Sam Cooke hit the recording studio today (January 30, 1964), to record his classic Civil Rights song “A Change Is Gonna Come.”
Sam Cooke recorded the track in response to Bob Dylan’s song “Blowing in The Wind.”
In addition to Dylan, Sam Cooke was inspired by the Civil Rights movement and African-Americans push to end segregation in the United States.
Part of “A Change Is Gonna Come” is based in truth, over an incident in which Sam Cooke and members of his entourage were arrested in Shreveport Louisiana.
The altercation took place in October 1963, as the group was attempting to register at a” white only” motel.
The group was turned away and subsequently arrested for disturbing the peace.
The previous June, Sam Cooke lost his son “Vincent” in a horrifying drowning accident in the pool of his Los Angeles mansion.
The death of his son inspired Sam Cooke to right the part of the verse where he sings “there’s been times that I thought I couldn’t last for long.”
“A Change Is Gonna Come” is produced by Sam’s long time collabortors, Hugo Perretti and Luigi Creatore.
Tragically, Sam Cooke would never see the release of what could be his most enduring song.
Sam Cooke shot and killed on December 11, 1964, by the manager of an East Los Angeles motel.
“A Change Is Gonna Come” was released just after Cooke’s death in December and spent seven weeks on the charts, peaking at #31.
Over the years, a variety of artists have covered or sampled “A Change Is Gonna Come,” including Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Solomon Burke, Terrace Trent D’arby, Otis Redding, Lil Wayne, Ghostface, Ja Rule, Nas and others.
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