Felix Cavaliere is spending the summer with a Hippiefest, but the singer for the Rascals will be the first to tell you that he never felt like much of a hippie.

Cavaliere was a Jersey guy who was more immersed in soul music, and what came out of the Rascals was a joyous brand of garage-pop that countered the darker, psychedelic trend of the late '60s.

The Rascals had a four-year run on the charts, from 1966-69, with summertime hits like "Good Lovin'," "Groovin'," "A Beautiful Morning" and "People Got to Be Free." Then, it ended abruptly, with the members all going their separate ways and battling over the name in court.

Cavaliere, 62, has maintained a life as a Rascal -- specifically as "Felix Cavaliere's Rascals," in which he is the only member. The band's last full reunion was at its induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.

Back in 1968, Felix Cavaliere, left, and the rest of the Rascals were getting airplay with songs such as "Good Lovin'" and "Groovin'." Click photo for larger image. Hippiefest With: The Turtles, Felix Cavaliere's Rascals, Mountain, Mitch Ryder, Badfinger, Country Joe McDonald, Iron Butterfly, Denny Laine and Melanie. Where: Seven Springs Mountain Resort, Champion. When: 7 p.m. Friday. Tickets: $25 and $45; 1-866-703-7625.

Along with touring that classic music, Cavaliere managed one hit more in 1980 with "Only a Lonely Heart," and also joined the bands of Little Steven and Ringo Starr's All-Stars.

Last week, he talked to us from his home in steamy Nashville -- no, he's not a country fan -- about Hippiefest, which hits Seven Springs Friday with the Turtles, the Zombies, Iron Butterfly, Mountain, Country Joe McDonald and more.

Q. So, how is this tour?

A. It's pretty interesting. Quite a diverse group of people. It's just really fun working with these guys. For example, I never worked with the Zombies before. I found out they didn't do a lot of touring to begin with. Very charming people and they're very good -- guys that can still do it. Of course, just two of them are the original members.

Q. Is it weird to play something called Hippiefest?

A. Yeah, it's a little weird. Whoever came up with the name, let him live with it. It's a strange name. I understand what they're trying to do, and to a degree, the audience responds to that by kind of dressing in the subculture, kind of reliving those memories. If you see it, some of these people should take a look in the mirror [laughing]. It's really kind of tacky, man, but that's what they want to do and I understand the emotion behind it, reliving your youth, but some it doesn't fit, ya know? The name never really appealed to me, but it works. This year's show is strong, and the music is diverse.

Q. The Rascals seemed kind of outside of the hippie culture.

A. I never really felt like I was part of the hippie thing, because they had a certain connotation of drugs and loss of control. But then what the heck is a hippie? The generation kind of stands for that, but it wasn't really true. There was a lot more intelligence than people give us credit for. Certainly the music speaks for itself. There hasn't been a renaissance like that and won't be perhaps in our lifetime. That music lives and will live forever. Are they hippies? No. I look at that word the way the media has painted it -- dropout generation, drugs, lazy, kind of free-loving -- I look at that with humor. I wasn't like that, and I know a lot of artists who weren't. Were the Rolling Stones hippies? They're a Fortune 500 company! I think the attempt by the media over the years to give us a title -- they try to do that with all the generations -- is misguided, because I think a lot of people then were trying to make contributions to world peace, civil rights, creations, inventions, art, poetry, that's all part of that generation that this show celebrates.

Felix Cavaliere now tours using the name Felix Cavaliere's Rascals. He is taking part in this weekend's Hippiefest. Click photo for larger image.

Q. I think the media romanticizes it as well, not to mention young people.

A. Well, the young people would have a hell of a lot of fun if they could turn that clock back. We had a ball. Inside the industry, it was a lot more fun. There was a lot lighter weight on you -- with the exception of when we approached 1968 with all the tragedies and the assassinations and the war going on. There was a genuine love around, man. People really embraced one other. I miss that. There were some beautiful people around in those days.

Q. The Rascals music seemed like an oasis in the '60s from the turmoil.

A. I just think it has to reflect your personality. It's the personality that I had and we had. The darkness did not take part in it. You're a happy dude, you make happy music. I don't know that I really take a liking to listening to darker-type music, unless it's in a classical vein and people are trying to paint a picture of night or tragedy. When it starts to verbalize and lyricize, eh, I don't know. I don't need any help with tragic situations in our lives. We all have those.

