REDDING

Otis Redding was the quintessential soul man, possibly the greatest the world has ever known. A visionary artist, “The Big O” created an enduring musical legacy before his life was tragically cut short by a plane crash.

Redding was born in Dawson, Georgia, on September 9, 1941. He quit school at 16, determined to follow in the footsteps of his hometown hero, LITTLE RICHARD. While playing local talent shows, Redding met Johnny Jenkins, a flashy guitarist who hired Redding as a vocalist and roadie. After Jenkins scored a regional hit with “Soul Twist,” Atlantic Records showed interest and arranged a recording session for him at the Stax studio in Memphis, in October 1962. At the session, Jenkins turned in a lacklustre performance and someone suggested that Redding sing. He sang an original ballad, “These Arms of Mine,” with a lilting, nervous passion, soulfully ad-libbing the fade-out. Jim Stewart, head of Stax Records, was impressed enough to sign Redding there and then. “These Arms of Mine” sold respectably, as did the follow-up “Pain in My Heart.”

Despite his lack of formal training, Redding was a prolific composer and a brilliant arranger, singing instrumental parts to teach them to the musicians. Redding’s horn arrangements came to define the label’s sound, and the Stax studio band (Booker T. and the MGs) played with razor-sharp intensity under Redding’s leadership. By December 1964, when “Mr. Pitiful” was released, Redding had undergone a stunning maturation. On ballads, Redding would tease a vocal mercilessly with a heartbreaking “catch” in his voice. He punctuated the up-tempo numbers with stutters, shouts, and moans, all perfectly timed to increase dramatic tension. On singles like “I've Been Loving You for Too Long,” “Respect,” and the astounding “Try a Little Tenderness,” Redding sang like a man possessed.

By 1967, Redding was headlining the Stax Revue tour of Europe, a magnetic R&B star about to cross over into mainstream fame. That fall, Otis had polyps removed from his throat and couldn’t speak for two months. As he recovered, he composed new material, listening to the BEATLES and Bob DYLAN for inspiration. Once recovered, he cut dozens of tracks. Some of these, especially “(Sittin’on) the Dock of the Bay,” showed Otis heading in a new direction, absorbing elements of rock and folk. Two days after the last session, Redding and his band died in a plane crash, en route to Madison, Wisconsin. He was just 26 years old.

Otis Redding, the original “soul man, ” was enjoying a spectacular career before his tragically premature death.

“Dock of the Bay” was a No. 1 hit in the U.S. (as he had predicted), but Otis Redding died long before he had fulfilled his potential, and Stax never fully recovered from the loss of their premier artist.

Greg Bower

OTIS

REDDING