In 1963, boxer Cassius Clay, who soon would become known as Muhammad Ali, recorded the album titled, I Am the Greatest. The title may not really describe the great boxer as a singer. But Ali was aided on one of the songs by one of the world’s greatest singers, Sam Cooke.
In this short interview, Cooke explains to Dave Clark that he had been working with some young singers. And the subject of his song with Ali, “The Gang’s All Here” comes up.
The combination of the music star and the rising boxer garnered some attention, with The New York Times covering the recording session of the song, which was arranged by Horace Ott. During the session, according to Peter Guralnik’s biography of Sam Cooke, Cooke provided guidance while keeping everyone’s spirits up. And Ali played around on the drums and recited poetry.
While Ali and Cooke were working on the song for the album, Harry Carpenter interviewed Ali for the BBC sports TV show, Grandstand. During the interview, Cooke showed up and exchanged some quips with his friend Ali. Then, the two sang a segment of the song they recorded together, “The Gang’s All Here.”
Here is the recording of “The Gang’s All Here” from the album. The tune add some tweaks but is based on the old classic “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here,” which was written in 1917.
The original song features lyrics by D. A. Esrom based on a tune written by Arthur Sullivan for the 1879 show The Pirates of Penzance. Check out Muhammad Ali’s take on the song.
Six months after releasing I Am the Greatest, Ali lived up to the title of the album. The twenty-two year-old boxer became champion of the world by beating Sonny Liston in the ring on February 25, 1964.
(Note: In Peter Guralnick’s excellent and well-researched biography of Cooke, Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke
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