"Chicano Power" by Thee Midniters

Thee Midniters were a rock band who were notable as one of the earliest Chicano rock bands.  Thee Midniters formed in East Los Angeles in the mid-Sixties. Their members were from the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles and the City of Montebello in Los Angeles County. They were influenced by  British Invasion bands, surf music, and the rhythm and blues artists of the era, as well as traditional Mexican music. As to the unusual spelling of their name, they adopted the spelling "Thee Midniters" to avoid being sued by an earlier R&B group, The Midnighters from the 1950s and early 1960s, now best known for launching the career of Hank Ballard.

Thee Midniters recorded several singles from 1965 to 1967. Their cover of "Land of a Thousand Dances"peaked at no. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100 and no 27 on the Canadian singles chart. They were particularly notable for recording songs with Chicano themes. Their fourth single was the instrumental "Whittier Blvd.," named for one of the main thoroughfares in East Los Angeles. Their penultimate single was "The Ballad of Cesar Chavez," dedicated to the Mexican American labour leader. Their final single was "Chicano Power." If it was not the first rock song in which the word "Chicano" appeared in the title, it was definitely among the first.