Ain't That Good News (album)

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Ain't That Good News
Ain't That Good News cover
Studio album by Sam Cooke
Released March 1, 1964
Recorded February 28, 1963-
January 30, 1964
RCA Studios, Hollywood, CA
Genre R&B/Soul
Length 33:25
Label RCA Victor
LP-2899
Producer Hugo & Luigi
Professional reviews
Sam Cooke chronology
Night Beat
(1963)		 Ain't That Good News
(1964)		 Sam Cooke at the Copa
(1964)
Singles from Ain't That Good News
  1. "Another Saturday Night"
    Released: April 2, 1963
  2. "(Ain't That) Good News"
    Released: January 22, 1964
  3. "Good Times"
    Released: July 9, 1964
  4. "Tennessee Waltz"
    Released: July 9, 1964
  5. "A Change Is Gonna Come"
    Released: December 22, 1964
This article is about the album. For the song, see (Ain't That) Good News.

Ain't That Good News is the final studio album recorded by soul singer Sam Cooke, released March 1, 1964, on RCA Records, in both mono and stereo, LPM2899 and LSP2899. Recording sessions took place at RCA Victor's Music Center of the World Studio in February and December of 1963 and January of 1964. It was reissued in hybrid CD/Super-Audio CD format by ABKCO Records in June of 2003, with full music and session credits. The iconic cover photo was taken by American photographer Wallace Seawell. It was the final album to be issued within Cooke's lifetime, before his tragic death at the age of 33.

With the exception of "Another Saturday Night", which had been released as a single early in the previous year, Ain't That Good News comprised the first material that Cooke had recorded in the six months following the drowning death of his 18-month old son Vincent. It was also the first album that Cooke recorded and released under his new contract with RCA and reached #34 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. The album is most memorable for Cooke's signature song "A Change Is Gonna Come". Though only a modest hit for Cooke in comparison with his previous singles, the song came to exemplify the sixties Civil Rights Movement. The song has gained in popularity and critical acclaim in the decades since its release. Five of the tracks on Ain't That Good News had already or would later be released as singles.


Contents

[edit] Overview

In this LP, two sides of Sam Cooke. The first side, strong and rockin'; the second side, ballads....deep and soulful. In many ways this is a tribute to the developed talents of Sam Cooke. As the skillful and polished performer that he was, Cooke could take any kind of song material and bring it on home to his audience so that it means something.

Side one features the nostalgic "Good Times", written by Cooke, and "Another Saturday Night", which he wrote while touring in England where he stayed in a hotel where no (female) guests were allowed. The rollin' chorus of "Meet Me at Mary's Place" were also written by Cooke about a gospel promoter in Charlotte, North Carolina where gospel groups often stayed. The country-style "Tennessee Waltz" is given new life here, while the title track, done out of the gospel tradition, would be his greatest hit until the central number on this album. "A Change Is Gonna Come", with its soaring gospel sound and powerful first-person language, was written in response to Dylan's protest anthem "Blowin' in the Wind" and became one of popular music's most well-known message songs. Following the centerpiece are orchestrated ballads and standards that are beautifully arranged by René Hall. Cooke gives the Irving Berlin tune, "Sittin' in the Sun", a powerful reading as he does with "Home". Ending on a sad note, the album closes with Sam Cooke's rendition of the traditional Appalachian ballad "The Riddle Song". According to string section leader Sid Sharp, Sam Cooke started to cry at the line "I gave my love a baby with no crying", which is reminiscent of the loss of Cooke's infant child, Vincent. [1]

A record that featured one side of harder soul numbers and another of mellower ballads, much like Ray Charles's Modern Sounds records, Ain't That Good News reflects Cooke's greater freedom in choosing material and sidemen. And so, it offered a lot of pent-up emotional and musical expression, which was unique in the Cooke's output. The album would serve as Sam Cooke's swan song. Ain't That Good News was quite overshadowed by the massive post-humous success of "A Change Is Gonna Come", but has received positive opinions from critics since. Mojo magazine included the album on its 100 from the Heart – 100 Soul Albums Everyone Should Own list.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Sam Cooke, except where noted.

[edit] Side One

  1. "(Ain't That) Good News" – 2:30
  2. "Meet Me At Mary's Place" – 2:44
  3. "Good Times" – 2:28
  4. "Rome (Wasn't Built In a Day)" (Cooke, Prudhomme) – 2:34
  5. "Another Saturday Night" – 2:42
  6. "Tennessee Waltz" (King, Stewart) – 3:12

[edit] Side Two

  1. "A Change Is Gonna Come" – 3:13
  2. "Falling In Love" (Battiste) – 2:45
  3. "Home (When Shadows Fall)" (Clarkson, Steeden) – 2:32
  4. "Sittin' In the Sun" (Berlin) – 3:18
  5. "There'll Be No Second Time" (White) – 3:03
  6. "The Riddle Song" (Traditional) – 2:30

[edit] Singles

Release Date Title Chart positions
US Pop Singles US Black Singles UK Singles Chart
April 2, 1963 "Another Saturday Night" #10 #1 #23
January 22, 1964 "(Ain't That) Good News" #11 * -
July 9, 1964 "Good Times" #11 * -
July 9, 1964 "Tennessee Waltz" #35 * -
December 22, 1964 "A Change Is Gonna Come" #31 #9 -

* - Through a period between late 1963 and late 1964, Billboard Magazine did not publish an R&B singles chart.[2]

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Horn Section

  • William Hinshaw - french horn
  • Jewell Grant - saxophone
  • William Green - saxophone
  • Plas Johnson - saxophone
  • Edgar Redmond - saxophone
  • Red Tyler - saxophone
  • Milton Bernhart - trombone
  • Harry Betts - trombone
  • Louis Blackburn - trombone
  • John Ewing - trombone
  • John Halliburton - trombone
  • David Wells - trombone
  • Ernest Tack - trombone
  • John Anderson - trumpet
  • Melvin Lastie - trumpet

[edit] Rhythm Section

[edit] Strings Section

  • Jesse Ehrlich - cello
  • Emmet Sargeant - cello
  • Harry Hyams - viola
  • Alexander Neiman - viola
  • Israel Baker - violin
  • Robert Barene - violin
  • Arnold Belnick - violin
  • John DeVoogdt - violin
  • William Kurasch - violin
  • Irving Lipschultz - violin
  • Leonard Malarsky - violin
  • Jack Pepper - violin
  • Ralph Schaeffer - violin
  • Sidney Sharp - violin
  • Darrel Terwilliger - violin
  • Tibor Zelig - violin

[edit] Vocals

[edit] Additional personnel

[edit] References

  • Ain't That Good News album liner notes by Hugo & Luigi and Lenne Allik. ABKCO Music & Records, Inc.. 
  1. ^ http://www.songsofsamcooke.com/songs/riddle_song.htm The Riddle Song Cooke profile
  2. ^ http://www.songsofsamcooke.com/singles.htm SongsOfSamCooke.com single dicography