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Metropolitan Pittsburgh Real Estate
Only Sixteen: Sam Cooke and Me Only Sixteen: Sam Cooke and MeBy Rick Xander You probably think you don’t need to read any further, right? Wrong. Good song, though. I do like Sam Cooke’s original version much better than Doctor Hook’s 1976 version. That Doctor Hook version came out when I was in college. Early rock ‘n’ roll had been making a little comeback in the early ’70s, when I was in high school. How come? Well, let’s take a look at what was popular when I graduated from Quaker Valley High School in 1974. The charts were topped with Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama”; “Takin’ Care of Business,” by Bachman-Turner Overdrive; Elton John’s “Bennie and the Jets”; “Rock the Boat,” by the Hues Corporation; Barry Manilow’s “Mandy.” 1973 gave us Tony Orlando and Dawn’s “Tie a Yellow Ribbon,” and Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain.” I guess I’d call that a mixed bag: some very good, some I could live without. Most of the music from that time didn’t resonate with me. It lacked something. Character? Soul? I didn’t have to look far to find those qualities. I just had to look to the past. The other day, my DJ buddy Dave Justice was asking his listeners to name their favorite song. That’s a tough one for me. As Jimmy Durante used to say, “I got a million of ‘em, a million of ‘em.” Every week on the Internet, I find good songs that weren’t well promoted at the time, were regional hits but not in my locale, were seldom-played flip sides and forgotten album cuts. Most of them are from groups that I’ve never even heard of before. They happen to be my favorite while I’m listening to them. Then I move on to the next one, then that’s my favorite. Now, if you ask me about records I had to run out and buy, I guess I would call those my favorite favorites. This list, at different times, included “Please Say You Want Me,” by the Schoolboys, “Daddy’s Home,” by Shep and the Limelights, “When We Get Married,” by the Dreamlovers, “Down In the Alley,” by the Clovers, “What Do I Have to Do,” by Frankie and the Fashions,” “Oh, Rosemarie,” by the Fascinators, “Two People in the World,” by Anthony and the Imperials, “Have You Heard,” by the Duprees, “Come Back My Love,” by the Wrens and “Early to Bed,” by the Poni Tails. But what was the first one? What was the first song that I had to stop what I was doing and just listen? And then when it came on again, I had to stop and listen again. Then finally, I resolved to get my own copy so I wouldn’t have to wait for it. Back to 1972, and my junior year of high school, the year I turned 16 years old. As I said before, I didn’t care much for the music that was popular at the time. Candlelight Records was then featuring a compilation album of 1950s music that was regularly advertised on TV. My parents had a good collection of Perry Como, Mitch Miller and other easy listening stuff. They didn’t have any of this music. And I’ll never forget the one clip on that commercial that got my attention…”Darling, you-ooohh-ooohh, send me.” What a cool song! What does the rest of it sound like, I wondered? One day in school, a couple of seniors were clowning around, and they sang a few bars of it together. Now this song had my attention. I used to listen to a lot of sports on the radio back then. After listening to the Pirates and Penguins, I’d look for out-of-town games from places like Cleveland, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati, Atlanta … whatever was on. You could pick those up well at night. This was before ESPN, before Sunday Night Baseball or Football. There were one or two NFL games on Sunday, and a new fad called Monday Night Football. One Sunday night in 1972, I was looking for a game while I was doing my homework. There were none on. I flipped the dial until I came upon a station playing some 1950s music. Oh. Let’s try this. The DJ came on between songs and gave a little bit of history about the song or performer. Hmmm. Having an in interest in history, my ears perked up. The station was 1110, WBT in Charlotte, N.C. And the DJ was Rockin’ Ray, who really knew his music, which he called R&B. That didn’t stop him from throwing in a Bobby Vinton record every so often Ray was on every Sunday night for years from 7-11 p.m. And he always ended his show with Jesse Belvin singing, “Good Night My Love.” The next Sunday night, I tuned in again. Then again the next week. I was getting hooked. Most nights, the reception from Charlotte to western Pennsylvania was good. But I would listen to Rockin’ Ray even on the most static-filled nights. I was wondering when Ray was going to get around to playing “You Send Me,” by Sam Cooke. I wanted to hear the whole thing. About two weeks in, I got my wish. Ray was talking about Sam Cooke, and how he got his start with the gospel group, the Soul Stirrers and how “You Send Me,” was his greatest hit. Then he said Sam Cooke remained one of the best-selling male vocalists “until he met his demise.” Then without musical introduction, Sam Cooke started “You Send Me.” I hung on every word. I loved the backup singers and their “Wooo-ooo-woo-ooo.” In some ways, I thought that was coolest part. Kind of sensual, I thought. This song had soul I wasn’t going to find in a Barry Manilow record. I wanted to hear it again. But what about Sam Cooke’s demise? I had to go to the library to find out why I wouldn’t be hearing any new Sam Cooke records in 1972. Sam’s death came under very mysterious circumstances, an article in the library said. He was shot on Dec. 11, 1964 in Los Angeles by a motel manager who said he was drunk and had tried to rape her. The courts called it justifiable homicide. He was 33. What a tragedy, I thought. As time went by, I learned that many artists from era also died young. I just loved “You Send Me.” After hearing it several more times, I wanted my own copy. I had heard radio commercials for Record-Rama on Butler Street in Etna, PA. Supposedly, you could buy just about any record there. One day, I got into my 1969 Volkswagen with a few bucks in my pocket and headed for Etna. I was going to buy the first few records in my collection. Record Rama was in a grimy storefront next to a Chevrolet dealership. All the records were on index cards, and the man behind the counter asked me to pull the cards for the records I wanted. First up, “You Send Me.” I remember that I also got “Come Go With Me,” by the Del Vikings, “Return to Sender,” by Elvis Presley and “Down in the Alley.” They didn’t have the Clovers’ version, so I settled for the Ronnie Hawkins cut. I couldn’t wait to get home and play them. “You Send Me,” sounded different. It was a Trip Records release, a remake or an alternative take, I learned later. Eventually, I would get the RCA version. But I had it. And I played it over and over and over until I got tired of hearing it. I still love “You Send Me” and sometimes I still play it. I’ve heard other versions, but none as smooth or soulful as the Sam Cooke release. Never would I have guessed as a 16-year-old that I would still be listening to it as a 55-year-old, or that I would have discovered that there is so much more music about as old as I am still waiting to be discovered. It’s been a great ride. |
