Sam Cooke Gets His Due
A biography of singer–songwriter Sam Cooke will be the fourth book by Peter Guralnick to be declared “a classic in blues literature” by the Blues Hall of Fame.
Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke (2005, Little, Brown) is a meticulously researched and richly detailed opus that follows the influential performer from his gospel days to his crossover to R&B and pop stardom to his tragic death at a Los Angeles motel. Cooke’s talent extended to the blues, and he especially admired blues artist Charles Brown.
Guralnick, writer-in-residence at Vanderbilt, was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame himself in 2010. Three of his other books—Feel Like Going Home: Portraits in Blues & Rock ’n’ Roll (1971, Outerbridge), Lost Highway: Journeys and Arrivals of American Musicians (1979, Godine), and Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom (1986, Harper & Row)—previously have been designated as classics in blues literature.
“It’s really thrilling for me to see Dream Boogie recognized in this way,” says Guralnick. “All my books have drawn upon the inspiration of the blues, but Dream Boogie for me is a celebration of the community as well, of the ‘presentness’ of that community, as James Baldwin wrote, from which the spirit of the blues—and gospel, R&B and soul—all sprang.”
The May 7 induction ceremony was held in Memphis, Tenn., the night before the 35th Blues Music Awards.