On December 11, 1964, Cooke was allegedly shot to death by the manager of the Hacienda Motel in Los Angeles, California at the age of 33. At the time, the courts ruled that Cooke was drunk and distressed, and the manager killed Cooke in what was later ruled a justifiable homicide. Since that time, the circumstances of his death have been widely questioned.
Sam Cooke (he added an "e" onto the end of his name because he thought it added a touch of class) was one of eight children of Rev. Charles and Mrs. Annie Mae Cook. The family moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1933.
Cooke began his musical career as a member of a quartet with his siblings, the Singing Children, followed by a turn as a teenager as a member of the Highway QCs, a gospel group. In 1950, at the age of 19, he joined The Soul Stirrers and achieved significant success and fame within the gospel community.
His first pop single, "Lovable" (1956) was released under the alias of "Dale Cooke," in order to not alienate his fan base; there was a considerable taboo against gospel singers performing secular music. However, the alias failed to hide Cooke's unique and distinctive vocals. No one was fooled. Art Rupe, head of Specialty Records, the label of the Soul Stirrers, gave his blessing for Cooke to record secular music under his real name, but was unhappy about the type of music Cooke and Bumps Blackwell, Cooke's pop producer, were making. Rupe expected Cooke's secular music to be similar to that of another Specialty Records artist, Little Richard. When Rupe walked in on a recording session and heard Cooke covering Gershwin, he was quite upset. After an argument between Rupe and Blackwell, Cooke and Blackwell left the label, and Cooke signed with Keen Records in 1957. His first release was "You Send Me", which spent six weeks at #1 on the Billboard R&B chart but which also had massive mainstream success, spending three weeks at #1 on the Billboard pop chart.
As if a R&B performer writing his own songs and achieving mainstream fame was not innovative enough, Cooke continued to astonish the music business in the 1960s with the founding of his own label, SAR Records, which soon included The Simms Twins, The Valentinos, Bobby Womack, and Johnnie Taylor. Cooke then created a publishing imprint and management firm, then left Keen to sign with RCA. One of his first RCA singles was the hit "Chain Gang." It reached #2 on the Billboard pop chart. This was followed by more hits, including "Sad Mood", "Bring it on Home to Me" (with Lou Rawls on backing vocals), "Another Saturday Night" and "Twistin' the Night Away".
Like most R&B artists of his time, Cooke focused on singles; in all he had 29 top 40 hits on the pop charts, and more on the R&B charts. In spite of this, he released a critically acclaimed blues-inflected LP in 1963, Night Beat. He was known for having written many of the most popular songs of all time in the genre, and is often uncredited for many of them by the general public.
Cooke died at the age of 33 under mysterious circumstances on December 11, 1964 in Los Angeles, California. Though the details of the case are still in dispute (see below), it seems he was shot to death by Bertha Franklin, manager of the Hacienda Motel in South Los Angeles, who claimed that he had threatened her, and that she killed him in self-defense. The verdict was justifiable homicide, though many believe that crucial details did not come out in court, or were buried afterward. Cooke was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Glendale, California.
Some posthumous releases followed, many of which became hits, including "A Change Is Gonna Come", an early protest song which is generally regarded as his greatest composition.
After Cooke's death, his widow, Barbara, married Bobby Womack. Cooke's daughter, Linda, later married Bobby's brother, Cecil.
The song "A Change Is Gonna Come" was played upon the death of Malcolm X, and was memorably featured in Spike Lee's film Malcolm X. Barack Obama's presidential victory speech paraphrased the song: "It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America."
Rapper Tupac Shakur references Cooke in a line of the song "Thugz Mansion", and Nas references him in the song "We Major" with Kanye West. The Roots song "Stay Cool" suggests, "I got the soul of a young Sam Cooke". Mike Doughty's song "Sweet Lord in Heaven" evokes the memory of Cooke, as does the Wallflowers 2000 song "Sleepwalker": "Cupid don't draw back your bow, Sam Cooke didn't know what I know". The Irish rock-group Jetplane Landing have a song named "Sam Cooke".
