Portrait of legend

Description

An essential compilation tracing the fleeting journey of this soul music star. In 1933, the COOKE family settled in Chicago, where Sam’s father became pastor of the Church of Christ Holiness on the South Side. As early as 1940, with his brother and sisters, he sang in the choir the Singing Children. It was in 1946 that he was noticed by R.B. Robinson, and then joined the Highway QC's. In January 1951, at the age of 20, he took Rebert Harris’s place in the Soul Stirrers. From 1953 on, Sam, the young soloist of the Soul Stirrers, became the darling of the gospel world. He then recorded a series of superb tracks on Specialty. He then tried his hand at rhythm'n blues under the pseudonym Dale Cook, with the song "Loveable". In 1957, released on the Keen label, "You send Me" sold 1,700,000 copies. Thanks to this song written by his brother, Sam COOKE became the first Black artist to reach No. 1 simultaneously on Billboard’s Pop and Rhythm'n Blues charts. He then recorded nine more hits in 1959, still on the Keen label, following in the wake of "You Send Me". The following year, on the advice of his friend J.W. Alexender, Sam COOKE signed a contract with RCA. He then became a star of American pop music under the direction of the duo Hugo & Luigi. He recorded "Bring It On Home To Me" with Lou RAWLS. In July 1964, he recorded the album "Live At the Copa", before disappearing the same year under dramatic circumstances. Recorded shortly before his death, "A Change Is Gonna Come" became Sam COOKE’s musical testament.