Sound Salvation Army

I’m primarily a new music guy, but I have a great affection for “classics” when its warranted.

I don’t listen to a lot of older music aside from the really genre-defining artists. There just isn’t enough time. But Springsteen, Ella, Cash, the Clash, Black Flag, the Misfits, Beatles…you make time for the ones that count.

At the top of my list is Sam Cooke, one of my all-time favourite songwriters. They call him the man that invented soul, but he’s just a damn good writer that managed to stay on top of his game for a lot longer than some others did. A big part of that effort was staying on top of musical and dance trends and playing to both the kids and the oldsters.

His most recognizable tracks (”You Send Me”, “A Change Is Gonna Come”, “Chain Gang”, “Wonderful World”, and “Bring It on Home to Me”) alternate between swooning, orchestral love songs destined to melt AM radio hearts and playful party tunes that celebrate clever wordplay and every dance craze that struck the U.S. between 1960 and 1975. Much of his songs followed the musical conventions of the time, and what really set him apart was his voice.

In time he would be named the fourth greatest singer of all time by Rolling Stone, but when he was just getting started he was known only in the gospel music community. He had a successful group before venturing into the scary secular world. He had dozens of Billboard hits, starting with his very first mainstream single. They just kept building and building. He exploited numerous dance crazes along the way, penning tunes about and for dancing the cha-cha-cha, the Twist, and the Shake (I think that’s a thing, right?). But it was his voice that carried each and every track to incredible heights, a full, forceful tenor that bursts forth with an innate ease that clearly demonstrates his gospel roots. Even when he’s singing about having “some chick” to talk to he fills the speakers with an unmistakably relaxed but prominent delivery.

While the man and his work never really went away, I’ve been noticing him popping up in the collective subconscious a bit more frequently in recent months. Two favourite groups of mine have recently paid tribute: Drag The River covered “Having A Party” for a recent 7″ single and the Gaslight Anthem crib his lyrics on occasion in some of their work. Everyone from Jimmy Buffett to Colin Meloy to John Lennon to Cat Stevens to Simon & Garfunkel have taken turns interpreting his catalogue. Hell, Otis Redding has covered Cooke multiple times and he’s a legend in his own right.

In the short seven years he was working he wrote songs that were loved the world over. Who knows how high he could’ve climbed if not for his unfortunate and sketchy death at the age of 33.

Anyway, I’ve been spinning some of his greatest hits daily for the last month or two and I thought it was time I shared some with you. While they aren’t all immediately recognizable they all sound familiar and welcoming enough. Let’s remember a legend.

 

 Sam Cooke - Rome Wasn't Build In A Day [2:29m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Sam Cooke - Touch The Hem Of His Garment [2:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Sam Cooke - Another Saturday Night [2:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Sam Cooke - Having A Party [2:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come [3:14m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Pat entries classics, early rock and roll, legends, Sam Cooke, soul