When I realized A Change Is Gonna Come wasn’t on this record, I made sure to buy another Cooke compilation that had it. It very easy to like Sam Cooke’s singing. Wikipedia put it well—his pure tenor voice was big, velvety, and expansive; he was effortlessly soulful; and he had a mellow somberness. For example, Having a Party doesn’t sound as if the party is much fun (unlike, say, Quarter to Three by Gary U.S. Bonds). Cooke was born in Clarksdale, Miss., the same town as John Lee Hooker, Ike Turner, and Muddy Waters.
I wish there were a way to know what most adults (and most teens) understood of the language in pop songs. Twistin’ the Night Away says that a fella in blue jeans is dancing with an older queen. The lyrics certainly say it is a same-sex couple, but I guess very few people knew that. Little Richard said that Miss Molly sure likes to ball—the decent folks wouldn’t have allowed that if they knew. Chain Gang is on this record, and I don’t know what anyone thought of it. Was it like 16 Tons, a mostly outdated work song about an unfairly tough job? That convicts in much of the South have it rough? It made it to Number 2 in the charts.
converselyspeaking 