- Included among the Record Descriptions of Favorite Albums (Part 1).
- History of Otis Redding is Otis Redding’s first retrospective collection and was released just one month before his tragic death at age 26.
Otis Redding – History of Otis Redding (1967): Otis Redding packs more emotion into his performances than just about any soul singer you can name, and he is also a fine songwriter. His career was given a major boost by his appearance at the first major rock concert event, the Monterey International Pop Music Festival, held in 1967 during the “Summer of Love”. History of Otis Redding is Otis Redding’s first retrospective collection and was released in November 1967, just one month before his tragic death in a small airplane crash at age 26. Thus, his #1 hit “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” – the first single released after a recording artist’s death to reach the top of the charts – is not included on this album; but most of his other wonderful songs are here, such as “Try a Little Tenderness”, “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long”, “Respect”, “Pain in My Heart”, “Mr. Pitiful”, “I Can’t Turn You Loose”, and his great covers of the Rolling Stones smash “Satisfaction” and Sam Cooke’s final hit song “Shake”.
Otis Redding wrote or co-wrote the majority of these songs, with his co-writers being Smokey Robinson, Jerry Butler, and Steve Cropper. These songs were widely covered by other artists, most famously Aretha Franklin’s hit version of “Respect”, which became her signature song. “Try a Little Tenderness” was an early hit song for Three Dog Night. “I Can’t Turn You Loose” was recorded by the Rolling Stones, and it became the theme song for the Blues Brothers. While not included on this album, Otis Redding also recorded a soul-flavored version of “White Christmas” that was featured in the romantic comedy Love Actually (2003).