Sam Cooke Albums Ranked
Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer, songwriter, civil-rights activist, and entrepreneur. Influential as a singer, composer, and producer, he is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocals and importance within popular music. He began singing as a child and joined the Soul Stirrers before moving to a solo career where he scored a string of hit songs including “You Send Me”, “A Change Is Gonna Come”, “Cupid”, “Wonderful World”, “Chain Gang”, “Twistin’ the Night Away”, and “Bring It On Home to Me”. Here are all of Sam Cooke albums ranked.
Don’t miss out on the TIMELESS music of Sam Cooke below! Click to experience great songs coming from one of the world’s greatest singers!
10. My Kind Of Blues (1961)
“Another early 1960s album by honey-voiced gospel-turned-pop singer who oozed sensuality and seductiveness. Cooke had some serious chart action with his pop singles but his albums were curiously mismatched affairs, clearly focused on adult audience and from today’s perspective sound forced & gimmicky.”
9. Solitude (1984)
“The incomparable Sam Cooke remains one of my favorite singers, and Cupid is one of his absolute best vocal performances. With a signature mix of hope and blues, Cupid may not be one of the most lyrically sophisticated of Cooke’s singles, but it’s an amazing performance.”
8. The Wonderful World Of Sam Cooke (1960)
“This release is an excellent way to start your journey with the essential founder of soul music, whose influence has permeated mostly every genre in the world. For many, this will be the only Sam Cooke album you’ll ever need unless you become as entranced and intrigued by his musical genius as I had been. Remember, this is the Wonderful World of Sam Cooke plus My Kind of Blues plus bonus tracks that should be on repeat as often as soulfully possible.”
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7. Twistin’ The Night Away (1962)
“Sunny, happy and highly enjoyable album that finally brings singer out of adult oriented Las Vegas big band standards and into youth market. Cooke could easily sing absolutely anything and unfortunately seems he wasted a lot of time on trying to break in like some kind of black Andy Williams – here he goes for a kill with happy, dance songs and it works wonderfully. Twist was all the rage at the time and even though the concept sounds like a gimmick, the results are infectious – his familiar yodel, gospel-inspired backing vocals, everything is in place.”
6. Hit Kit (1959)
“The warmth of Sam Cooke’s voice sometimes transports you to other times or dimensions according to your preference. A world where everything is perfect and the only thing that matters is to keep listening.”
5. Sam Cooke (1957)
“Cooke’s singing is excellent of course, but the thing that’s nice about this album is that there is only so much going on in the background. Cooke’s voice is front and center in the mix and carries most of the melody. With the exception of the odd piano or guitar line, the other instruments are mostly just playing rhythm, leaving Cooke as the star.”
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4. Portrait Of A Legend 1951-1964 (2003)
“This collection focuses on the radio hits (many of which were very influential tracks for both shaping r&b and inspiring new artists) after he left the Soul Stirrers (“Jesus Gave Me Water” is included here and was Sam’s first recording session with the group, but it’s far from the best material he’d record as a Soul Stirrer). The liner notes are rich with details on each and every song.”
3. Ain’t That Good News (1964)
“This is Sam Cooke at the very peak of his powers – he was 33 years old, had solid reputation in gospel, crossed over into pop market and had built his own business company. After seven years of playing the pop field and experimenting with different styles, things finally fell into place and now he was absolutely sure of himself and his worth.”
2. Live At The Harlem Square Club, 1963 (1985)
“f you’re into soul, you need to hear this album, to hear the guy who invented it at his best. And if you’re into rock, due to the massive debt that rock owes soul music, you also need to hear this album. And if you’re into feel good music that actually does make you feel good instead of making you cringe at the sappiness present, you definitely need to hear this album right now.”
1. Night Beat (1963)
“This is a really simple rhythm & blues record, the band arrangements are generally pretty basic guitar, drum, bass, and piano ones and serve to lay a soothing backing for Cooke’s voice that is so good I’m sure it could cure diseases (hang on, I think Trump’s calling …). It’s a smoother, quieter version of Otis Redding (he’ll be appearing in a few years’ time), with just the right amount of warbling, ie not very much.”
