Jesse Colin Young was born Perry Miller in Queens, New York City on November 22 1941. His mother was a violinist, while his father was an accountant who loved music. He learned to play piano while still very young. He attended He attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where he studied classical guitar. He later attended Ohio State University and still later New York University.While attending college he performed as a musician and he eventually left school to perform professionally full-time.
It was in the early Sixties that Jesse Colin Young met pianist, vibraphonist, and music producer Bobby Scott. This lead to Jesse Colin Young's first solo album, The Soul of a City Boy in 1964. A second solo album Young Blood followed in 1965. Jesse Colin Young met folk singer Jerry Corbitt in the mid-Sixties. In January 1965 the two of them began touring Canada as a duo. Eventually they started billing themselves as "The Youngbloods," after Jesse Colin Young's second album. They eventually added Lowell "Banana" Levinger and drummer Joe Bauer.
The Youngbloods signed to RCA Victor and their self-titled, debut album was released in January 1967. Their future hit, "Get Together," was on that album and was released as a single, but it only peaked at no. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100. Their debut album was followed by the albums Earth Music in 1967 and Elephant Mountain in 1969. It was after"Get Together" was used in public service announcements for the National Council of Christians and Jews that the song was reissued and reached no. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969.
The Youngbloods would release two more albums, Good and Dusty in 1971 and High on a Ridge Top in 1972 before breaking up. Jesse Colin Young then returned to his solo career. His first solo album after The Youngbloods, Together, was released in 1972. He saw some success in the Seventies with the albums Song for Juli (1973), Light Shine (1974), Songbird (1975), and Love on the Wing (1977). From 1979 to 2019 Jesse Colin Young released ten more studio albums. Jesse Colin Young also released six live albums and several compilation albums.
While "Get Together (originally titled "Let's Get Together")" had been recorded a few times before The Youngbloods did so in late 1966, it was theirs that became the quintessential version. There was perhaps good reason for this, as the band and Jesse Colin Young suited the song perfectly. With his rich tenor vocals and his skill as a musician, as well as the skill of the other Youngbloods, it was a superior rendition of the song. And while Jesse Colin Young did not write "Get Together," The Youngbloods' version of the song was similar to songs he wrote himself. His songs were characterized by socially conscious lyrics, his warm vocals, and superior guitar work. If Jesse Colin Young continued to have success after The Youngbloods broke up, it was because he was very talented.
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