It is hard to believe that this music is over 50 years old. It sounds as if had been recorded yesterday. Each song is splendid. For those who only know Cooke's non-gospel recordings, check this out. Believe me, these are even better than his pop, rock and soul recordings. In fact, they are much better. These songs go right down to the marrow.I've never heard a better gospel singer. My favorites are "Nearer To Thee," and "Touch The Hem of His Garmet," which the multi-talented Cooke wrote. His voice was from heaven. It will touch your soul.

Excellent CD! This music was before so many singers that I admire, but Sam Cooke's sound is timeless. Yes, it is at the start of his career, which is a great time to hear his gospel music. His roots are in gospel music and he excels on this cd.
The music is so moving that at times when I hear Sam's voice I am moved to tears. The style in which the Soul-Stirrers accompany him was their style back then. These songs are less than 3 minutes long and the Soul-Stirrers were known for their restraint, yet these men could articulate a story and genuinely sing. All of them have talent! We're just blessed that Sam Cooke was their front-man.

When I switched from cassette tapes to CDs several years back this was the first CD that I bought to play in my new CD player. My favorite songs are It Won't Be Very Long, Were You There?, and Lord Remember Me. This is Sam Cooke at his very best. It is so sad that such a talented, gifted life was cut short so soon. But, thank God he left a treasury of good music. I love all of Sam Cooke's music.

If you need Gospel Music, this is the only gospel cd that you'll ever need..

Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers is the Greatest Gospel group of ALL-TIME!

Go to your local music store and buy this cd..once you buy it..you wouldn't have to buy another gospel cd ever again because this is the Greatest cd of ALL-TIME!

You've even had people that came after them re-create some of their songs because they were absolutely awesome. I am a black, 22 year old man and I'm telling you...when I'm not listening to Tupac or the Geto Boys...I'm listening to this cd. This cd has not left my radio since I bought it..trust me...this is a 10 star Classic cd...

It's sad that not many people my age know anything about Sam Cooke. People are sorely misled on who they believe can sing today. I mean for goodness sake people have even said that Usher is one of the greatest singers of all time(lol). To compare any other singer...even a great singer of today to Sam Cooke is just plain shameful. Can you hear the emence power and control in this man's voice? Jackie Wilson had a great and powerful voice, Aretha Franklin has a dynamic and stirring voice, but those two(two of the three greatest singers of all time)fall unbelievably short of Sam Cooke. Turn this album up loud and you'll understand what I mean. Also, get his "Live at the Harlem Square Club" album and everyone else, as Charles Barkley put it, will just seem "uncivilized".

Recorded from 1951 to 1956, Sam Cooke's work with the Soul Stirrers is both musically and spiritually rewarding. The technical quality of this Specialty label reissue is excellent. From the opener "Peace in the Valley," Cooke sets a heartfelt groove. On "It Won't Be Very Long," his impassioned vocals raise the spirits and the soul. Cooke wrote "Just Another Day" that builds joyfully, "When I get on home in my Lord's kingdom, I'm gonna sit down, roll around on the throne, and He'll be there with arms spread wide open; I'm gonna hear him say, 'My servant, welcome home.'" "He'll Make A Way" from 1954 begins to let us hear the Sam Cooke whose vocals would become legendary after switching to secular music. "Wonderful" is another excellent track where Cooke's voice soars like a dove on the wing as the Soul Stirrers give him a vocal backbeat. "Touch the Hem of His Garment," another Cooke-penned tune, rocks gently with Cooke's trademark vocals fully formed. "Mean Old World" is another delightful track complete with handclaps that sets your toe to tapping. "I'll Come Running Back to You" is not gospel, but has Cooke's classic romantic groove. This set is a great treat that both sounds great technically as well as brings back Cooke's earliest musical roots. Enjoy!

To me, this is the most beautiful singing in American music, right up there with Sarah Vaughan. Unlike many R&B artists today, Sam Cooke didn't use vocal embellishments just to show off--he really knew how to intensify the feeling of a song. What he does with each "Oh Lord" in "Touch the Hem of His Garment" sends chills down your spine.

This is the best Gospel music album with Sam Cooke. The songs are beautiful and full of emotion. Great songs include, HOw far from Canaan, Must Jesus bear this cross alonw, Were you there when they crucified my Lord?, Touch the hem of His garment etc. Sam Cooke is a fantastic gospel singer. If you like this album you will also like Paul Robeson's "Ol Man River, 25 greatest hits (his best album by far)", Jubilant Sykes (he has 2 albums), and Keith Green (his best album is the 2 CD set called "MInistry Years". These artists listed have made some of the most beautiful Christian music ever made.

When I first started to buy CDs over 5 years ago, the very first CD I bought was this one, and let me tell you from the first song to the last one, I felt I was in 7th heaven!! This CD is AWESOME and then some!! I did not purchase another CD for a few months, but that did not matter, because I listened to this one several times over, back to back, especially songs like, 'Won't be very long' and 'Just another day' shows this man true artistic form--From the sounds of it, he appeared to sound better when he was singing gospel, then when he moved on to the secular music, but this is just my opinion--Anyway, this gospel CD is the best one that I have ever listened to all around--I would recommend anyone who is trying to get a collection of great gospel singers, please, please, please, buy this one for your collection also, you will not be disappointed!!!!

A word of caution, friends. I just got this, and this music is not anything like pre-soul gospel or Aretha Franklin call and response gospel. It is old, restrained and formulaic gospel.

So you may not like the music.

Also, this is Sam's earliest gig - the boy was 19-25 years of age. He has a young voice and he is just finding his own style. I will listen to this many times and will rewrite a review if I change my mind, but as it stands now, this is not his best singing (as others have stated).

