Sam Cooke - Portrait of a Legend 1951-1964
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Free Music Notes for Portrait of a Legend 1951-1964
Free Music Review: THIS SACD REALLY ROCKS
Hit: 5 Stars
This review is for the SACD layer of this hybrid disc, I have not spent much time listening to the CD layer. I have never really been exposed to Sam Cooke from a high fidelity point of view, my only previous experience with Sam Cooke was on the radio, so this disc was a real revalation to me. The only reason that I bought this disc is because I recently bought a surround sound SACD system, so I wanted to purchase a few dozen SACDs to go with the system. This disc happened to be among the group of SACDs that I bought to try out my system. Let me tell you, this disc soon became my favorite SACD to play over and over. The DSD transfer of the original music from the original two track masters was performed by Teri Landi and Rick Essig at The Master Cutting Room, and the DSD mastering was performed by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering. The technical attention to detail, as well as the flawless DSD transfer, results in one beautiful sounding disc. Listen to this disc on a decent SACD system, and you would swear that you were right there in the studio with Sam, listening to him jam. And the track listing is phenomenal, traceing Sam's career from the gospel days through the pop days, his voice shines through in every track in such a clean and clear way. If you have an SACD high fidelity system, buy this disc. You will not be disappointed. It must be remembered that this is a stereo only hybrid disc, it has two stereo only layers that can be played on any existing CD player or SACD player, there is no multi-channel mix on this disc.Free Music Review: 30 classics "Cooked" up by an immortal legend
Hit: 5 Stars
Sam Cooke revolutionized R&B music in the '50s and '60s with his inimitable singing style and smooth, soulful voice. He was among the first and most successful to cross R&B over into the popular music field. To his fans, he ranks among the top male vocal performers of all time. This collection starts and closes with numbers from his gospel days with the Soul Stirrers ("Touch the Hem of His Garment", "Jesus Gave Me Water") and in-between are twenty-eight tunes, many of which he wrote, that marked his career singing popular music. You can really tell how his gospel style is permeant and how it shines through every song he delivers. Of course there all the classics like "Chain Gang", "You Send Me", "Another Saturday Night", "Wonderful World" among many more. "Portrait of a Legend" is more than just a marketing title; it is a fitting title describing the many apsects that Mr. Cooke had in his music whether it be the balladeer ("Cupid", "I Love You For Sentimental Reasons", "Nothing Can Change This Love"), the party-goer ("Having A Party", "Meet Me At Mary's Place"), the dancer ("Twistin' The Night Away", "Everybody Loves to Cha Cha Cha", "Shake"), and anything else he could try his hand at like the blues (Howlin' Wolf's "Little Red Rooster") and even a Gershwin classic like "Summertime." The liner notes accompanying this set are mainly on the songs and are very informative. All in all, this is the essential Sam Cooke package about all that he was: singer, songwriter, and legend.Free Music Review: "Sam Cooke Is the Greatest" - Muhhamad Ali
Hit: 5 Stars
Hey, if you can't take Ali's word for it then whose can you?
Up until around 1999 or so the best Sam Cooke compilation was the now out of print "Sam Cooke - The Man and His Music". Insofar compilations are concerned, that one was just about perfect. It was chronologically structured and its only two imperfections were the sound and the exclusion of the sweltering tune "Lost and Lookin'".
"Portrait of a Legend" rectifies one of these imperfections - sound. The CD is remastered and you probably will not hear a better remastering job than on the song "(Ain't That) Good News". The previously buried guitars now shimmer properly though the mix.
Sadly, the other imperfection - the exclusion of "Lost and Lookin'" - is nigh unforgivable. It is on this song that you can hear Sam Cooke do so much more than you thought possible with just three bass notes.
There is also the curious fact that this CD contains more songs than "The Man and His Music" does. I say "curious" because the effect is one of watering down the quality of the tunes. Songs like "Tennessee Waltz" find Sam meandering through the song without really stamping his own character on it and "Lovable" and "You Were Made for Me" are simply filler. But hey, it's Sam and if you've ever heard Sam Cooke sing you know that him reading his dry cleaning bill is more soulful than just about anything else on the planet.
Free Music Review: Great Music
Hit: 5 Stars
This is a great album for anyone who appreciates good music, harmony, and singing. Sam Cooke was a one of a kind singer whose style cannot be imitated who was taken from us too soon. It is amazing that this guy had so many hit songs at such a young age. I think the song "Chain Gang" is one of his best pieces. He had the obvious hits such as "Cupid" and "Change is going to come", but this album is packed full of quality songs that you may not have heard of. His music certainly captures the era in which he performed. They also had a wholesomeness about them without the R rated crap. If he lived longer I believe he would've unquestionably went down as the best. One can make an intelligent argument for that with the body of work on this album. He was obviously a great songwriter, whose songs show an amazing storytelling ability along with a smooth voice. This is an album that you can listen to all day and not grow tired of it. Its amazing how so many young people are not familiar with him. This album would be a great gift for a young person in the music field or aspiring who wants to know what quality singing is. As a teacher I played some of his songs as background music while my students were working, and was surprised at how much they enjoyed it. The current crop of R&B singers out there with all the fanfare cannot compete with Sam Cooke's voice.Free Music Review: Outstanding Collection
Hit: 5 Stars
If god has a singing voice he would sound just like Sam Cooke. This collection is a wonderful tribute to the greatest singer all time. This Cd is a bitter sweet tast of Sam's vocal stlying and unique phrasing. Bitter Sweet because we were deprived of his artistry and soulful conncetion with a song and his audience. We can only wonder how great he would have become had he lived.Sam's legacy is his wonderful voice and interpetation of a song; his exra-ordinary ability to enfuse a pop song with heart, soul and spirit. Not to mention his gospel roots.
This collection is very similar to his previous collection A Man and his Music but I feel it is worthy follow-up and rebranding of the Sam Cooke Legacy. A new genration of listeners will discover Sam Cooke and marvel at his wonderful heart rending A Change is Gonna Come and spiritual Touch the Hem of His Garment.
Sam's voice made standards like Summertime sound different and at times a completely different song. All great singers have this ability to interpret a song and find the diffintive expression. Sam was no exception. I am extremely biased on behalf of Sam Cooke becasue he is the benchmark by which all modern day male vocalist will be and have been judged.
The Spirit of Sam Cooke lives on through this wonderful collection.
Simply inspiring.