James Woodie Alexander II (January 21, 1916 – July 8, 1996), was an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and entrepreneur who was a key figure in the development of gospel and soul music, most notably through his close association with

Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...

Biography

Alexander was born in Hamilton, Mississippi, but by his early teens was living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and started singing with local gospel groups. At the age of 18 he joined and began managing the Silver Moon Quartet, from

Independence, Kansas Independence is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,548. It was named in commemoration of the Declaration of Independence. History Independence w ...

, who toured around the Midwest. He also played professional baseball for a time, for the Ethiopian Clowns who became the Indianapolis Clowns, and worked as an extra in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

.Peter Guralnick, ''The Triumph of Icarus: Sam Cooke and the Creative Spirit'', in Charlotte Pence (ed.), ''The Poetics of American Song Lyrics'', Univ. Press of Mississippi, 2012, pp.146-155
/ref> In 1942 he joined the Southern Gospel Singers, and in 1945 began singing as first tenor in, and managing, another gospel group, the Pilgrim Travelers.Roy Simonds, ''J.W. Alexander'', Earshot, Nov.1969
reprinted at SoulMusicHQ.com. Retrieved 21 February 2013Los Angeles Times, "J.W. Alexander; Key Figure in Gospel Music", July 13, 1996
Retrieved 21 February 2013 The group began recording for Specialty Records in Los Angeles in 1947, and established a national reputation for their innovative and rhythmic musical style. Alexander also carried out A&R functions for Specialty, identifying new recording acts. In 1949 he heard the teenage Sam Cooke sing with the Highway Q.C.'s, and the following year, after Cooke had joined the Soul Stirrers, he signed the group to a recording contract. Alexander also brought several other gospel groups to the label, but devoted much of his attention to the Soul Stirrers, increasingly seeing Cooke as someone who could become a commercially successful teen idol by performing secular rather than spiritual music.Peter Guralnick, ''Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm And Blues And The Southern Dream Of Freedom'', Canongate Books, 2002
/ref> The Soul Stirrers, with Cooke, and the Pilgrim Travelers, with Alexander, toured extensively together in the early and mid 1950s. With Alexander's encouragement and guidance, Cooke began recording as a solo singer in 1957. He achieved great commercial success both before and after leaving Specialty and joining first Keen and then, in 1960, RCA. Alexander established the Kags Music firm in 1958, and in 1960 he and Cooke joined together as business partners to establish SAR Productions, with the aim of recording and marketing both gospel and rhythm and blues recordings. They later established the Derby label to record pop music, Jay Warner, ''American Singing Groups: From 1940 to Today'', Hal Leonard Corporation, 2006, pp.53-54"> Jay Warner, ''American Singing Groups: From 1940 to Today'', Hal Leonard Corporation, 2006, pp.53-54
/ref> and also collaborated as songwriters on songs such as "Stand By Me Father", "

That's Where It's At ''That's Where It's At'' is a 1962 jazz album by saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, recorded by Rudy Van Gelder for Blue Note Records, and featuring pianist Les McCann. Turrentine had appeared a week earlier with McCann's group, recording the liv ...

", and "

Together Let's Find Love "Together Let's Find Love" is a song written by J. W. Alexander and Willie Hutchingson and performed live by The 5th Dimension. It reached #8 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart, #12 on the Canadian adult contemporary chart, #19 on the Canadi ...

".Songs of Sam Cooke
Retrieved 22 February 2013 After Cooke's death in 1964, Alexander managed and promoted the career of another former gospel singer,

Lou Rawls Louis Allen Rawls (December 1, 1933 – January 6, 2006) was an American record producer, singer, composer and actor. Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, and had numerous charting singles, most notably his s ...

, who had also been a member of the Pilgrim Travelers; Rawls started having a series of pop and R&B hits in 1966. Alexander also recorded several future stars on his Derby label, notably Johnnie Taylor,

Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, during which he ba ...

and The Valentinos. He also worked as an independent record producer, with musicians including Bobby Bland, Little Junior Parker, Bobby Womack,

Solomon Burke Solomon Vincent McDonald Burke (born James Solomon McDonald, March 21, 1936 or 1940 – October 10, 2010) was an American singer who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues as one of the founding fathers of soul music in the 1960s. He has been ...

, and

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

. Alexander died of

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

in Hollywood, California, in 1996 at the age of 80.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, J. W. 1916 births 1996 deaths 20th-century African-American male singers American gospel singers Specialty Records artists Mirwood Records artists Singers from Mississippi Musicians from Tulsa, Oklahoma People from Monroe County, Mississippi Ethiopian Clowns players Baseball players from Mississippi Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in California