sam cooke a change is gonna come message
A Change Is Gonna Come The song was inspired by various personal events in Cooke's life, most prominently an event in which he and his entourage were turned away from a whites-only motel in Louisiana. Cooke felt compelled to write a song that spoke to his struggle and of those around him, and he recorded the song for its first release on his final album, Ain't That Good News.[citation needed] The song, released in 1964, pertains to the Civil Rights Movement and African Americans, and contains the refrain, "It's been a long time coming, but I know a change is gonna come."