Chain Gang
Sam Cooke
1960
Annual listening-list association, not an original-release-date field. Original release year reconciled with reviewed recording-specific Artist Essentials evidence in v3.6.
Release: 1960
Release: 1960Source checked
V3.6 reconciles the original release year with the reviewed Artist Essentials entry for this exact retained recording ID. Year precision is used; an album-first release is not silently replaced by a later single, reissue or annual-list year. The new RCA Victor single is documented in the contemporary August 1960 review. This is the original studio performance, not a later live reprise.
The large badge identifies this listening list, not a newly issued recording. Later reissues and renewed chart popularity do not replace an original release date. How years are assigned.
Owner-supplied release annotations
Reported dates in 1960.html. Not independently established; neighboring dates can reflect album/single or regional differences.
Cash Box, 6 August 1960 - Chain Gang original single review
PDF page 8 reviews the new Sam Cooke RCA Victor 7783 pairing, Chain Gang / I Fall in Love Every Day. This contemporary new-record review supports original studio-single release in 1960; no chart or issue day is substituted as the exact release date.
Inspiration and background
Supplied note - not independently verified
This note came with the supplied collection and has not been independently verified.
Cooke was inspired to write the song after encountering a chain gang of prisoners working on a highway while on tour.
Evidence scope: Source-provided note, not an established account of the songwriter's intent
Sources for this information
Owner-supplied 1960.html, song-list position 12
Supplied annotation reproduced with attribution; underlying historical claims have NOT been independently verified.
Other appearances and versions
catalog version unspecified
Original release date and exact pressing/version are not independently established.
An annual chart year and an original release date are different. Similar titles may be covers or different masters; no audio fingerprint has been performed.
Sources and scope
Source-backed annual association (secondary source; not a complete discographic review)
Editorial artist-repertoire classification
Billboard year-end 1960 table (Wikipedia transcription)
Secondary transcription reviewed 2026-10-11: title, artist and annual chart association; not original release date or complete recording metadata.
Browse by year
1960-2025. Each year contains 150 selections.