Otis Redding - Heart and Soul

Redding could have them eating out of the palm of his hand, or whip them up into a frenzy.  He could croon out a ballad like Try a Little Tenderness real slow and soulful and then up the pace towards the end taking the audience into a state of high excitement.

Albums like Otis Blue, The Dictionary of Soul, and The Soul Album were intensely passionate with emotional and arousing songs performed in his own unique style. These albums set the standard for those artists of the day and those that followed, influencing artists such as Willie Nelson, The Grateful Dead, The Black Crowes, Rod Stewart and many others.

As well as his voice and commanding stage presence he was a talented songwriter and musical arranger and was known as a hard-worker.  His major musical influences were Little Richard and Sam Cooke many whose songs he covered. He also made an impressive cover version of The Rolling Stones song, Satisfaction.  Redding also wrote and performed the song Respect which was famously covered by Aretha Franklin. 

Other popular Redding numbers include My Girl and I’ve Been Loving You Too Long, and his greatest hit was (Sittin’ on) The Dock Of The Bay, which he recorded just a few days before he died in a plane crash in 1967.

Redding had been singing with Johnny Jenkins a guitarist and his band The Pinetoppers and had recorded with them on the Confederate label and later in Memphis with Stax Records in 19 62.  At the end of one recording session with Stax he was given the chance to record These Arms of Mine, a ballad he had written himself.   He went on to become one of the stars with Stax, recording with Booker T and the MGs and working closely with guitarist Steve Cropper.

Redding could also play guitar and actively involved himself in the arrangement of his songs and was popular with the other musicians he worked with and seen very much as an inspirational and motivating figure.

Although from 1965  until 1967 he was consistently in the R&B Charts with the single Mr Pitiful making a Top Ten appearance his other records never bettered 21, until (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay was released after his death and then went on to top the charts for four weeks in 1968.  This song showed influences from pop, soul and folk drawing from the new influential artists of the day such as Bob Dylan.

He was backed by Booker T and the MGs and performed on the second day of the event.   His performance was sensational and he won over many American white fans to swell his fan base. His star was on the rise and there was promise of greater things.

With the growing popularity of his recordings and his sensational stage presence Reddingwas booked to appear at the biggest gig of the day.  The Monterey International Pop Festival was the first of the really big Pop festivals and its list of performing bands and artists was impressive and included many of the top music acts of the day, including The Mamas and Papas, Jefferson, Airplane, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Who, Simon and Garfunkel and many more.

Redding’s performance at the festival was a landmark him for because it was the first time he had played to a largely white audience that was made up mostly of white Hippies and the performers were mostly white Hippie bands and artists..  Although he had a strong white fan following in the UK and Europe he had played to mostly black audiences in his homeland. 

Tragically, on the 10th of December, 1967 while flying with his backing group, The Bar-Kays, to perform in Madison, Wisconsin, his plane crashed in nearby LakeMonona.  Redding lost his life along with his backing group except Ben Cauley who was the only survivor.  Otis Redding was 26 years and left behind his wife, Zelma and their three children.

Today his heart and soul can still be found in his songs that remain as emotive and passionate today as when he first performed them.