Finally, the very good liner notes state that Sam told his best buddy with the Soul Stirrers that he had gone as far as he thought he could go with gospel and he wanted to break into secular pop music. I can really understand this, because the music is pretty structured and constrained. I am NOT saying the singing is bad (it is very, very good), but the nature of the music is what is constrained.

So if you are just curious and don't like gospel, I'd try something else. But if you adore Sam and want to learn more and hear more, this is just fine.

Great songs include Must Jesus bear this cross alone, Were you there?, It won't be long, Touch the hem of his garment, How far from Canaan. Album is a masterpiece with Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers at their best. With songs that are on more than one album, the best version is on this album.

There is not much to add to the existing, excellent reviews. It's hard to believe that this music is 50 years old--it still sounds fresh and vital, with the young Sam Cooke shining on this wonderful music. He really had a unique voice, and his sad, early death robbed the world of a huge talent.
This music has lost none of it's magic, and no serious collector of gospel, R and B, Soul should be without such a marvellous CD.

I was talking to Bruce Hornsby the other day. He said "I promise you will not be dissapointed with this album". I am buying it today. The song How Far Is It To Canaan is killer!

I think this CD is excellent. It has that old time gospel feel to it. Being brought up with gospel music, it takes me back to my childhood days listening to my folks singing the gospel every time we had a family gathering; they would also sing a capella. Although I like every song, I think they could have done without the guitar player fumbling around on "Come And Go To That Land" and "I'm So Happy In The Service Of The Lord". It had a country twang to it which did not go with the song or singers.

If you love Sam Cooke and the old time gospel, buy this CD, you will not be disappointed. Sam Cooke's voice is truly one of a kind and the other singers are superb as well.

When R. H. Harris left the Soul Stirrers, many people expressed surprise that someone as young as Sam Cooke was asked to take his place. They changed their minds quickly, Sam had the voice, the charisma and the determination to make him a star. Gospel lost a great star when he turned to popular music, but he has left a wonderful legacy for all music lovers. His Gospel roots show his very best work, a voice both sweet and powerful. His call-and-response with Paul Foster brings two masters together in perfect complement of each other.

This record is a must for fans of Sam Cooke and fans of singing in general. There are 25 songs on the CD, 20 of which are Gospel. All the songs are good but my three favourites would be "How Far am I from Canaan, Be with me Jesus, and Jesus wash away my Troubles (this one brings home just how good a singer Sam Cooke was)". I would also recommend the two CD set "Sam Cooke's Sar Records Story" which has a full CD devoted to Gospel recordings made on Sam's label, finishing with the most beautiful version of "That's Heaven To Me" sung by Sam Cooke himself.

theses songs are just what one need when feeling down my heart was up liffed i joy and praise.thank you very much

In my opinion Sam Cooke is one of the top five vocalist of the 1950's-early 1960's R&R era even when considering only his pop/soul recordings.

I have never heard as excellent a vocal rendering on ANY song as Mr. Cooke did on "Where You There?" If you would like to hear the most heavenly, earthy music you are likely to ever hear, then buy this CD and go immediately to #18. Most of the other gospel cuts are excellent too. PS. Selections #20-#21 are out of place and detract from the "Power of the Gospel" but.....

This is the raw, gritty Sam Cooke of the church. These are his early Gospel sides, backed by the fantastic Soul Stirrers. You get to see the real fusion of Gospel and R&B that created Soul music. Sam moves from mimicking the group's former lead singer, to creating a sound of his own, to taking off for the wealth and fame of popular music. I got to know the Gospel side of Sam via the first two tracks on the compilation, "A Man And His Music." On "Touch The Hem Of His Garment," I was in awe of that voice. And it's such a great songwriting achievement! "That's Heaven To Me" is probably the prettiest Gospel song I ever heard, and again, it's beautiful songwriting. That's just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many great performances here, with many of them Cooke compositions. And early solo works by Sam as a secular singer are here ("Lovable," "That's All I Need To Know"), including a #1 R&B smash, "I'll Come Running Back To You." If you want to know where Sam Cooke was coming from, here it is. It is just about a consensus, that as great as Sam Cooke was singing Soul music, he was even better at Gospel. This is Sam singing his roots. The sound is truly divine. We are fortunate to be able to touch the hem of Sam's garment, and hear him sing Gospel.

Though his pop stuff is incredible his Gospel stuff such as this will bring Tears to your eyes.His Voice Soars so strongly here.He was not only a Great Writer but his voice is one of the Greatest The Music World has Ever Heard.you feel his Soul here.He was One Of a Kind.

what can you say about sam cooke? he was simply the best. no one before or since can match his talent. many people are only aware of his pop tunes. this collection shows his grittier gospel style.but whether singing gospel or pop, sam did it with style and grace and has influenced every soul artist that has come since.

Just finished listening to this wonderful CD for the umpteenth time since I received it last week. If music is truly a gift from the heart of God then Sam Cooke's voice must be a gift from His soul!

Sam Cooke's talent as a singer and writer amazes me. Until I discovered his spiritual work, I was not aware he was a writer. His How Far I am From Canaan is the best gospel I've heard. The arrangement is awesome. I never tire of this wonderful CD. I've learned to appreciae Sam Cooke much more. If you buy one spiritual CD by Sam Cooke, this should be it.

This CD goes to show what a wonderful voice sam cooke had. A God giving voice that sang God inspired songs.

This album includes several moving, stand-out tracks, including a breath-taking reading of the Dorsey standard "Peace in the Valley"--the best I have ever heard. The arrangments are so textured, the harmonies so rich: the selections here truly convey the grace, energy and love of gospel music. Rest in Peace, Sam.