Soothe Me

Written by Sam Cooke    (Abkco Music Ltd. 1962)

Information   

• Sam Cooke wrote it for the Simms Twins on his own SAR Record label. It was their first hit and it reached #42 in 1964.
• Sam Moore and Dave Prater heard 'Soothe Me' by the Simms Twins and decided to form a duo (Sam & Dave)
•  A gospel version was recorded afterwards called Lead Me Jesus, performed by the Soul Stirrers. There are two versions of this one.
• Sam & Dave's version was #599 in Dave Marsh's 1001 Greatest Songs of All Time. Amazon.com
• The inspiration came from a comedy routine done by Redd Foxx or Slappy White based on a tv-commercial  which had the line "I drink this gin because it's really smoooooth!" with the smooth repeated over and over. 
• Another inspiration is the folk melody "(Run Along Home) Cindy, Cindy."
  

Recorded At RCA Hollywood, Studio 1, USA on February 19, 1962

Producers:    Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore    Engineer Al Schmitt

Orchestra conducted by Rene Hall

Background/second voice: Lou Rawls

Charts    The Simms Twins reacher #4 in the R&B and #42 Pop on the Billboard Charts

Albums

• RCA PE 9511 b/w Another Saturday Night    (12" from April 1980)

Albums    

• Forever (32-tracks)  
• Hits!  
• The Late and Great Sam Cooke - My Kind of Soul
• The Man And His Music 
• The Man Who Invented Soul 
• 20 Greatest Hits
• Twisting The Night Away 
• The Unforgettable Sam Cooke

The Simms Twins version appears on 'Sam Cooke's SAR Records Story and was released as S117

Lyrics

Soothe me baby, soothe me
Soothe me with your kindness
For you know your powerful love is
Soothing to me

Oh how I used to ramble
And how I used to roam
Oh but since I met that baby of mine
All I do is stay at home
And I tell here

Soothe me baby, soothe me
Soothe me with your kindness
For you know your powerful love is
Soothing to me

Oh I used to have a lot of girls
Have them big and small
Oh, but since I met that baby of mine
I know no other girls at all
I just tell her

Soothe me baby, soothe me
Soothe me with your kindness
For you know your powerful love is
Soothing to me

It’s so soothing to me
Your love, babe, is soothing to me

Covered By

• Gary P. Bass    ---    alright, it's the smile that soothes, not the kindness
• The Box Tops    ---    as if the singer doesn't feel too comfortable 
• Steve Ellis    ---    ok
• Groove    ---    great organ
• Sam & Dave    ---   this is a good version very swinging
• Rod Stewart    ---    good version, the soothing is done by the eyes here
• The Simms Twins    (this is the 'original' , recorded before Sam Cooke)