Customer Reviews

Our Uncle Sam: The Sam Cooke Story From His Family's Perspective

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Unforunately, I was not born when Sam Cooke graced the earth with his presence and voice, but I have had the priveledge of hearing that voice, preserved forever on vinyl. I remember hearing "Cupid" as a kid and never really paying attention to it and I remember being told by elders that Sam Cooke was 'grown folks music." So it wasn't until I had experienced some love, heartache, joy and pain that I listened to Sam Cooke again @ the age of 34 and really understood what he was talking about. I had to know everything about him and asked older family members and read various stories about him (some urban legend, some true) and decided to search on my own. I appreciate this novel because it was written by a family member, but the information wasn't sugar coated. He was a man who made some mistakes, sang about what he saw, and fought for equality in a world that didn't fully understand or appreciate his talents.
This novel raises legitimate questions about Mr. Cooke's death that I believe ought to be looked at and it saddened me that the details of his death have just been overlooked. Like Dorothy Dandridge, he star burned so bright for such a short time and his departure was tragic. Clearly the world, especially his family, still miss him.

Sam Cooke's nephew, Erik Green, did an excellent job of telling Sam's story from the perspective of family members. This book is well written and is easy to read. Every Sam Cooke fan, old and new, should have this book. Sam, as Areatha Franklin says, was a prince of a man.

Out of all the books about Sam Cooke that I have read - this one answers the question of what happened to Sam's family after his death. It is just so hearbreaking to read different family members account of those days after he passed, and the pandemonium that insued. This book also includes an engrossing alternate account of what may have been Sam's last hours - a horrifying possibility that seems infinitely more logical than the "official" story. There needs to be some cold case investigating on the real story of this man's death, for real. It is also infuriating to find out what happened to Sam's musical legacy after his passing - one that he worked so hard to build. This book is an uplifting read, because through everything - it is a love story that this family has had for someone who was so extraordinary, even the little things that he did could be remembered with vivid detail by them over 40+ years later.

This book also points out some inconsistencies with a couple of other Sam Cooke bios out there. That was really great. Who would know, better than family?

This is a must for every Sam Cooke fan out there. You owe it to yourself to get an inside look, from the people who knew and loved him best.

Sam Cooke is my all time favourite singer, musician, artist. I have always felt an overwhelming sadness that Sam was not around to tell his own story. "Our Uncle Sam" has corrected this; not totally or completely, but it has done so more totally and more completely than anything else that's out there.

I was at University, well over 20 years ago, when I first heard Sam Cooke. Immediately I went on a crusade to find out everything that I could about the man with a voice like no other. I went to bookstores and to libraries and to music records stores. I read every page in every book that I could find that had anything about Sam Cooke and I read liner notes and bought records.

One record store I remember very well. It had a picture of Sam Cooke on the window. Actually, it was the album cover of the KEEN LP 2001. It had faded from the sun and the years, but still looked so good! The owner of the store was an elderly gentleman who told me about Sam performing in Montreal twice and also in Vancouver, once. He said that Sam "was the best" and that he became so famous so fast, and that he was a "very smart businessman" and that no other singer did what Sam did. At one point I told him that I love Sam Cooke, and he replied with "Who doesn't love Sam Cooke?". I said that the murderers who killed him did not, and he said "His wife and her lover arranged it" and that "everybody knew about it".

At that time the only thing that I knew about Barbara was that she was Sam's wife and that she married Bobby Womack. But now I know more about them and I am not much surprised at what he said.

The Sam Cooke that emerges from the pages of "Our Uncle Sam" is a kind and caring and decent man. It is the Sam Cooke that his family knew and still knows and remembers. He is also a man with social conscience and with an acute sense of justice. It is also a man who refused to believe that the colour of his skin had anything to do with what he could or could not accomplish.

But Sam Cooke was also a man who did not suffer those who tried to lie to him or tried to cheat him or tried to steal from him--whether they were his employees or his "friends".

