Song by Song: "A Change Is Gonna Come" Quiz

Answer: Blowin' in the Wind

Rolling Stone magazine reports that Sam Cooke heard Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind" in 1963 and was "profoundly inspired and disturbed" by it. The magazine quotes Cooke: "Jeez, a white boy writing a song like that?" Cooke's response, reports the magazine, was "A Change Is Gonna Come."

Dylan's song begins:

"How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind."

Answer: tent

"I was born by the river in a little tent
Oh and just like the river I've been running ev'r since
It's been a long time, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will."

"A Change Is Gonna Come" was written by Sam Cooke, conducted and arranged by René Hall, and produced by Hugo & Luigi. It first appeared on Sam Cooke's 1964 album "Ain't That Good News."

Answer: sky

The Library of Congress selected "A Change Is Gonna Come" for preservation in 2007 because of what the National Recording Registry determined to be its cultural, historical, and aesthetic importance. Sam Cooke supplied lead vocals on the song. For the recording session, backing vocals were supplied by SR Crain, Paul Foster, Jimmie Outler, Richard Gibbs, and JJ Farley.

Answer: hang around

According to Rolling Stone magazine, these lines are an allusion to an event in Sam Cooke's own life. While on tour in October of 1963, Sam Cooke was "arrested in Shreveport, Louisiana, for disturbing the peace" after he and his entourage "tried to register at a white motel - an incident reflected in the song's third verse." This incident was one of the inspirations for the song, which speaks of a time when things will finally change with regard to the treatment of African-Americans:

"It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will."

Answer: knees

Here the singer pleads for help in the face of discrimination, but ends up only being knocked down by the establishment.

William Hinshaw on French horn lends a sense of melancholy to the song, while Emil Radocchia carries the bridge on timpani. The strings (viola, violin, and cello) complement the second verse.

Answer: carry on

According to Rolling Stone magazine, "Cooke's mourning for his 18-month-old son, Vincent, who drowned that June, resonates in" this verse.

This song was ranked third in Pitchfork Media's "200 Greatest Songs of the 60s." list. Although it didn't hit the top 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, it did peak at number 9 on the Billboard R&B single chart.

Answer: Shake

Sam Cooke was shot to death in Los Angeles, California on December 11, 1964. A slightly edited version of "A Change Is Gonna Come" was released as a single on December 22, 1964. On the B-Side was "Shake," which became a posthumous top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

While "A Change Is Gonna Come" didn't reach the top ten (it peaked at 31 on the Hot 100), the song would, in the words of Rolling Stone magazine, become both Sam Cooke's "farewell address and an anthem of the civil rights movement."

Answer: The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

Cooke's first live performance of the song occurred on February 7, 1964 on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." Unfortunately, NBC did not save the tape of the performance, which was accompanied by a full string section, and Cooke did not perform the song again live in his lifetime.

Answer: The Neville Brothers

Art Neville played keyboards for the song, while Charles Neville supplied saxophone and flute. Aaron Neville also played keyboards, while Cyril Neville supplied percussion. All of the brothers sang on the track, with Aaron Neville taking the lead. The album also included "Healing Chant," which won a Grammy Award for best pop instrumental performance.

Answer: Barack Obama

A version of the song was also recorded for "We Are One," Obama's January 18, 2009 inaugural celebration at the Lincoln Memorial. That version was sung by Jon Bon Jovi and Bettye LaVette. The song was also featured at the 2020 Democratic National Convention with a performance by Jennifer Hudson.

Other musicians to cover the song include Otis Redding, The Supremes, Aretha Franklin, and Three Dog Night, to name but a few.