Peter Guralnick

Sam Cooke successfully evolved from the gospel music he sang as a member of the Soul Stirrers to the romantic pop of "You Send Me" and, finally, the cathartic soul of Night Beat and "A Change Is Gonna Come" to become one of the greatest soul singers of all time. Peter Guralnick authored Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love, the definitive two-book chronicle of Elvis Presley's life to become one of the most accomplished rock 'n' roll biographers of the last decade. Such a pairing should have made Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke a mesmerizing read.

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For the first 100 pages of this 750-page omnibus (not including an additional 100 pages of bibliographical notes), Guralnick effectively transports the reader to mid-20th-century Chicago, where Cooke was raised. Cooke first emerged on the gospel circuit as a teenager, won a spot as the Soul Stirrers' lead vocalist, and then effortlessly transitioned into pop music (despite the misgivings of many of his God-fearing fans). Guralnick paints a vivid picture of the singer's movements through the black music world, a complex environment where religious fervor masked all sorts of sexual excesses.

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After that initial success, however, Cooke embarked on a series of cross-country tours for the next several years. He stopped only to establish his own record label (SAR) with friend and fellow songwriter J.W. Alexander, make a few hit records (among them "Cupid," "Chain Gang," and "Wonderful World") and TV appearances, and battle the occasional lawsuit. The details, which are only brightened by asides to Cooke's infidelities and marital troubles, eventually bog down the narrative. Yes, it's important to establish that Cooke was a working musician. But is it necessary to devote three or more pages to each studio session, no matter how inconsequential?

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Guralnick describes Cooke as an enigma, a man who could light up the room yet had an unusually dark and violent side, and it was his arrogance and sense of entitlement that led to his scandalous and tragic death in 1964. The author makes those qualities evident in Dream Boogie; but by focusing less on Cooke's everyday work habits, or even cutting a hundred pages, he could have made them incandescent.