Q. There was a lot of heavy music around in your day, if you look at bands like the Doors, Jimi Hendrix. You guys were more of a pop-soul band.

A. We went through the soul end of things. If you go to the black part of town and listen to their music -- past tense -- it's all about joyous things and sexy things. They left that other kind of stuff to the beatnik poets, which is cool, which is fine. It's not what we did. I admired that for what it was. Our music is more about dancing and loving and sweetness and gentleness, that's where we're coming from. It got a little heavy at times but that was more like a diversion than a place where we stayed.

Q. What did you think of the term blue-eyed soul and when did you first hear it?

A. I really first heard it with the Righteous Brothers. They were the first ones they gave that title to. I look at it with humor. When you study classical music, the only beat they dance to is the war drum, the snare drum. Then all of a sudden the African people come along and show them what the lower chakras are about. So when you take those drums out of rock 'n' roll, what have you got? You've got a gavotte.

There's always rhythm 'n' blues and soul in music. They just don't understand that. There were no drums with a rhythm in European music. When they put that connotation of blue-eyed soul, it's kind of silly. We were three Italians; no one had blue eyes in our band. But I understand what they're saying. The bottom line is that, we got played on the black stations and we had hits in the black neighborhoods, and we still have a tremendous rapport with that segment of society and I'm proud of that.

Q. Was it Otis Redding or Marvin Gaye who didn't believe you were white?

A. Otis came into Atlantic studio. He was a funny dude. He stuck his head into the studio unannounced and said, 'My God, they are white!' You see, Atlantic was like a big family, which was really cool. Everyone really respected each other's music. It never was like that again. The other labels I went to, the Columbias and Epics, they never had that family atmosphere and I attribute it to the fact that Atlantic was an all soul and jazz label.

Q. Tell me about writing "A Beautiful Morning." What were the circumstances?

A. At that particular time, things were so perfect, man. I had met this wonderful women and had written all those songs. I was in love up to my ears. I had just purchased a new house. Man, joy-joy-joy, that was the only thing coming out of my body. I was so happy. I think people get that from that song. I've had people call me up from hospital sicknesses saying they put that on in their lowest moments and it brought them up.

Q. So you didn't play Woodstock. What were you doing?

A. I really don't know. Our manager made some serious blunders. I really think that was a bad decision. I don't know what the history was on it. I know he made a bad choice there, and he made a bad choice at the Monterey Pop Festival. When you're young like that you may not pay a lot of attention to the business aspects, and in retrospect, I regret that.

Q. Why was the Rascals' heyday so short? Was it because of those legal issues?

A. No, no. The only answer I can give is that one of us, the co-writer and co-lead singer, Eddie Brigate, decided to resign. Although I tried for years to figure out what it was, I finally figured it out and it was he didn't like being in that business, because he has not been in that business since. And he still lives at home. I mean, we have a difficult life. We travel all the time, we're away from our families. You have to give up a lot. He wasn't prepared to give that up. It got a little too much for him. He still lives with his mother, who is in her late 90s, God bless her. To do what we do, you have to have a little bit of gypsy blood in you. If you don't, you'd better stay home, because you're going to be miserable out here.

Q. Do you think there was a lot more music there to be made?

A. Not from us as a group. Everything has a purpose, I think. Even though we didn't realize it, that was it to come out of that particular group of individuals. I'm giving you an opinion based on 30, 40 years of scratching my head and saying, 'Why did that happen? We had it made.' I really think you did what you could do, and then that was it as a group. One of the things I have to say about this Hippiefest, the people who are all backstage, they all love being out on that stage. They all love going out on the road and doing this. They're so appreciative of being able to go out on that stage. That's something that never dies.

Q. Did you ever have a day job?

A. I've been very happy to say I've done this all my life. Thank God I made a few investments that are helping out a little bit. Because it's always an up-and-down situation in his darn business. Right now we're experiencing a real turnaround from the old to the new. A lot of the older companies are trying to fight it, fight a losing battle, of course, as usual. But the Internet and MP3s and iPods -- it's a whole new world. It's pretty exciting. Then again, if I owned a record company, I wouldn't be so happy.

Q. Sounds like you keep track of younger artists and what's going on.

A. I try to keep track of everything. It's part of staying young.