASCALS, their name now shortened, (they also stopped wearing their knickers, too, trading them in for full-length trousers) teamed up with producers Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd and recorded the tracks for their next album, 'Groovin', the title song of which was the first single produced by the group, along with Arif Mardin. It topped the U.S. singles charts for four weeks while selling two million copies.
Another colossal hit, "You Better Run", which would become their first hit written by Mr Cavaliere and Mr Brigati, was actually more than a year old when it turned up on this album. Some of Our Fellow Netizens may remember that it was later a big hit in the early eighties for PAT BENATAR. Jazz flute player Hubert Laws joined the group on this album as well.

THE RASCALS were by now writing all of their own material and soon were making numerous appearances on television, including the ever-popular "Ed Sullivan Show". For their next album, 'Once Upon A Dream', released in February 1968, they became the first American rock act to perform with an orchestra, and also added chimes, tablas, sitars, tambouras, and some very impressive brass and string arrangements to their repertoire. They reached the Top Ten once again with "A Beautiful Morning", their third million-selling single.
The group were in the midst of a transition, however, changing from a "Blue Eyed Soul" group to a Progressive Jazz-Blues-Rock Fusion outfit. Once again, they were accompanied by Mr Laws on flute, and were also joined by saxophone legend King Curtis, bassist Ron Carter, trumpet player Mel Lastie and a string orchestra.
The next album release, 'Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits', a collection of their biggest hits up to that point, remained on the LP charts for 58 weeks. THE RASCALS were, in fact, at the peak of their popularity and the band would use the next group of releases to reflect their beliefs and opinions about political and social issues.

In March 1969, THE RASCALS released 'Freedom Suite', which showcased a more experimental, elongated approach to their material. By now, the group had begun focusing on becoming an Impressionistic Jazz-Rock band. This ambitious two-record set with one disk containing their usual brand of pop and R&B and the other containing three lengthy instrumental cuts, also included their previously released single "People Got To Be Free", which contained a very strong statement about freedom and equality. It was reportedly an impassioned response and reaction to the then-recent assassinations of Senator and Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and Reverend Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., but Mr Cavaliere had actually written the song after the group were run out of Fort Pierce, Florida by "a bunch of rednecks" because of the group's long hair. A follow-up single, "A Ray of Hope", was reportedly written for and about Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.

In December 1969, THE RASCALS' 'See' album was released. It contained a Top 40 gospel-inflected hit "Carry Me Back". Midway through the recording of their next album, 'Search And Nearness', which was ultimately released in March 1971, Mr Eddie Brigati decided to leave the group. Mr Brigati had co-written many of the band's hits with Mr Cavaliere, and so the remaining work to be done on the album was mainly instrumental in nature. This also marked the beginning of the group's departure from their successful formula for Top Forty hits, and soon, the end of the classic Atlantic period for the band.

By early 1971, THE RASCALS' contract with Atlantic Records had expired and they chose to sign over to instead with Columbia Records. THE RASCALS officially decided to call it a day in 1972

IN OCTOBER OF 2001 -- RHINO IS RELEASING A SPECIAL BOX SET OF THE GROUPS ENTIRE COLLECTION OF MUSIC RECORDED ON ATLANTIC RECORDS!!! CHECK THE RHINO WEBSITE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION!!
http://www.rhino.com

VISIT OUR RASCALS PICTURE PAGE

http://www.bradcoweb.com/rockgroups/rascalspic.shtml

The Rascals currently have two touring groups.  Felix's Rascals which features Felix on his hamond organ giving you sounds which you have never heard and fastic versions of their orginally songs and THE NEW RASCALS  which features Gene and Dino doing great versions of some of their orginal songs with a new lead singer which will remind you of Eddie . Eddie is not touring at this time. 

PEOPLE GOT TO BE FREE!!

THIS IS THE HOMEPAGE FOR THE RASCALS WEBRING!!!

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