Cupid (Sam Cooke song)

"Cupid"
Single by Sam Cooke
from the album The Best of Sam Cooke
B-side"Farewell My Darling"
ReleasedMay 16, 1961 (1961-05-16)
RecordedApril 14, 1961
StudioRCA (Hollywood, California)
GenreRhythm and blues
Length2:30
LabelRCA Victor
Songwriter(s)Sam Cooke
Producer(s)Hugo & Luigi
Sam Cooke singles chronology
"That's It, I Quit, I'm Moving On"
(1961)
"Cupid"
(1961)
"Feel It"
(1961)
"Cupid"
Single by Johnny Nash
from the album Hold Me Tight
A-side"Hold Me Tight" (original)
B-side"People in Love" (reissue)
Released1969
Recorded1969
GenreReggae, rocksteady
Length3:29
LabelJAD
Songwriter(s)Sam Cooke
Producer(s)Johnny Nash, Arthur Jenkins
Johnny Nash singles chronology
"Love and Peace"
(1969)
"Cupid"
(1969)
"(What A) Groovey Feeling"
(1970)
"Cupid"
Single by Tony Orlando and Dawn
from the album To Be with You
B-side"You're Growin' on Me"
ReleasedJanuary 1976 (1976-01)
GenrePop
Length3:02
LabelElektra
Songwriter(s)Sam Cooke
Producer(s)Dave Appell, Hank Medress
Tony Orlando and Dawn singles chronology
"Skybird"
(1975)
"Cupid"
(1976)
"Midnight Love Affair"
(1976)
"Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time"
Single by The Spinners
from the album Love Trippin'
B-side"Pipedream"
"Body Language" (Germany/Sweden)
ReleasedMay 1980 (1980-05)
GenreR&B, disco
Length3:55 (single version)
5:32 (album version)
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)Sam Cooke ("Cupid"), Michael Zager ("I've Loved You for a Long Time")
Producer(s)Michael Zager
The Spinners singles chronology
"Working My Way Back to You"
(1979)
"Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time"
(1980)
"Now That You're Mine Again"
(1980)

"Cupid" is a song by American singer Sam Cooke, released on May 16, 1961. It charted at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 20 on the Hot R&B Sides chart; the track performed best in the United Kingdom, peaking at number seven on the UK Singles Chart. The song is featured on Cooke's greatest hits album, The Best of Sam Cooke (1962). Cooke's producers had asked him to write a song for a girl they had seen on a Perry Como TV show—but once they heard her sing, they kept "Cupid" for Cooke himself.

Personnel on the recording included Cooke's session regulars Clifton White and Rene Hall on guitar, Clifford Hills on bass, Earl Palmer on drums and Joseph Gibbons on guitar and banjo.

"Cupid" was ranked at number 452 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004 and at number 458 in 2010. An AllMusic critic described the track as a "perfect pop song" which combines "Latin, R&B, jazz, and mainstream pop elements".[1]

  1. ^ Janovitz, Bill. "Cupid - Sam Cooke". AllMusic. Retrieved September 5, 2014.