Otis Redding
Picking up the micophone to sing his own song after his boss had finished a recording session at Stax Records, Otis Redding was on his way to become a soul music legend.

Georgia Native
Otis Redding (September 9, 1941-December 10, 1967) was born in Dawson, Georgia, September 9, 1941. He began singing in church and, later, with a few rock 'n' roll groups in Macon, Georgia. Some observers compared his early style with that of fellow Macon native Little Richard.

A Chance Recording
In the early 60’s Redding sang with the band of rocking guitarist Johnny Jenkins. When Stax offered Jenkins the opportunity to record in 1962, Redding made the trip from Macon to Memphis with his boss.

Though Redding did not sing lead on Jenkins’ session, he tried out for the Stax staff after Jenkins finished recording. Legend has it that Redding grabbed the microphone and belted out one of his own compositions “These Arms of Mine.” Steve Cropper remembers being floored. Cropper, Jenkins, and Redding immediately recorded the song. Legendary Nashville disc jockey “John R.” (Richborg) loved the song and pledged to play it on his influential, and widely heard, show until it became a hit.

World Renowned
Redding returned to Stax studio in spring 1963, and recorded more. He developed an artistic bond with the house band, Booker T. & the MGs, and earned the admiration of other studio regulars like the trumpeter Wayne Jackson. As Jackson told Stax historian Rob Bowman, of Redding, “You can’t practice to be that good.” The song “Pain in my Heart” highlighted Redding’s return to Stax. He hit his stride, commercially, in late 1964 and 1965 with singles “That’s How Strong My Love Is,” “Mr. Pitiful,” “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” and “Satisfaction.” This run made Otis the best selling artist at Stax and one of the most respected singers in the world.

“He lit the whole place up…”
Redding not only had great success, but charisma. As Steve Cropper remembered, “He was an awesome person. He would walk in a room, the whole place lit up.” As the hits rolled out, his relationship with the Stax creative team continued to blossom. “Otis was a good teacher. He taught me a lot about rhythm. He’d be shaking his fist at you and singing those parts and it was just electrifying,” Jackson recalled. “Otis gave ten thousand percent,” Al Bell added.

Europe ‘67
In 1966 these ingredients combined in “Try a Little Tenderness.” Many people, including Stax president Jim Stewart, felt it the finest single song in Stax history. “Of all the things he did from the standpoint of production, everything,... it’s the best.... From beginning to end, it’s like the history of Stax is wrapped up in it.” Events in 1967 elevated Redding into the legendary status he occupies today. In spring the Stax-Volt revue toured Europe and brought the Memphis sound to a global audience. Redding’s performances across the continent helped readers of Great Britain’s influential Melody Maker magazine vote Redding the top male vocalist in the world in fall 1967, unseating Elvis Presley who had topped the poll each previous year since 1956.

Fatal Flight
Redding was scheduled for another potentially historic performance, this one at Constitution Hall in Washington D.C. January 28, 1968. He recorded a drastically different style of Redding tune at Stax in November 1967. “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” featured Otis delivering a relaxed vocal over lazily strummed acoustic guitar. The next month, Redding and his new Stax road band the Bar-Kays left for a series of gigs. December 8, 1967, they flew out of Memphis to Nashville, and the next day they played Cleveland, Ohio. After Cleveland, Otis Redding and the Bar-Kays headed to Madison, Wisconsin, but never arrived. Otis’ twin engine plane crashed into Lake Monona, Wisconsin, killing all but one of the passengers, trumpeter Ben Cauley. The pilot, a young Georgian, simply became disoriented in fog just two miles from the runway. Redding was twenty-six, while most of the Bar-Kays were still in high school.

“Sittin’ on the Dock (Of the Bay)”
“Sittin’ on the Dock (Of the Bay)” was released in early 1968 and made it to #1 on the pop and R&B charts. Redding won the Grammy for best male performance in a rhythm and blues song while Redding and Cropper shared the Grammy for best rhythm and blues song.

A Magic Potion
Otis Redding had made a huge impact on Stax. not only was he the label’s most successful artist, he was its most inspirational person. Co-owner Jim Stewart said, “The day Otis Redding died... I was never the same person. The company was never the same to me after that... Otis Redding was like a magic potion. When he walked into the studio, the studio lit up and all the worries and problems vanished. You knew something good was going to happen. Otis was totally creative, totally positive. Everybody wanted to be there when Otis walked in. It was like magic.”

A Classic
His songs remain iconic soul classics to this day. Otis Redding was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.