Hi, all, Amber here.

This is a week off for me, but I didn't want to leave your feeds blank.

So here's an episode I think about often.

I knew of Sam Cook's music before researching this case,

but I learned so much more about him and his amazing musicality while doing the research

that he regularly appears on my playlist now.

His death didn't get enough attention when it happened, so I figured I'd do my part and

tell his story one more time.

Some crimes are so heartbreaking or shocking that they earn the label Crime of the Century.

But the stories that made headlines and decades past aren't necessarily remembered today.

I'm Amber Hunt, a journalist and author, and in each episode of this show, I'll examine a case that's maybe lesser known today, but was huge when it happened.

This is Crimes of the Centuries. centuries. Hearing Sam Cook on the radio was in no way unusual in 1964. The singer-songwriter

had been one of America's most celebrated musicians since You Send Me had soared to number one on both Billboard's Rhythm and Blues records chart and the Billboard's Hot 100 in 1957.

But the news that greeted radio listeners on the night of December 11th, 1964, had nothing to do with Sam

Cook's record-breaking music.

I was on the expressway in Detroit.

This is Smokey Robinson, a music legend in his own right, speaking in a documentary called

The Sam Cook Story.

The disc jockey came on the radio and said,

sole singer Sam Cooke was shot to death last night.

What?

No, no, no.

...