A fictional version of Cooke (portrayed by Paul Mooney) appeared briefly in the 1978 film, The Buddy Holly Story, leaving the stage at the Apollo Theater before Buddy and The Crickets got on. After being featured prominently in the 1985 film Witness, the song "Wonderful World" gained further exposure. "Wonderful World" was featured in one of two concurrently running Levi's Jeans commercials in 1985 and became a hit in the United Kingdom because of this, reaching #2 in re-release. Other notable movies that featured his music are Animal House ("Wonderful World" and "Twistin' the Night Away"), American Werewolf in London, and Cadence ("Chain Gang").
Cooke's songs "Bring It on Home to Me" and "Change is Gonna Come" were both featured in the movie Ali. The opening scene of the movie consisted of a live reenactment of "Bring It on Home to Me".
Posthumous honors
Shortly following his passing, Motown Records released We Remember Sam Cooke, a collection of Cooke covers recorded by The Supremes.
In 1986, Cooke was inducted as a charter member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 1999, Cooke was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked him #16 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".
In 2008, Cooke was named the fourth "Greatest Singer of All Time" by Rolling Stone magazine."
Covers
John Lennon included a medley of two Cooke songs, "Bring It On Home to Me" and "Send Me Some Lovin'," on his 1975 oldies album, Rock 'n' Roll.
Cooke's songs are covered in a tour-available EP from Decemberists frontman, Colin Meloy. It is the third installment of his solo-tour Colin Meloy Sings...!
Johnny Nash covered the song "Cupid" in 1969 with chart success in the US and UK, and it was included as the B-side on some versions of his 1972 hit single I Can See Clearly Now.
The Animals covered the song "Bring It On Home To Me" in 1965.
Amy Winehouse also covered the song "Cupid" for the BBC Radio 1 album Radio 1 Established 1967.
British soul singer Adele covered the song "That's It, I Quit, I'm Movin' On" as B-side to her single "Chasing Pavements" a bonus track for the Asian release of her studio album 19.
Richard Marx covered "Bring It On Home To Me" and "Wonderful World" during his earlier concerts.
"A Change Is Gonna Come" has been covered several times. Solo, Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, The Fifth Dimension, The Neville Brothers, Otis Redding, The Fugees, Cold War Kids, Seal, Bill Frisell, and The Band featuring the vocals of Rick Danko have all recorded versions of the song. Seal's version debuted on the R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart (Billboard, Nov. 2008) shortly after the election of Obama-Biden.
Gene Vincent, who was a big fan and a close personal friend of Sam Cooke's, recorded "Another Saturday Night" in 1964 and "Bring It On Home to Me" shortly before his own death in 1971.
Cat Stevens released his Greatest Hits album (1975) with a cover of Sam Cooke's "Another Saturday Night", only the second song he released that he didn't write himself. He had also released it as a single (July 12, 1974) which reached No.4 in the U.S.
Cooke was an influence on punk vocalist Mia Zapata of The Gits, who honored him with a cover of "A Change Is Gonna Come" on their album Enter: The Conquering Chicken.
In spring 1965 the British group Herman's Hermits reached no. 5 in the US charts and no.7 in the UK charts with their version of "Wonderful World".
In 1978, Art Garfunkel, Paul Simon, and James Taylor sang "Wonderful World" which hit the Top 40 in the US charts.
In 1966, the now cult 60s British pop show Ready Steady Goes Live, the live version of Ready Steady Go!, devoted a whole programme to a live performance of Soul singer Otis Redding, who regularly covered many of Cooke's songs. One of the highlights was a rousing version of "Shake" on which Redding was joined by British Soul legends Eric Burdon, lead singer of The Animals, and chart topper Chris Farlowe.
Jimmy Buffett covered "Another Saturday Night" on his album Margaritaville Cafe Late Night Menu, in 1993.
