Ain't That Good News (album)

Ain't That Good News
Studio album by
Sam Cooke
ReleasedFebruary 1964 (1964-02)[1]
RecordedFebruary 28, 1963 – January 30, 1964
Music Center of the World
(Hollywood, California)
Genre
Length33:25
LabelRCA Victor
ProducerHugo & Luigi
Sam Cooke chronology
3 Great Guys
(1963) 		Ain't That Good News
(1964) 		Sam Cooke at the Copa
(1964)
Singles from Ain't That Good News
  1. "Another Saturday Night"
    Released: April 2, 1963
  2. "(Ain't That) Good News"
    Released: January 22, 1964
  3. "Good Times"
    Released: July 9, 1964
  4. "Tennessee Waltz"
    Released: July 9, 1964
  5. "A Change Is Gonna Come"
    Released: December 22, 1964
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Melody Maker[3]
Q[4]

Ain't That Good News is the eleventh and final studio album by the American R&B and soul singer-songwriter Sam Cooke. It was released in February 1964 through RCA Victor Records.[1][5] Recording sessions for the album took place at RCA Victor's Music Center of the World Studio in February and December 1963 and January 1964. The cover photo was taken by American photographer Wallace Seawell. Ain't That Good News was the final studio album to be issued during Cooke's lifetime, before his death at the age of 33. With the exception of "Another Saturday Night", which had been released as a single early in the previous year, Ain't That Good News comprised the first material that Cooke had recorded in the six months following the drowning death of his 18-month-old son Vincent.[6]

The first album that Cooke recorded and released under his new contract with RCA, Ain't That Good News reached No. 34 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. The album contains "A Change Is Gonna Come", one of Cooke's best-known songs. Though only a modest hit for Cooke in comparison with his previous singles, the song came to exemplify the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s.[6] The song has gained in popularity and critical acclaim in the decades since its release. Five of the tracks on Ain't That Good News were released as singles. Ain't That Good News was reissued in hybrid CD/Super Audio CD format by ABKCO Records in June 2003 with full music and session credits.[5]

  1. ^ a b "New Album Releases". The Billboard Publishing Co. February 22, 1964.
  2. ^ AllMusic review
  3. ^ Melody Maker review
  4. ^ Q review
  5. ^ a b Hugo, Luigi (2003), p. 1.
  6. ^ a b Johnstone (1999), p. 74.