Otis Redding
Life: 1941 - 1967
Location: Dawson, Georgia, USA
Genre: Soul, Deep Soul, Southern Soul
Years Active: 1958 - 1967
Real Name: Otis Redding Jr.
Meaning of the Name:
Way of Working: Works with producers
Associated: The Soul Clan,
Essential Releases
Pain in
My Heart (1964)
Debut album. Raw and passionate gospel-infused soul.
Otis Blue (1965)
Recorded in 24 hours. Rated by many as his finest work.
Complete &
Unbelievable (1966)
Final album before his death. Contains classic singles such as 'Try A Little Tenderness'
Amidst racial division, trouble and strife, Otis Redding unleashed the music of his soul to confront white listeners with the undeniable pain of black people in America.
He had previously experienced the dehumanising early-'60s Jim Crow laws in full, riding the back of the bus and drinking from 'Colored Only' fountains. Music venues were no different; African-American artists had to play the segregated Chitlin' Circuit to limited mainstream exposure.
However, it's a historical irony that separateness contributed greatly to the eventual coming together of two peoples; the white majority were drawn to the inspired music emanating from black spaces despite insisting it be kept behind closed doors. In places like The Royal Peacock in Atlanta, Georgia, which still operates today, singers such as James Brown and Ray Charles sang and screamed and cried until exhaustion, exorcising the ills of an unjust society through visceral displays of pure feeling.
Otis Redding cut his teeth in such establishments, becoming one of the lucky few who bridged the gap between white and black music. He was discovered while working as a driver for the guitarist Johnny Jenkins, seizing on an opportunity to play his original song, 'These Arms of Mine', for Stax Records co-owner Jim Stewart and producer Steve Cropper. The latter wrote in Rolling Stone:
"When you hear something that's better than anything you ever heard, you know it, and it was unanimous. We almost wore out the tape playing it afterwards."
Redding also had a hand in writing the original version of 'Respect', later perfected by Aretha Franklin, and his posthumous number one single '(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay'. However, for me, his vocals were the real star of the show.
Listening to deep soul from the time is refreshing because you know the voices are pure and unadulterated, technical imperfections conveying crucial emotion. When Redding's raspy vocals break and strain at the end of 'Try A Little Tenderness' it’s because he means it; his delivery matches his frenzied emotional state and is a classic example of the Chitlin' Circuit performance style appearing on wax. This sense of raw, unedited character is tragically missing from much of today's technologically enhanced music that artifically perfects every note.
At the time, white people couldn't attend black night-clubs, but they were buying the records of black singers and in doing so exposing themselves to the impassioned pleas for equality found on songs such as 'Respect' (1965). The pivotal Voting Rights Act, that made racial discrimination in voting illegal in the US, passed the very same year. Barred from the majority of white venues in the States, Redding initially found success touring in the UK and France. By the time of his tragic death in a 1967, the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, and his music helped bring it forth.
African-American songs worked to humanise black people in the eyes of the white majority. The world Redding left behind was different to the one he inherited in 1941. In his 26 short years on Earth, he saw radical change begin to take shape, though it was far from finished, and still continues to this day.
Skills
*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.Emotional Impact
Mental Impact
Originality
Artistry
Authenticity
Live
Production
Musicianship
Singing
Songwriting
Danceability
Fun
Consistency
Range
Cool
Charisma
Commercial & Critical Success
Awards
Certifications >>>
- Otis Blue: Gold in the UK
Charts >>>
- Otis Blue: 6th in the UK
Critics >>>
- NME: Otis Blue - Greatest Albums of All Time (1993): 35th
- Rolling Stone: Otis Blue - 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2003): 74th
- Rolling Stone: Complete & Unbelievable - 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2012): 254th
- Time: Otis Blue - All-Time 100 Greatest Albums: 92nd