Today I Sing the Blues
Sam Cooke Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The blues walked in this morning
And circled round my lonely room
I didn't know why I had
That sad and lonely feeling
'till my baby called and said it's through
Yesterday I sang a love song
But today I sing the blues
I know the explanation
But that's no constellation
No matter how your love
You can lose
And since I lost
I rather walk around and worry
I guess I've walked the darkest avenue
Yesterday I sang a love song
But today I sing the blues
Now it strikes me kind of funny
How life can be this way
We were lovers last night honey
But not in love today
Now it strikes me kind of funny
How faith can be unfair
It seems that I'm the one
To lose in every love affair
Yes it must be written for me
That I should be the one to always lose
Yesterday I sang a love song
But today I sing the blues
Now it strikes me kind of funny
How life can be this way
We were lovers last night honey
But not in love today
Now it strikes me kind of funny
How faith can be unfair
It seems that I'm the one
To lose in every love affair
Yes it must be written for me
That I should be the one to always lose
Yesterday I sang a love song
But today I sing the blues
The lyrics of Sam Cooke's "Today I Sing The Blues" describe a sudden and unwelcome bout of sadness that the singer experiences. The song opens with the blues "walking in" without warning and circling around the room. The singer is initially unsure of the source of this emotion until they receive a call from their lover, informing them that the relationship is over. The singer reflects on the fickleness of love, noting that they had been singing a love song just yesterday but find themselves singing the blues today. They are resigned to their fate as a perpetual loser in love.
The lyrics of the song are simple and direct, conveying a sense of sadness and heartbreak. The blues serves as a metaphor for this emotional state, as it is a musical genre often associated with sadness, loss, and struggle. The song suggests that love is unpredictable and that even the strongest relationships can fall apart. It also acknowledges the singer's sense of resignation and fatalism, suggesting that they have come to accept their lot in life.
Overall, "Today I Sing The Blues" is a poignant and emotional song that captures the essence of the blues. It is a testament to Sam Cooke's talent as a songwriter and performer, as well as his ability to connect with his audience on a deeply emotional level.
Line by Line Meaning
Without a warning
The blues suddenly and unexpectedly entered my life
The blues walked in this morning
I woke up feeling sad and lonely
And circled round my lonely room
My feelings of sadness seem to pervade my surroundings
I didn't know why I had
I was unaware of the reason for my sadness
That sad and lonely feeling
My emotions were characterized by sadness and loneliness
'till my baby called and said it's through
The reason for my sadness is my partner ending our relationship
Yesterday I sang a love song
I was expressing my happiness with my relationship yesterday
But today I sing the blues
My sadness has replaced my happiness
I know the explanation
I understand why my partner ended our relationship
But that's no consolation
However, understanding does not provide comfort
No matter how your love
Even when love is present
You can lose
It can still end in heartbreak
And since I lost
Since my relationship ended
I rather walk around and worry
I am left feeling anxious and stressed
I guess I've walked the darkest avenue
I feel like I have hit rock bottom
Now it strikes me kind of funny
It's ironic to me now
How life can be this way
How unpredictable and unfair life can seem
We were lovers last night honey
We were happy and in love not too long ago
But not in love today
Our love has disappeared
How faith can be unfair
How destiny can seem cruel
It seems that I'm the one
I'm always the one who ends up hurt
To lose in every love affair
To always experience heartbreak in relationships
Yes it must be written for me
It seems fated for me
That I should be the one to always lose
To always be the one who ends up hurt and alone
Contributed by Xavier R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Weldon Harper
I love this song by Sam Cooke. I can truly relate to it. Some years ago, a former girlfriend of mine had called off our relationship in one day. I was singing the blues the next day.
brywool
Man, I thought I had most of Sam's stuff. Hearing a lot today on youtube that I've completely missed. It's like Christmas!
KaramelSoldier
Sam Cooke is simply amazing..... I've been searching for a song of his that I don't like....I just can't find one....even if I don't like the beat or the music.... his voice just overpowers them both to the point that the music doesn't even matter.
Nisha D
Can’t believe that I’ve just now found this Sam Cooke masterpiece. Absolute perfection like everything else he lends his golden voice to
theblueangel28
how fantastic!! I had no idea he had done this one
Tine Fortuna
he can croon like Frank Sinatra but he's got SOUL, man
NU-B-HUN
JUST LOVE, LOVE LOVE!!! thank you for sharing
J Ervin
Every song he sings is dynamite !!!
Brenda L. Howard
Great Man he could really sing.
Murp h
Did not know this song ---- great stuff ----- go on Sam !!