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The Soul Stirrers were one of the most important and influential of the gospel quartets, their career spanning many decades, and their style helping to shape secular doowop and soul music in the post-war decades. This collection focuses on a key decade or more in their career, during which the great soul singer Sam Cooke was a member of the group, not only learning his own trade as a vocalist, but also making a highly distinctive contribution to the group's sound. He was succeeded in the group after he went solo in 1957, by another future major soul start Johnnie Taylor, who contributes to the later titles on the collection. This great value 54-track 2-CD set includes the A and B sides of all the Specialty singles released during the period plus the A and B sides of their releases on Sam Cooke's own SAR label through 1960 and into 1961 accommodating as many as we could within the 2-CD format. It charts a progression from pure gospel through to a style which has much in common with '60s soul, reflecting the impact which the two great vocalists had on their creative approach, and it's a hugely entertaining collection, complete with a substantial booklet with full discographical and chart information.