Sam Cooke Compilation and information

Sam Cooke Compilation

Folks,

Any recommendations on a 1- or 2-disc Sam Cooke compilation that has decent sound AND includes "A Change Is Gonna Come"? Thanks.

Jim W.

 

If you've got to have "A Change Is Gonna Come" (which I can understand), you'd probably want the recent single disc, "Keep Movin' On," which has all the material licensed to ABKCO. Then you can supplement that with one of the single-disc RCA/BMG greatest hits discs. Legal issues prevent joint issuance of these titles nowadays.

The best single disc that would give you both the RCA hits and the ABKCO material (including "Change") is the old RCA collection, "A Man and His Music," which is long OOP, though it turns up on eBay. Unfortunately, the sound of a lot of these cuts has since been improved upon, as in the RCA box set. ("You Send Me" is so much better in the box, it's like night and day; the "Man and His Music" version sounds as if it was transferred from vinyl.)

If you really love Cooke, right now you need the following: the RCA box set ("The Man Who Invented Soul"), the "Movin' On" single disc, and--perhaps best of all--the recently-issued Specialty gospel box set, which is beautifully-transferred and has some of the most magnificent music Sam ever recorded.

MK

 

I second M.L. Kaufman's recommendations. Right now, there is no comprehensive single-disc Sam Cooke best-of that contains "A Change Is Gonna Come," unless you track down a copy of A MAN & HIS MUSIC. Otherwise, you'd have to buy KEEP MOVIN' ON and GREATEST HITS.

For those who want all the Sam Cooke they can get, don't forget the various artists compilation, THE S.A.R. RECORDS STORY, a terrific anthology of gospel artists Cooke attempted to cross over to the pop market, including some demos from Cooke himself, remastered to very fine sound.

 

What we really need is a 2-CD comp with all the mono mixes...speaking of night and day, when compared to the stereo....also, "A Change is Gonna Come" is always the Lp version/length on reissues; the 45 edit hasn't been reissued on CD, so far as I know...

ED

 

Does Sam's "Just For You" sound better on S.A.R. than it does on AM&HM?

 

Well, of course we do, Uncle Steve... RCA Gold Standard and Abkco, with a nod to ABC's old Goldies 45 series....if you want ass-kicking mixes, these are where to start for reissues....it's as if they just pulled the tapes and threw them out to us, smartly not giving a thought to playing with them...very underrated. Some Columbia Hall of Fame singles are well worth the investment, too, with hard to find DJ/45 edits not commonly available anymore...

ED

 

Yes, Uncle Steve - I trust you!

Now, I guess it would help if I bought a new TT!

Too much equipment to purchase...

Bob

 

Thank you Steve H.,Bob L., Ed B., chip-hp, Ron S., and MK. I will digest all this valuable information and proceed accordingly. I knew I shouldn't make a move without consulting this forum first.

Jim W.

 

Jim,

I would concur with all comments (though not familiar with the 45s) on Sam's body of work. For a deeper listening experience, the bio, You Send Me, published some years back, is an excellent one that offers great insight into his life, times and music. And though I'm not shilling for any publishers, anyone who reads widely about popular music should keep an eye out for another major Sam Cooke bio by Peter Grualnick being published sometime this year. As most know, Guralnick wrote the giant (and widely lauded) double volume Elvis bio, as well as Sweet Soul Music and several other highly regarded music reads.

Doug

 

Great! Guralnick is one of the few music authors I buy regardless of the subject matter, without waiting for the paperback, along with Nick Tosches, Robert Chirstgau, and Greil Marcus.

 

Ron, if you haven't already seen it, Christgau has his own website with a great trove of all his writings. Kind of fun to go backwards in time and catch his thoughts on stuff.