CD - Sam Cooke - Movin' and Groovin' with Sam Cooke

Spotlight on Sam Cooke

The Koko Mojo Records Spotlight is shone onto Sam Cooke (he added the "e" to his last name in 1957 to signify a new start to his life) and looks at his involvement within the music world. The album does not rely upon his hit recordings, these are available on numerous albums, and in typical Koko Mojo style, and we sample the best of the rest. These recordings are equally as good and will allow fans of his music to add to their collection, not duplicate recordings. The album runs chronologically by year and looks at Cooke's secular and non-secular recordings, and then adds in some of Cooke’s compositions recorded by other artists.

The album commences with two fiery Specialty records gospel recordings from the early 1950s, Jesus Gave Me Water and Touch The Hem Of His Garment by The Soul Stirrers featuring Sam Cook as a vocalist. In 1957 he swapped to secular music and upon signing with the independent Keen label Cook became known as Sam Cooke. The fledgling label was newly formed by Los Angeles-based businessmen John and Alex Siamas. Cooke’s first album simply titled Sam Cooke was released in 1958, and from here onwards his secular career was underway. In 1959 Cooke left Keen over a royalty dispute, and in 1960 he signed with RCA Victor and began writing blues, gospel-inflected songs, and from this period his chart career became more high profile. From his involvement with these labels the album showcases twenty recordings including; Win Your Love For Me, Running Wild, No One (Can Ever Take Your Place), Happy In Love, The Twist, and Shake, Rattle And Roll.

Cooke was riding the crest of a wave and crossing over into the mainstream charts, and branched out into music production in 1961, and founded SAR Records, with Hamilton, Mississippi-bred J. W. Alexander and his manager, Roy Crain. The SAR recordings provide two titles from the reformed Soul Stirrers, Jesus Be A Fence Around Me, and He’s Been A Shelter For Me, The Simms Twins, The Smile, Johnnie Taylor with the soulful Rome (Wasn't Built In A Day), and switching to the United Artists label, Pow! You're In Love by The Falcons, all of which Cooke had a writing credit from Cooke.

The sleeve notes from Dee Jay and the re-issue producer Mark Armstrong tell the Cooke story, and artist Urban Zotel brings the album visually to life and the boys at The Studio That Time Forgot, El Paso, Texas provide the vivid Koko Mojo sound.

Dee Jay Mark Armstrong Bühl, Germany

01. Soul Stirrers featuring Sam Cook - Jesus Gave Me Water (Campbell) Specialty 1951

02. Soul Stirrers featuring Sam Cook - Touch The Hem Of His Garment (Cook) Specialty 1954

03. Sam Cooke - Love You Most Of All (Campbell) Keen 1958

04. Sam Cooke - Win Your Love For Me (Cooke) Keen 1958

05. Sam Cooke - Running Wild (Gibbs, Grey, Wood) Keen 1958 LP Encore

06. Sam Cooke - Long, Long Ago (Bayly) RCA Victor 1959 EP Swing Low 1959

07. Sam Cooke - Happy In Love (Cook) Specialty 1959

08. Sam Cooke - Comes Love (Brown, Stept, Tobias) Keen 1959 LP Tribute To The Lady

09. Sam Cooke - I've Got A Right To Sing The Blues (Arlen, Koehler) Keen 1959 LP Tribute To The Lady

10. Sam Cooke - Mary, Mary Lou (Mangiaracina) Keen 1960

11. Sam Cooke - No One (Can Ever Take Your Place) (Campbell) Keen 1960

12. Soul Stirrers (lead) Paul Foster - Wade In The Water (Cooke, Alexander) SAR 1960

13. Sam Cooke - If I Had You (Alexander, Cooke) RCA Victor 1961 LP Folk Favorites

14. Sam Cooke - Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (Traditional) RCA Victor 1961 LP Folk Favorites

15. Sam Cooke - Just For You (Cooke) SAR 1961

16. Soul Stirrers - Jesus Be A Fence Around Me (Cooke) SAR 1961

17. Soul Stirrers - He's Been A Shelter For Me (Cooke, Alexander) SAR 1961

18. The Falcons - Pow! You're In Love (Cooke) United Artists 1961

19. Sam Cooke - Having A Party (Cooke) RCA Victor 1962

20. Sam Cooke - Movin' And Groovin' (Cooke, Rawls) RCA Victor 1962 LP Twistin' The Night Away

21. Sam Cooke - The Twist (Ballard) RCA Victor 1962 LP Twistin' The Night Away

22. Sam Cooke - That's It, I Quit, I'm Movin' On RCA Victor 1962 LP Twistin' The Night Away

23. Sam Cooke - A Whole Lotta Woman (Alexander, Jordan) RCA Victor 1962 LP Twistin' The Night Away

24. The Simms Twins - The Smile (Brown, Cooke) SAR 1962

25. Johnnie Taylor - Rome (Wasn't Built In A Day) (Cooke) SAR 1962

26. Sam Cooke - Ain't That Good News (Cooke) RCA Victor 1963

27. Sam Cooke - Little Red Rooster (Dixon) RCA Victor 1963

28. Sam Cooke - Shake, Rattle And Roll (Calhoun) RCA Victor 1963