The Rascals

The Rascals (also The Young Rascals) were an American blue-eyed soul group of the 1960s. Felix Cavaliere (keyboard, vocals), Gene Cornish (guitar), Dino Danelli (drums) and Eddie Brigati (vocals) formed the band in New York City.

Their first minor hit was "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" (1965), followed by the #1 single "Good Lovin'" (1966, originally by the Olympics). Soon, the band began to mature as songwriters and released other hit songs written themselves, including "Groovin'", "It's Wonderful", "How Can I Be Sure?" and "Beautiful Morning". Their best-remembered song was "People Got to Be Free" (1968), a passionate plea for racial tolerance; unusually for their time, the Rascals refused to tour on unintegrated bills. After "People Got to Be Free", the Rascals never regained their former fame or had as large a hit, partially because of the loss of Brigati in 1970, followed by Cornish in 1971.