Sam Cooke UK Tour 1962

[Roburt]

There are a few decent soul music memorabilia sites on the net. One of the US based ones sells lots of copies of old concert posters & the attached poster is one of their best sellers  .... 

....  only trouble is this one is a fake.
Otis Redding never played a concert in Doncaster (my old home town) in 1962 or at any other time.
There was a concert staged @ the Gaumont on October 8th 1962 and it should have featured Sam Cooke & Little Richard, but Otis was never on that tour.

The Donny show was the first show of the tour & Sam was delayed getting to Donny -- so he actually missed that show.

Actual posters for that tour are also attached.

Edited December 26, 2022 by Roburt

[Roburt]

A comment on the tour from the old Stones manager ... 

Andrew Loog Oldham; I first witnessed Sam Cooke in October 1962. I was a young press agent making my way in the pop world, translating my wages into suits similar to those worn by Tony Curtis’ Sidney Falco in “The Sweet Smell of Success.”

The legendary promoter, Don Arden, father to the equally legendary Sharon Osborne, had hired me to PR his U.K. tour headlined by the infamous rocker Little Richard, with Cooke and six string bass maven Jet Harris (former bass player for Cliff Richard) supporting. It was not a Sam Cooke audience, it was odd but astute casting on the part of Mr. Arden, who was also known as the Godfather of Pop. The audience was basically a Teddy Boy gathering. Teds were the first British youth movement, working class and defined by their love of raucous American rock ‘n’ roll, loathing of the upcoming Mod movement and adoption of the Edwardian Dandy style of dress, a Brit version of the American Zoot Suit look, and in “Peaky Blinders” mode the Teds had nothing against violence.

Sam arrived late, he missed the first show in Doncaster, but stepped smoothly on stage for the second show backed by guitarist Cliff White and drummer Al Gardner augmenting a British backing band, Sounds Incorporated, a C version of the soon-to-be Dave Clark Five. A 15-year-old Billy Preston accompanied Little Richard.

The tour ran all of October, no days off, sometimes two shows a night, ending Oct. 28 at the Liverpool Empire, a city where a local band named the Beatles had just had their first single, “Love Me Do,” released on the Parlophone label. The Beatles would also join the Little Richard/Sam Cooke tour as support on two of the northern dates, in Wallasey and the final Liverpool gig.

I was witnessing history, and I got to witness Sam Cooke on his only U.K. tour.

                     ------------------------------------------------

The guys backing Sam on his UK tour were 2 musicians who toured with him all the time back then; guitarist Cliff White & drummer Al Gardner ...  BTW, that's not the Detroit based singer or the guy who worked down south with Sam Dees ... it's the NOla based drummer who recorded as Gentleman June Gardner (using this name on records to avoid any confusion) ...  ALSO ... Billy Preston on keyboards backed up Little Richard on that tour.

They did 2 shows a night back then; one around 6.30 & one around 8.30, so they worked hard. After each night's 2nd show, it was straight onto a coach & off to the next town / city.

 

Edited December 27, 2022 by Roburt

[Roburt]

A newspaper review of the show staged @ the Granada Theatre, Woolwich on 13th October ...

 

[Roburt]

DURING THIS TOUR ... Billy Preston first met the Beatles. It happened on Sunday October 28th in Liverpool when he was in Little Richard's backing band ....

[Roburt]

Billy Preston was backing Little Richard on the above UK tour. Not long afterwards, he hooked up with Ray Charles and had his own section of the show ... he did some good covers at the time ...  and also played some on TV when he was in the house band for a show or two ... 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCt-C2hwiJA

Edited December 31, 2022 by Roburt

[Roburt]

We got Sam Cooke & Little Richard on one package tout here in the 60's ... back in the US they really knew how to assemble a good package of acts back then ...