"It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America." President elect. Barack Obama.
Acceptance Speech
The campaign now has limited edition tee shirts echoing this theme:
Change Has Come Tee Shirt
The words taken from a song that I grew up with. A song that always resonated in my soul, a gospel of truth, of hope, of yearning.
It is fitting that our President elect has used these words, so fraught with historical significance.
So let us rejoice today - with music.
We all have music in our souls.
Sam Cooke was always one of my favorite singers. And his "A Change is Gonna Come" was my favorite song.
Sam Cooke (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964) was an American gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the pioneers and founders of soul music.[2][3][4]
Cooke had 29 Top 40 hits in the U.S. between 1957 and 1965. Major hits like "You Send Me", "Chain Gang", "Wonderful World" and "Bring It on Home to Me" are some of his most popular songs. Cooke was also among the first modern black performers and composers to attend to the business side of his musical career. He founded both a record label and a publishing company as an extension of his careers as a singer and composer. He also took an active part in the American Civil Rights Movement.
Gospel has always been the backbone of the black church experience, but Sam Cooke, and Aretha Franklin took gospel out of the church and brought it into secular society.
The Civil Rights Movement used gospel, to motivate, mobilize and bring hope to millions as we marched and dreamed.
A Change Is Gonna Come
"A Change Is Gonna Come" is a 1964 single by R&B singer-songwriter Sam Cooke, written and first recorded in 1963 and released under the RCA Victor label shortly after his death in late 1964. Though only a modest hit for Cooke in comparison with his previous singles, the song came to exemplify the sixties Civil Rights Movement. The song has gained in popularity and critical acclaim in the decades since its release.
It is interesting that Cooke was moved by Bob Dylan - a poet and prophet for the 6o's:
Origins
Cooke was greatly moved upon hearing Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind" in 1963 and was reportedly in awe[citation needed] that such a poignant song about racism in America could come from someone who was white. While on tour in May 1963, and after speaking with sit-in demonstrators in Durham, North Carolina following a concert, Cooke returned to his tour bus and wrote the first draft of what would become "A Change Is Gonna Come."
In a sense, "A Change Is Gonna Come" is an answer to Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind", as well as a song of hope for the Civil Rights Movement. The hypothetical questions posed by Dylan, most obvious being "how many years can some people exist, before they're allowed to be free?", were answered by an implied "Fewer than you think." Though Cooke recognized "it's been a long/a long time coming", the song states that change is inevitable. A similar sentiment was echoed by Dylan in "The Times They Are a-Changin'", written and released after "A Change Is Gonna Come."
Very different from R&B hits by Cooke like "You Send Me", the song speaks of both personal and political events in Cooke's life:
The song, very much a departure for Cooke, reflected two major incidents in his life. The first was the death of Cooke's eighteen-month-old son, Vincent, who died of an accidental drowning in June of that year. The second major incident came on October 8, 1963, when Cooke and his band tried to register at a "whites only" motel in Shreveport, Louisiana and were summarily arrested for disturbing the peace. Both incidents are represented in the weary tone and lyrics of the piece, especially the final verse: "there have been times that I thought I couldn't last for long/but now I think I'm able to carry on/It's been a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna come."
Was pleased to find that Wiki editors are on the ball - see this new Wikipedia entry:
In his victory speech, delivered before a crowd of hundreds of thousands of his supporters in Chicago, Barack Obama declared that "It's been a long time coming, but tonight, ... change has come to America." This was an obvious reference to Sam Cooke's song and how Obama's history defining victory is in many ways a fulfillment of the message and hope reflected in the song.
So let us celebrate this day with music.
Sam Cooke-A Change Is Gonna Come
Lyrics
I was born by the river in a little tent
Oh and just like the river I've been running ever since
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
It's been too hard living but I'm afraid to die
Cause I don't know what's up there beyond the sky
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
I go to the movie and I go downtown
Somebody keep telling me don't hang around
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
Then I go to my brother
And I say brother help me please
But he winds up knocking me
Back down on my knees
Ohhhhhhhhh.....
There been times that I thought I couldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
From the First Lady of Soul:
Aretha Franklin- A Change Is Gonna Come
Patti Labelle - A Change Is Gonna Come
An African-European version:
Seal - A Change Is Gonna Come
From a man who took up the mantle of soul, and who will be missed:
Luther Vandross...A Change Is Gonna Come
The inspiration:
Bob Dylan-The Times They Are A-Changin
Yes. We. Did.
Yes. We. Will
Change!