The soulful voice of Otis Redding was tragically silenced on this day in 1967, when his plane crashed in a small Wisconsin lake, killing him and all but one of the passengers. His amazing voice and tireless work ethic raised him from humble beginnings to the brink of superstar status. In fact, just three days prior to that fateful night, Redding had recorded what would go on to become his first number one hit, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay”, though he would not live to see its success.
Redding was forced to drop out of school at the age of 15 to help provide for his family. He did his part by winning talent shows, and working as part of Little Richards‘ backing band. In the early sixties, he found himself playing small clubs known as the “Chitlin Circuit,” the only option for most black bands and musicians in the still-segregated South. He found himself fronting the band Pat T. Cake and The Panthers, and was starting to make a living as a performer.
Between his work as a frontman and a few small label solo releases, Redding’s stirring, evocative voice was starting to earn major label attention. An Atlantic Records executive got him an invitation to join in on a Stax Studios recording session, where he was backed by their now-legendary house band, Booker T & the M.G.’s. Stax Studios (formerly Satellite Records) had made a name for themselves by signing primarily southern soul, gospel, and blues acts, and Redding quickly found himself a home at the label. He would remain a part of their stable of recording artists until his death.
Redding’s first album for the label, Pain In My Heart, featured a number of sad and soulful songs. As his performances in larger venues began to bring in more fans, along with a run of shows at Harlem’s Apollo Theater, he went back into the studio and recorded a follow-up album, 1965’s The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads. Around that time, other artists began to rerecord covers of his songs, helping to lift them into relevant cultural hits in their own right.
Aretha Franklin famously released her righteous version of Redding’s “Respect” in 1967, and the song became an anthem for equal treatment and women’s rights.
Aretha Franklin – “Respect”
[Video: Tatan Brown]
During this period, Redding also started to see his chart-climbing material, such as his career-defining rendition of the song “Try A Little Tenderness”, get him bookings in some of the notable white-owned venues across the country. It’s ironic that that song’s success was the catalyst for his newfound reception in white America, as the song’s rights holders had tried to block him from recording the standard. They feared his bringing a “Black perspective” to the song, as if somehow he would taint it with the simple act of singing it. Their worries were absurd, and the take on the song is still considered the definitive rendition.
Otis Redding – “Try A Little Tenderness” – 12/9/67
Over the next couple of years, Redding’s song’s steadily rose on the charts, with each release surpassing the last. Audiences were falling in love with him, and, in 1967 he was invited to play the now-famous Monterey Pop Festival, in what would sadly be his last full concert performance.
The Monterey audience, primarily into the then-new psychedelic rock style of music emerging out of the California music scenes in Los Angeles and San Francisco, was wowed by Redding’s closing performance on Saturday. He was clearly moved by the reception and remarked many times about the power of love he was feeling from the crowd. Closing with a heartbreaking rendition of “Tenderness”, Redding added a line to the final chorus that would become a sad omen for the future, singing, “I got to go, y’all, I don’t wanna go.”
Later that year, in early December, Redding returned to the studio at Stax to begin preparing songs for a new album. Redding had become enamored by bands like The Beatles, particularly the lush sounds of their Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band studio masterpiece, and wanted to capture some of that flavor on his new work. He recorded what was to become his first, and only, No. 1 hit, “Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay” (released posthumously in January 1968).
Three days after that 1967 recording session, Redding and his band were in the middle of a short concert run that saw multiple shows booked on single days in the midwest. Redding called his wife for what would be the last time, and got on the plane with his band to make the short flight to the next gig in Madison, WI. The weather was terrible, and the pilot had been advised that he should delay the takeoff, but the show had to go on, and they departed on a wing and a prayer for the next gig.
Sadly, the flight quickly encountered worsening conditions, and crashed in a small lake, killing seven of the eight passengers. Redding’s funeral had to be delayed so that a larger venue could be found for the thousands wishing to pay their respects. In the end, 4,500 people packed into City Auditorium in Macon, GA, where a number of tributes and testimonials from friends and family paid tribute to the man who’s light was blown out far too soon.
Atlantic Records released three more albums posthumously after using shady business practices to obtain the rights from Stax. The albums did reasonably well but were just a pale reflection of the surging artist’s potential. Redding was honored with a place in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1989 and was referred to as “The King Of Soul” by James Brown himself. Redding’s hometown of Macon also erected a statue in tribute to Redding, forever immortalizing one of the city’s greatest musicians.
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