"Free Ride" is a song written by Dan Hartman and performed by the Edgar Winter Group from their 1972 album They Only Come Out at Night, produced by Rick Derringer. The single was a top 15 U.S. hit in 1973, reaching number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100[2] and number 10 on Cash Box. In Canada, it peaked at number 8.[3]

"Free Ride"
Single by Edgar Winter Group
from the album They Only Come Out at Night
B-side"When It Comes"
ReleasedAugust 1973
Recorded1972
GenreRock[1]
Length3:05 (single version)
3:20 (full version)
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)Dan Hartman
Producer(s)Rick Derringer
Edgar Winter Group singles chronology
"Frankenstein"
(1973)
"Free Ride"
(1973)
"Hangin' Around"
(1973)
Audio
"Free Ride" on YouTube

Personnel

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Other versions

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Tavares recorded a version of the song for their 1975 album, In the City. Their version peaked at number 52 on the Billboard Hot 100[2] and number 8 on the Hot Soul Singles chart. Hartman himself re-recorded the song and released it on his 1979 album Relight My Fire.

Charts

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The song was featured in Air America and in The Drew Carey Show episode "The Dog and Pony Show".[11] The song is featured in the 1993 film, Dazed and Confused while Hartman's recording appeared in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie and on its soundtrack album.[12] It was also featured as a song in the video game tie-in for the film, Cars,[13] and is also used in the Disney California Adventure ride, Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: Breakout![14] It was sampled on the Girl Talk mash-up album Feed the Animals.

References

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  1. ^ Greenwald, Matthew. "Free Ride by The Edgar Winter Group - Track Info | AllMusic". allmusic. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  3. ^ a b "RPM100 Singles". RPM. 34 (2). Ottawa: Library and Archives Canada. October 20, 1973. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  4. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 341. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  5. ^ "The Edgar Winter Group Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  6. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 10/20/73". Archived from the original on 2015-06-09. Retrieved 2016-12-29.
  7. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, January 10, 1976". Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  8. ^ Canada, Library and Archives (17 July 2013). "Item". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  9. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
  10. ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1973". Archived from the original on 2014-07-15. Retrieved 2016-12-29.
  11. ^ Archerd, Army (October 16, 1997). "Hello, 'Monty': Drew drops drawers". Variety. Retrieved January 19, 2014.
  12. ^ "Dazed and Confused (1993)". IMDb.com.
  13. ^ Cars (Video Game 2006) - Soundtracks - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-17
  14. ^ Tuttle, Brittani (2017-04-26). "Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT! to have its own Awesome Mix". Attractions Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-17.
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