Hosted by Grammy award-winning gospel singer Cece Winans and produced by WXPN, Gospel Roots of Rock and Soul to celebrate Black History Month. This limited-run series is the culmination of a 15-month project that included field research in Memphis, Nashville, and Chicago, building a content-rich website, live events in Philadelphia with gospel legends The Fairfield Four, The Dixie Hummingbirds, the Fisk Jubilee Singers and numerous interviews with musicians, historians and scholars. Each hour of Gospel Roots of Rock and Soul will illustrate the influence of gospel on secular music, celebrating the roots of black gospel and its impact on major artists.
This hour begins and ends with Sam Cooke in 1955 singing in what would be one his last performances as a gospel musician before crossing over to pop music. The hour examines the history and foundation of Black gospel from spirituals and how those songs informed the gospel music of the great gospel quartets including The Dixie Hummingbirds, The Pilgrim Travelers, The Golden Gates, The Caravans, and The Soul Stirrers featuring Sam Cooke. The episode ends with the story of Sam Cooke’s ascent into the pop world.