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Sam Cooke - Part II

Host Bob Edwards talks to music historian Peter Guralnick about Sam Cooke's 1957 crossover from gospel to rock-and-roll, his immediate first hit, "You Send Me," and the many others that followed. Cooke combined black and white musical styles, aiming his songs at a multi-racial audience. He owned the rights to his compositions and a record label and had creative control over how his music was recorded. (The digitally remastered CD's are on the Abkco label, as are DVD and VHS versions of the documentary, Sam Cooke: Legend.)

Copyright 2003 NPR

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