PEOPLE GET READY by Esther Nelson

I recently attended an event in Salem, Virginia, put on by The Salem Choral Society titled “People Get Ready,” directed by S. Reed Carter IV.   This popular group has sung on numerous occasions locally as well as performing at Carnegie Hall in New York City and the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.  The choir (11 men and ~45 women) sang fourteen selections.  The song arresting my attention was “People Get Ready.” 

From Wikipedia:  “‘People Get Ready’ is a 1965 single by the Impressions, the group’s best-known hit, reaching number three on the Billboard R&B chart.  The gospel-influenced track was a Curtis Mayfield (1942–1999), American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer.  This particular composition displayed [his] growing sense of social and political awareness…. In 2021, Rolling Stone named this song the 122nd greatest song of all time.  Martin Luther King Jr. named the song the unofficial anthem of the Civil Rights Movement and often used the song to get people marching or to calm and comfort them.”

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