Sam Cooke was an exceptional man; that's how his family knows him and it's also how Muhammad Ali knows him and Lou Adler and Solomon Burke and Herb Alpert and so many, many others know him.

The point is, who is credible? Sam's family who knew him best and all the other people I mention above, or is it Barbara or Bobby Womack or a disgruntled former employee or Allen Klein, who is still known and referred to as the "New York bull....." aficionado?

Read "Our Uncle Sam" and decide for yourself.

I discovered Sam Cooke about 6 years ago and almost from day one, I hoped and wished that the family will write a book to tell us the true story about Sam Cooke. And now we have "Our Uncle Sam" by Erik Greene.

I purchased this book shortly after it was published and immediately started reading it with great anticipation and excitement while at the same time there was a place in my heart full of dread because I knew that with each page that I turned, I was getting closer and closer to the chapter about Sam's death.

"Our Uncle Sam" is the story of Sam Cooke as a son, father, brother, uncle, husband. It is also a story about Sam Cooke, the man. We can see how Sam lived and what were his dreams and goals and what he held most dearly to his heart. We can also understand why all his life Sam Cooke strove for his right to be the sole owner of his "Personhood" as a man and as an artist.

The author makes it easy for us to comprehend why Sam was the first Black musician to openly refuse to perform to segregated audiences, why he was the first to stop straightening his hair, and why he could no longer tolerate "blacks only" entrances/exits or "whites only" establishments. It is also not difficult to understand why Sam Cooke had to be murdered and why the so called "official version" of his murder has as much substance as a child's balloon--one tiny little prick, and Puff! no more balloon.

"Our Uncle Sam" does not answer all the questions about Sam Cooke but the ones that the author answers, he does so accurately. I think that many readers, like I did, will find out for the first time the true nature of Sam's business relationships and the details of how and by whom Sam's family and his children were swindled out of his vast business holdings.

Since Sam's death, a lot has been written and said about him. Also, a lot of inaccuracies and misinformation and fabrications and plain ignorance have been spread about him, it seems, by anybody who wished to do so. It is amazing how easy it is for anybody who is perceived to be an "authority" on something or some kind of an "official" to spread inaccurate information.

I recently heard Peter Guralnick being phone-interviewed by Tavis Smiley. Toward the end of the interview, Tavis asked Guralnick about Sam's death and Guralnick replied that Sam "was courting death" and in support of this, he proceeded to relay, inaccurately and only certain parts of, the following incident.

While touring the South, (late 50's/early 60's) Sam's car broke down and the attending policeman requested that Sam push his car out of the way. Sam refused to do so, telling the police officer that it was not his job to push the car, that he was a musician, a singer, and "you may not know me, but your wife knows me". Sam then sat in his car and waited for professional help to arrive. Guralnick went on to say that "this was a very bold remark for Sam to make" (the implication being that it is an insulting remark to the police officer's wife) and Tavis just repeated, kind of chuckling, "yes, a very bold remark". (he,he; wink,wink...) I found this response hurtful and totally uncalled for and unworthy of Tavis Smiley.

Peter Guralnick was born in 1943. I think that from his own family's experience and from the families of his friends and neighbours and in society in general, he is old enough to know that the vast majority of families in the USA in Sam's times, were traditional families--the husband was employed outside of the home and the wife stayed at home.

It is normal then that the wife could listen to the radio every day, and it is the wife who will know what was happening on the music scene, who was who in music, and to know about individual musicians and to reocognise various musicians. And if there were teenagers in the home, then it was even more so--the wife and the kids knew music and musicians, much more than the husbands/fathers.

It is incredible to me that Guralnick mentions Sam's refusal to push his car out of the way, as a kind of "by the way" footnote, and he places all the emphasis of this incident on Sam's remark. Sam's refusal to push the car out of the way shows a man confident enough to stand up for his rights; Sam's "bold remark" is neither bold nor it is unusual. It is just a statement of a fact that any day-time TV or radio personality or a successful musician could have made. Tavis, whose business it is to ask questions and to not be taken for the proverbial ride, failed here.

