We move genres yet again, this time going from Punk to R&B/Soul. Otis Redding is one of the legendary singers in the Soul and R&B genre. Best known for his posthumous hit '(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay', Otis was a voice in a million that influenced the genre. Starting in career in the early 60's, Otis quickly gained fame with his soulful and upbeat songs. In 65 though he released what some would call his best work yet in 'Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul'. Recorded in a mere 24 hours in July 65, the album produced three singles. While the majority of the album is cover songs, the originals done by the like of Sam Cooke, The Temptations and even The Rolling Stones. What people may not realize is that Aretha Franklin's big hit 'Respect' was originally an Otis Redding track. Aretha covered in two years later and turned it into a mega hit. This is a definitive Soul record here though. Once again I've decided to upload the expanded deluxe edition here. This is 2 CD's, there are two links cause of the size of the album. Disc 1 features the Mono version of the album along with some live cuts from the 'In Person At The Whiskey A Go Go' live album. Disc 2 features the stereo mix of the album and some live cuts from the record 'Live In Europe'. Trust me this album is full of goodness.
For most people the knowledge of Otis doesn't go any further that 'Dock Of The Bay'. Which is a shame cause there was a lot more hits he had. For me after seeing him play at the Monterey Pop Festival, that's what sealed my appreciation for him. That performance is just so raw and soulful it just oozes. It's a shame we lost him many years to soon. I put this record on the other day when I was figuring out what I wanted to upload this week and I had forgotten what an amazing record this is. Truly one of the best in the genre.
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