CD-Charts Position 1
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Portrait Of A Legend

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date July 24, 2006
What a pity the one of the best voices there has ever been and what do they do sell you a SACD version which is only 2 channel.OK it sounds good but then again he would sound brilliant on a forty year old piece of kit,but whats the point in having a SACD player and a good 7:1 system and finishing up listening to stereo coming out of the front speakers.Basicaly this disc is a con.

CD-Charts Position 2
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The Best of Sam Cooke: Remastered

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date October 03, 2005
What a pity the one of the best voices there has ever been and what do they do sell you a SACD version which is only 2 channel.OK it sounds good but then again he would sound brilliant on a forty year old piece of kit,but whats the point in having a SACD player and a good 7:1 system and finishing up listening to stereo coming out of the front speakers.Basicaly this disc is a con.

CD-Charts Position 3
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One Night Stand: Live at the Harlem Square Club/Remastered

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date October 03, 2005
I read a magazine article a few months back about what were the 25 greatest live albums. Granted, it was a rock and roll magazine, but still I felt a considerable pang of disappointment that "One Night Stand: Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club" wasn't featured, as it just about wipes the floor with all of them.

No one can dispute Sam Cooke was an amazing singer, but this record not only underlines that particular fact in the boldest pen possible, but demonstrates he was a showman without equal. This is an astonishing record. A perfectly formed, brilliant emotional journey that Cooke, through his amazing talent, leads you by the hand all the way through.

It's Cooke's grounding in gospel that nails it - much like James ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 4
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Forever

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date February 18, 2008
Excellent selection of songs from the 'Master of Melodies' Sam Cooke - Summertime is one of the best recordings I've heard , touch the hem of his garment another favourite of mine can't add anything else about this compilation it is Superb - if you like Sam Cooke's music this is the one for you.

CD-Charts Position 5
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Keep Movin' On

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date
In my review of the box set "The man who invented soul" I bemoaned the omission of "A change is gonna come" and other tracks from the last year of his life. Well, they're all here. Buy this, the box set and some of his gospel work with the Soul Stirrers and you have a complete Sam Cooke collection.

CD-Charts Position 6
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The Man and His Music

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date April 01, 1986
Sam Cooke first attracted my attention in the 1970's with his Twistin' the Night Away on a compilation album. Infectious music, well sung, but textually awkward and melodically and harmonically relatively simple. This cd collection, which I bought some fifteen years ago, is hailed by what must be diehard Cooke fans as one of the greatest artistic achievements in the history of music (see the other reviews). Now, I don't want to tread on anybody's toes, but that's too much praise by far.
Sam is a wonderfully soulfoul singer with a great voice, perfect pitch, sometimes relaxed, sometimes with a burning intensity. Best example of the latter is A Change Is Gonna Come, with a rich orchestral scoring to heighten the dramatic impact of the song. This is really ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
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Night Beat: Remastered

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date October 03, 2005
Having bought the Portrait of a Legend CD I saw the reissue of this album and took a flyer. The only song shared by both albums is Little Red Rooster and this song is a good indicator of the mood of Night Beat - you only have to look at the titles to get the idea.

The singing is of a very high calibre but with less pop type hits and a more bluesy, gospel approach especially on the first track and the second track which is almost unaccompanied.

The only song that doesn't really fit is the last track "Shake Rattle & Roll" but it's still worth listening to.

A good companion to the Portrait of a Legend.

CD-Charts Position 8
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The Greatest Hits [Us Import]

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date April 25, 1998
I'm not really sure how to grade this album.

I like Sam Cooke's music, but I'm not THAT big a fan, so for me this is really more of a four-star album. But as far as Sam Cooke-collections go, it is superb, spanning all his best and best-known "secular" songs (the gospel material isn't here). And considering that this is some of the best, most influential soul music ever recorded, I suppose "Greatest Hits" deserves a five star rating (although these studio recordings don't have the nerve of the live renditions on Cooke's magnificent "Live At The Harlem Square Club" album).

As I said, everything the casual fan needs is here. Soft, tender ballads...almost too sweet at times, but Cooke was a black man trying to make it in a world dominated by often-prejudiced ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
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My Gospel Roots

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date February 21, 2005
This is an outstanding collection of Sam Cookes finer gospel songs. His voice is extremely smooth and although from early in his career, still with the power to move you that he demonstrated so well later on. The album is very vocal based, and the minimal music is there to augment the vocals and to highlight the power of the gospel message. Overall a great collection of Cookes gospel and recommended if you're a fan of either Sam Cooke or Gospel. If you like this I HIGHLY recommend Aretha Franklins gospel album 'Amazing Grace', which is a live album of her gospel work and VERY moving and powerful.

CD-Charts Position 10
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The Man Who Invented Soul

by: Sam Cooke

Release Date September 25, 2000
As other reviewers have noted, there is a wealth of great stuff on this box set, but incredibly "A change is gonna come" has been missed off! This was Sam's greatest recording, and one of the greatest records made by anyone, ever. Some of his other later singles are also missing - "Ain't that good news", "Good times" and "Shake". Also it would have been useful to have some of his gospel work. So you get a lot of good stuff, but you also need a gospel CD (or three) and a hits package with "A change is gonna come" too. One star docked not for what's included, but for what's not included.