BEFORE HIS TIME , OF HIS TIME , OF ALL TIME

Keep Movin'On shows that SAM COOKE PAID THE WAY OF RB TODAY.
THERES ONLY ONE SAM COOKE.

Gives an idea of what was lost

This Cd gives you an idea of the kind of thing that Sam Cooke would have been recording had it not been for the tragic night of Dec. 11, 1964 (a little over a week before I was born, in fact). Much of this points to the future direction of Soul Music. "Yeah man" is clearly the original version of Arthur Conley's "Sweet Soul Music." "Ease My Troubled Mind" could be seen either as a metaphor for Sam's personal problems at the time (his son had just died) or that of the Civil Rights Movement. "It's Got the Whole World Shaking" is one of Sam's lesser-known, but not lesser tunes.

"The Riddle Song" usually brings guffaws to most modern listeners because of the classic comedy scene in "Animal House" that involves this song (where John Belushi smashes the guitar of a terrible sounding folksinger who warbles the tune), but Sam's moving rendition brings the tune back to it's original dignity.

"A Change Is Gonna Come" needs no further elaboration from me, but "Keep Moving On" sounds almost like a sequel to "Change," somewhat of a less elaborate hymn to positive thinking. I strongly recommend that you play this song before you go to work or school, it will really put you in a good frame of mind to face adversity. One can only wonder why it was never publicly released after it was recorded in 1963. But in either case, listen and enjoy.

Moved by Keep Movin' ON

To me there are two catagories of singers; Sam Cooke and everybody else. I mean has there ever been a greater voice in popular music? In the cd "Keep Movin' On", there is some of Sam's best work. Let's start with the obvious "A Change is Gonna Come" may possibly the best r&b song ever recorded. Then you add such soul gems as "Good Times", "That's Where It's At", "Sugar Dumpling", "Meet Me ATt Mary's Place" and "Rome Wasn't Built In A Day", and you really have something special. On top of that Sam further displays the beauty of his voice with his eloquent rendition of the "Riddle Song". This cd also includes a number of standards and other Sam Cooke hits. I've heard all of these songs before except for the title song "Keep Movin' On". What a gift for all of Sam's fans...that song is absolutely awesome. There is not a singer today (or any other time) that can touch Sam Cooke. When you here Sam Cooke sing you have one foot in church. Compared to the "studio" stuff singers are releasing today Sam Cooke shows us why he was the MAN WHO INVENTED SOUL! Buy this cd and get ready for greatness.

Parties and pathos - a masterwork!

It's great to see all the praise this CD has received in other reviews, and I completely agree with everyone. Sam was a master of his craft, and in these late recordings he achieved new and greater heights than ever before. If only he had lived longer! One reviewer here said that with Sam, you always have one foot in church. How true! He even pulls spiritual pathos out of his party songs. Check out the gospel-style call and response of "Meet Me at Mary's Place" and "Good Times", in which "we're gonna stay here 'til we soothe our souls, if it takes all night long." Oooh! Then he can turn right around and make you boogie to a heartbreak song, as he does in "Tennessee Waltz", referring to his ex-friend as a "dirty dog" (NOT in the original lyrics). He throws in some dixieland jazz with the humorous "Cousin of Mine", in which a double dealing femme fatale gets caught red-handed, and attempts to persuade each of her men that the other is her long lost cousin. "Good News" isn't gospel, it's my girl's comin' home. Check out that banjo! "A Change is Gonna Come" has been well-praised by others here, but don't think of it just as a protest song or as something from another era. Think of it as being about you, today, and you'll feel its impact. This collection is the high water mark of a great career and a great man.

Sony Copy-Protected CD / Incompatible with I-Tunes

Great CD. Works okay with WMA format, but appears to be copy-protected and won't work with Apple's I-Tunes (IPOD). What a rip!

Sweet, Sweet Soul music

This CD turned out to be some of Sam Cooke's final and greatest work. This CD has such variety, from high-tempo dancec cuts like "Shake" and "Yeah Man". There are ballads like the underappreciated "Basin Street Blues" and "I'm Falling in Love". And of course, there is the GREATEST song ever written and recorded, "A Change is Gonna Come". I can listen to this song for hours on end, and every time it gives you a trembling in your stomach and makes you want to fall to your knees and cry. There are other gems on here like "Another Saturday Night", and "Meet Me At Mary's Place". This CD can be enjoyed by anyone of any age.