One Night Stand - Sam Cooke Live At The Harlem Square Club, 1963

Recorded at the Harlem Square Club in Miami on 12 January 1963, 'One Night Stand' is a live album that really packs a punch. I couldn't quite believe how good it was when I first heard it. The singer chose some of his best songs for the evening and was most ably backed by an excellent band, including King Curtis on saxophone. Sam Cooke really worked the audience up into a frenzy and the atmosphere was absolutely electrifying. Surprisingly, the album wasn't released until 1985 because the people at RCA Records thought that the performance was 'too rough and gritty' and would diminish the artist's smooth image. The singer's voice is certainly grittier on this recording than on his studio outings, which makes the album sound more down to earth and vital. So, here we have yet more incontrovertible evidence that Sam Cooke was not only an amazing singer, but also a great entertainer. Highly recommended.

One of the VERY best live shows ever recorded by anyone. Sam proves HE is the one and only King Of Soul and everybody else are his soul disciples: James Brown, Bobby Womack, Joe Tex, Otis Redding... Everybody learned from The Master. This is as RAW and gritty (soulful) as can be; as very passionate, honest, in-your-face and "street" as you can get. Very different from his smooth pop records. This is the real Sam Cooke. Get this one and Jerry Lee Lewis' Live at The Star-Club Hamburg and you have the other greatest live record of all time (Bear Family label). Btw: this particular version of the Cooke show is remastered with clearer sound (no bonus tracks, but the show although short, believe me, is ALL you will need, it will seem longer than it is because it is so intense...). Favorite song: "Bring It On Home To Me". Terence Trent d'Arby in his short heyday "borrowed" a whole literal chunk out of THIS show, that's how legendary this is. It's a life-changer when you got a heart.

This live album catches Sam Cooke on absolute fire from 63 at a small venue.Apparently this live recording was kept under wraps and never released for years because Sam sounded too raw for the record producers idea of his image.His performance is off the scale here - pure raw talent.If you only ever buy one album by Sam Cooke - this is THE album !

So Rod Stewart has covered SC numbers with his good interpretation, but oh man live and raw on this cd takes soul to another level, untouchable. This is brilliant!

I bought this on the strength of the reviews on here. I have to say that most things said on those reviews are correct. The album has great sound on both voice and band. Sam’s voice is crystal clear and he’s definitely the man in charge here! The band (guitar x2, saxophone x2, bass, piano & drums) are really crisp and very rhythmic – maybe a couple more little solos would have been nice. The atmosphere is just right – excited but none of that awful screaming and over-adulation that ruins some live recordings.There are three recordings of this concert, all a little different. The 1985 recording is the rawest and most raucous, and the reason why it was shelved for so long. The 2000 version is toned down and the 2005 version is a mixture of the two? It was recorded at the Harlem Square club, to a predominantly black audience, in Miami, Florida.My only, very miniscule, negatives would be, the shortness of the album – at an incredibly short 30 odd minutes, and perhaps for me, it started to sound just a little samey towards the end - so perhaps a half hour was perfect to maintain the party atmosphere throughout.This album would be a blast as a background at a ‘barbecue? Yes, very good and I enjoyed it very much.

We know his studio recordings, but this is a rare glimpse into how he worked a crowd live. Don't expect soothing reproductions of his ballads this is a man WORKING. He has a roomful of people who have come out expecting a good time and he is doing his best to make sure they get it, and not forget it, Sad that his life was tragically cut short, he had so much to give.

Historic music recording - genius at work.

Amazing live album from mr soul himself , you can almost feel the sweat dripping off of him .Close your eyes and your there with the crowd as he does one classic after another . Such energy , such class , Sam Cooke is what soul is all about .