"People Get Ready" is a train that has been running longer than the tracks have existed. Curtis Mayfield wrote it for the Impressions in 1965 as a civil rights anthem disguised as gospel. The train is not a vehicle. It is the movement. The song tells the listener to board because there is room for everyone. Mayfield understood that the most powerful political statements are often the ones that sound most like hymns. The faith he is asking for is not religious. It is faith that justice will arrive, that the train is real and it will not leave anyone behind who is willing to ride.

Aretha Franklin covered it and became the conductor. The Impressions sang it as passengers waiting on the platform. Aretha sang it as someone who has already boarded and is calling out to the stragglers. Her version slows down, adds gospel piano, and turns the invitation into a confirmation. The train is real. She is on it. She has seen where it is going.