Sam Cooke helped shape the soul and pop scene with hits like "You Send Me," "Chain Gang," and "Sad Mood."

This collection includes those singles alongside "Summertime," "Twistin' The Night Away" and more. That the vocalist sang these songs for our listening pleasure would have been enough, but add to that the fact that he also wrote most of the hits he sang just adds to his importance to the merging of pop and soul music.

This Best Of Sam Cooke album was the beacon that kept Cooke's most popular songs in the public eye. Between 1957 and his death seven years later, Cooke recorded an average of one Top Ten single every four months!