Sam Cooke

    The legendary Sam Cooke goes beyond being a music pioneer, maybe it's the mystique of his death, shot in a motel office in only his sports jacket and shoes, not really the end you'd think of when you hear the sound of his music and voice.  Furthermore was it murder, was it self-defense, who was the woman who left Cooke's room, did he rape her, was she a prostitute, the list goes on and on, we'll never know the real story.  I think the point is that an artist with his caliber of brilliance and talent never last too long, it's like they are so damn good that the stress of being  charismatic and loved just sends them into spiral of self-destruction, but who could really handle that?  It'd be great, I'm sure, as time goes on, a little too great, and then what??  Can you really keep up with yourself and be as wonderful as you were, in most cases it's bad ending to a good life, but Cooke was hardly a angel, he might have sounded like one, but sure as sh*t didn't act like one!

  As far as fully exploring this record, I'd would have had to listen to this album at least 10 times to ingrain it into my brain.  As soon as the needle hits you totally get sucked in, Cooke's cool smooth sultry voice is unlike anything else, with the beautifully arranged backups by Bumps Blackwell, takes you away into their world, nothing else really matters, except to keep listening.  Sam Cooke is an essential music legend, up there with Robert Johnson (also shot), putting the world on track and setting the course for the future.