When I began writing this post I initially was going to write it about the song "Cupid" but I forgot to single out the song on iTunes and the whole album started playing and I decided, for the first time to just write in general about an album or an artist and not a song specifically. Sam Cooke hearkens back to a simpler time of love, going steady, drive ins and that (well at least pretense) ideal of pure love. In reality the guys were still trying to get laid just as they do now and the women were pretending to not be interested in their advances and their assets.
But even in today's world there still always comes a time when that simple, beautiful, innocent type of love comes into someones heart. Whether it is there or not Sam is the man to belt out whatever you are feeling, to sing along and to just let them dang old words come spilling out of those lungs.
"Bring it on Home to Me", "Cupid", "Chain Gang", "Having a Party...the setlist is epic and I challenge anyone to put this album on while on the road and attempt to not sing along. You can't. It is too much. Outside of Springsteen Sam Cook is one of the only artist I have ever had the experience of putting on in a roomful of men and have had them bust out in a sing a long from the top of their lungs.
I remember the last time I had it on in the car. It was a rented Toyota Highlander and I was driving from Key West to Miami to see an old lover with little expectation of any hope of rekindling the old flame. Over the seven mile bridge I was screaming "All day long they work so hard 'till the sun is going down..." and while I was crossing through Key Largo "...everybody swinging, Sally's doing the twist now, and if you take request..." until I was on 95 south heading towards South Beach rocking "...sometimes I don't know how I stand the things that woman do to me..."
By the time I showed up at her door I was horse and barely able to speak. We had lunch at Carpaccio while I was attempting to keep my eyes on her and off the insane looking Euro trash roaming around the floor, trying to be the gentleman that I am, later on at the Delano while in the lobby there was a smooth house mix of jazz fusion being played by a saxophone I still had ole' Sam floating through my mind. Late night with the humid, sweet air wafting though the curtains of her flat we sat around on a pure white Corbusier couch until I broke the tension by throwing on "Twistin' The Night Away" and we broke out in dance.
Sam Cooke died under strange circumstances, and because of that incident there's somewhat of a black eye attached to his legacy but in my mind I know that his indictment was erroneous. I know this from when I hear him begin "It's All Right" with the sweet rambling "La la la la la la, oooh ooh ooh cha cha la la la fellows when someone tell you something about what your girl has done or what your wife has done I want you to remember one thing, don't go home on hitting on her and that stuff, go home and shake her wake her up, and when she wipe the sleep from her eyes tell her...It's alright, it's alright, it's alright believe me it's alright, believe me baby it's alright as long as I know, long as I know that you love me it's alright."
That's it right there, buy the album, embrace it, hear it, don't listen to it and savor the sweet harmonic ramblings of Sam Cooke live. Take that ole' girl by the waist and throw her around in a shuffle just as you know she wants you to do, kiss her on her neck and work your way up while singing any line, verse or song from this beautiful work, take in the smell of her hair and the smile she cracks when you sing it off key as Sam would never do and promise her you'll never part regardless of it is true or not for lies such as those are of the good kind and are always acceptable.
