Cooke grew up in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood.
He had 34 Top 40 R&B hits in his career and was one of the original inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
"You Send Me," "Wonderful World," "Chain Gang," "Twistin' The Night Away" are just a few of the many hits by this extraordinary singer who is credited with also helping to create the soul sound.
Cooke was also active in the civil rights movement, but he died tragically at a very early age. Finally, he is getting that unique honor Chicago likes to bestow, a street named after him.
The renaming ceremony of 36th Street at Cottage Grove as "Sam Cooke Way" takes place Saturday, June 18, 2011, at 2 p.m.