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Mayfield was also a descriptive social commentator.

As the influx of drugs ravaged through black America in the late 1960s and 1970s his bittersweet descriptions of the ghetto would serve as warnings to the impressionable.

Determined to warn all about the perils of drugs, " Freddie's Dead " is a graphic tale of street life.

In 1965, another gospel song emerged -- " People Get Ready " by Mayfield and the Impressions.

" Keep On Pushing " and " People Get Ready " were two songs that became embedded in the national movement for civil and social rights, heard at all the rallies and marches, songs-as-inspiration.

His song " People Get Ready " was written in the year after the march on Washington's.

For many, it captured the spirit of the march — the song reaches across racial and religious lines to offer a message of redemption and forgiveness.