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stuporfly's review against another edition
5.0
His two volume set about Elvis was fantastic, but this is probably Guralnick's best work. Cooke's smooth voice belied a complex and complicated man, and Guralnick captures that existential struggle without ever being half as pretentious as this sentence.
wisha's review against another edition
I was very excited to read a galley copy of this book prior to its release, as Sam Cooke is one of my favorite singers. The first chapter was exceptionally well written. At the subsequent chapters, the book falls off a cliff! I wondered if the author was even the same. Despite a clear lack of source material particular to Cooke himself in his early years, the author gives a full picture of the gospel and travelling music groups in which Cooke participated, that were popular at the time. But the book quickly deteriorates into celebrity magazine style gossip. It was so bad, I stopped reading. Disappointing, because I really wanted to read a thoughtful bio of this incredibly talented man.
gjmaupin's review against another edition
4.0
Guralnick is really good at turning a formless life into a story without unduly manipulating The Way Things Go.
kojobaffoe's review against another edition
4.0
If there was ever a book that could be defined as ‘definitive’, it is this book. The depth of the research is phenomenal although it did, at times, feel a tad information heavy and dense. It does give you a multi-dimensional understanding of the man and artist that Sam Cooke was, drawing from those around him. Long but I enjoyed the book. The Kindle version has video and audio clips, which is a nice touch.
wholelottaotto's review
I love Peter Guralnick, and I love Sam Cooke, but I've tried twice now to get through this doorstop, and have failed both times early in the process (maybe pg. 100 or so). I'll give it another try eventually.
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