Let's Go Get Stoned
{{for|the Sublime song|40oz. to Freedom}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Let's Go Get Stoned
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Ray Charles
| album = Crying Time
| B-side = The Train
| released = 1966
| format =
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = R&B{{cite book|first=Dave|last=Marsh|title=The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5t5DYDniSHEC|date=1989|publisher=Plume|isbn=0-452-26305-0|page=167}}
| length = {{Duration|m=2|s=57}}
| label = ABC
| writer = Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson, Josephine Armstead
| producer = Joe Adams
| prev_title = Together Again
| prev_year = 1966
| next_title = I Don't Need No Doctor
| next_year = 1966
}}
"Let's Go Get Stoned" is a song originally recorded by The Coasters in May 1965.{{cite web|url=http://www.secondhandsongs.com/performance/149007 |publisher=Second Hand Songs |title=Recording: Let's Go Get Stoned |date=18 February 2011 |access-date=14 June 2011}} It was written by Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson, and Josephine Armstead. Ronnie Milsap recorded it in October 1965 as a B-side to the single, "Never Had It So Good.{{Cite web|url=http://www.45cat.com/record/sce12109|title=Ronnie Milsap - Never Had It So Good|access-date=30 May 2021|website=45cat.com}}
Ray Charles recording
It was a 1966 number one R&B hit for American recording artist Ray Charles.{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=113}} The single was released shortly after Charles was released from rehab after a 16-year heroin addiction. Charles heard a 1965 recording of the song by Ronnie Milsap. According to Milsap, Charles liked his version of the song so much that he decided to record it himself. It is notable for being one of Ashford & Simpson's first successful compositions together; the duo also penned Charles' "I Don't Need No Doctor".{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/i-dont-need-no-doctor-mt0014855776|title=I Don't Need No Doctor - Ray Charles | Song Info |access-date=30 May 2021|website=AllMusic}}
Chart positions
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Chart (1966)
!Peak |
|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100
| style="text-align:center;"|31 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Singles
| style="text-align:center;"|1 |
Other notable covers
- Manfred Mann recorded the song on their number one British EP, No Living Without Loving, which topped the UK EP chart in December 1965.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}}
- The Amboy Dukes recorded a cover for their 1967 eponymous album.{{cite web|author=Joe Viglione |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/r75252 |title=The Amboy Dukes - The Amboy Dukes | Songs, Reviews, Credits |website=AllMusic |access-date=2016-07-26}}
- James Brown released a recording of the song as a single.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/fine-old-foxy-self-mw0000450982|title=Fine Old Foxy Self - James Brown | Songs, Reviews, Credits|access-date=30 May 2021|website=AllMusic}}
- Big Mama Thornton recorded the song for her 1969 album Stronger Than Dirt.{{cite web|url=http://www.mcfarlandbooks.com/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-7759-3 |title=Big Mama Thornton: The Life and Music|author=Michael Spörke|publisher=Mcfarlandbooks.com |access-date=2015-10-07}}
- Joe Cocker performed the song at Woodstock in August 1969,{{Cite web|url=https://www.bethelwoodscenter.org/blog/joe-cocker|title=Joe Cocker: 50 Years of Peace & Music|website=Bethel Woods Center for the Arts|access-date=30 May 2021}} and it was one of the tracks on his 1970 live double album, Mad Dogs & Englishmen.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/mad-dogs-englishmen-mw0000679117|title=Mad Dogs & Englishmen - Joe Cocker | Album |website=AllMusic|access-date=May 27, 2025}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Ray Charles}}
{{The Coasters}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Let's Go Get Stoned (RandB song)}}
Category:Songs written by Valerie Simpson
Category:Songs written by Nickolas Ashford
Category:Big Mama Thornton songs