Remembering singer/songwriter and record label founder Sam Cooke born on this day in Clarksdale, MS in 1931. Immersed in the Gospel tradition from birth, Cooke (né Cook) is widely regarded as one of Soul musics greatest exponents. Hugely influential as both a performer and composer, his sublime vocals and eloquent writing did much to ensure R&B music reached a wider - and whiter - audience as the 1950s gave way to the 60s. As such, his contribution to Pop musics evolution cannot be underestimated. Dubbed The King of Soul he paved the way for artists such as Aretha Franklin and Bobby Womack, and helped to popularise the music of James Brown and Otis Redding. Having enjoyed some thirty US Top 40 singles between 1957 and 1964 and built up his own successful music publishing company, Cooke, an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement, died as the result of gun shot wounds in December 1964, in suspicious circumstances which continue to arouse speculation more than fifty years on.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 23:29:02 +0000
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