I mean here we have Sam Cooke, a Black young man, in the South USA, in the late 50's/early 60's where racism and segregation were very much the daily reality, and he not only refuses to obey the white police officer, but he also insults his wife in the process?! And the police officer does not lash out to strike or to punch or to kick Sam? Why didn't Tavis wonder about this? Obviously the police officer understood Sam's remark the way Sam meant it; that people knew Sam Cooke because of his songs and music. Now, if Tavis and Guralnick discussed this privately, then the harm would have been only to themselves, but sadly they had an audience... And this is but one example of how inaccuracies and misinformation and fabrications can be spread.

I love Sam Cooke. I am one of his greatest fans--one of his many greatest fans. Sam Cooke is my Hero.

I strongly recommend "Our Uncle Sam" because it is finally the voice of Sam Cooke that we hear. Equally strongly, I recommend this book for what it does not have--no inaccuracies, no misinformation, no fabrications and no ignorance.

Five Stars definitely. For the subject, for the author and for the book.

(P.S) R. Grant. Yes, I have The Legend DVD. And, no, Guralnick's version of Sam Cooke's remark, as told during the interview with Tavis Smiley, is not accurate or complete. In his attempt to have us believe that Sam's "very bold remark" proves that Sam "courted death", Guralnick ommited the parts that render Sam's remark self-explanatory and normal. What Sam's complete remark amounts to is that he believed that he was a famous singer and that people knew him from his songs and music.

Now, it is possible, I guess, that Sam had overestimated his fame and popularity. Anything is possible, but I doubt it. Sam did not live in tra-la land. He was a very smart man with very good observational skills and very aware of what was happening around him. Also, the success of his records was a testimony to his popularity. In addition, it is obvious that this incident happend after "You Send Me" and it happened in Memphis. Memphis is not in the boonies. So, unless Sam Cooke and his music were banned from the radio stations in Memphis, it is normal for Sam to believe that anybody who had daily access to a radio there would know about him and his music. It follows from all the above that in its entirety, there is nothing unusual about Sam's remark; it is not "a very bold remark for Sam to make" and definitely, it is not proof that Sam "courted death". But it is an example of how easy it is to spread ignorance and inaccurate information by anybody, Guralnik included.

With the publication of 'Our Uncle Sam', Eric Greene has given such an amazing gift to all of Sam's fans. For those of us who really have only known Sam through his music, we can now share in the memories from this extraordinarily close and loving family. It's a pure delight. Sam's business sense and musical talent seemed to have no limits, but he was also a son, brother, husband, father, uncle and a friend to so many. How lucky we are to be able to learn about the kind of man he was through his family's eyes. This is not something you'll find anywhere else. Thank you Eric, for sharing such a treasure.

If you have read Peter Guralnics Dream Boogie then when you read this you will wonder if there are 2 Sam Cookes. The drunken womanising despot who is finally shot or the caring generous uncle who is murdered. Take your pick . Me I have a tendency to lean towards Erik Greenes version , partly because I love sam Cooke but mostly because his Sam Cooke comes closer to the Sam Cooke described by all the people who knew him from Muhammad Ali to Solomon Burke to Lou Adler to Herb Alpert have nothing to gain by describing Sam as the greatest guy I ever knew or he was so generous and lovely.
Read the book The real sam cooke is waiting for you.

I am a very big fan of Sam Cooke's music and I have read all of the books published about Sam Cooke. Erik Greene's book, "Our Uncle Sam" is so wonderfully written. It has GREAT and very intimate pictures of Sam Cooke and his family. One Saturday night I stayed up reading this book. I guess it was not just another Saturday Night!

This book took me back to a bygone age,Sam cooke is my favourite singer of all time, and by the time I put the book down,I felt like I was one of the family. Great..........

Erik Greene's Our Uncle Sam is the book that Sam Cooke fans worldwide have been waiting for. It tells the Sam Cooke story from the family's perspective, unlike the biographies that have been published in the past. This book is very personal and touching and includes rare, private family photos and stories. It's an easy read and worth every penny.