Jesse Colin Young, vocalist for the Youngbloods who sang ’60s hit ‘Get Together,’ dies at 83
Jesse Colin Young, whose vocals as frontman of folk rock band the Youngbloods gave voice to the 1960s’ counterculture, died on Sunday at his home in Aiken, S.C.
Young’s publicist, Michael Jensen, confirmed to The Times on Monday that the 83-year-old musician died of a heart attack.
Young had just penned his autobiography, was in the process of writing a children’s book and had finished working on a song for Future Youth Records, Jensen said.
Jensen remarked, “He was exceptionally energetic, always busy.” Over the course of numerous years, he was one of our clients, but what truly mattered is that he was among the kindest individuals on Earth. He was an outstanding person, and it pains me deeply to say this, but I am devastated.
Young got his start in the New England music scene in the ’60s, putting out his first solo record, “The Soul of a City Boy.” He started playing gigs at Club 47, which at the time was known as the center of the folk music revival, a career breakthrough he attributed to a DJ playing his song “Four in the Morning” and getting him some attention.
While playing the Boston club scene, he met guitarist Jerry Corbitt and the two decided to start a band, the Youngbloods.
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In 1967, The Youngbloods debuted their self-titled album that climbed to position 131 on the Billboard 200 chart. Then, in 1969, their song “Get Together” reached number 5 following its inclusion in a public announcement by the National Conference of Christians and Jews.
Young told the Arts Fuse in an interview in 2018 that he knew he had to record “Get Together” after he heard performer and songwriter Buzzy Linhart sing it during an open mic at Café Au Go Go in Greenwich Village.
“Get Together” called for peace and unity with the chorus, “Come on, people now / Smile on your brother / Everybody get together / Try to love one another right now,” which became a popular refrain during the turbulent era.
In a hurry, I dashed backstage and exclaimed, ‘Wow, I must have the lyrics! That tune is fantastic; I’d like to practice it with the Youngbloods.’ After that, events unfolded as they did.” (Young explained this to the outlet.)
The song’s hopeful message has endured through the decades. It was featured in the movie “Forrest Gump,” on the television show “The Simpsons” and even in a Walmart commercial.
Though Young didn’t compose “Get Together,” he contributed to writing numerous songs of the Youngbloods, including “Sugar Babe,” “Quicksand,” and “Darkness Darkness.” This last one was later covered by Robert Plant, the lead vocalist of Led Zeppelin.
The Youngbloods moved from New York to Northern California in 1967 and Young eventually settled in Marin County, where he lived until 1995, when his home in Point Reyes burned in a fire that tore through the region. Young penned the popular song “Ridgetop” about his beloved home.
In 2023, the film “High on a Ridgetop,” produced by Young in the 1970s in the San Francisco Bay Area, was exhibited at the Grammy Museum.
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The singer and songwriter who helped popularize folk music in the 1960s died of bladder cancer at his home in New York.
When the Youngbloods broke up in 1972, Young launched a solo career and went on to record more than 15 albums. He stopped performing in 2012 while battling Lyme disease but eventually returned to the stage. His last album, “Dreamers,” was released in 2019.
He told the Peninsula Daily News in an interview in 2018 that his desire to perform was reignited when he traveled to Boston to see his son Tristan’s senior recital at the Berklee College of Music.
“It just blew me away,” he told the newspaper. “Whatever light that went off in my heart came back on. I thought, ‘Before I leave the planet, I’ve got to play with some of these young people.’”
Connie Darden-Young, his spouse and manager, as well as their kids Tristan, Jazzie, Juli, and Cheyenne, are the ones who continue his life after him.
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2025-03-18 04:05