On a dance floor

50 years after his death, Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” is more important than ever 

Thursday marked the 50th anniversary of the death of Sam Cooke, the greatest soul singer of all time. It also marks roughly 50 years since the release of his greatest song, the civil rights anthem “A Change Is Gonna Come.”

Originally released just weeks after his death, Cooke’s 1964 masterpiece was in many ways an anthem for a nation in chaos. Considered his greatest composition and since preserved in the Library of Congress, the National Recording Registry has called the song “culturally, historically or aesthetically important.” It is just as culturally relevant today as ever before.

It’s easy to hear why 40 record labels tried to sign this dishwasher 

Seven months ago, aspiring soul singer Leon Bridges was washing dishes at a restaurant in Fort Worth, Texas. On Christmas, six months later, he announced that he’d signed with Columbia Records.

Labi Siffre | Bless The Telephone