Otis Redding

Otis Ray Redding, Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the greatest singers in popular music and a major artist in soul and rhythm and blues. His singing style was powerfully influential among soul artists of 1960s and helped exemplify the Stax Sound. Initially popular mainly with African Americans, Redding later reached the broader American popular music audience. He and his group first played small gigs in the South, then debuted in the western United States at LA's popular Whisky a Go Go. They later performed in Paris, London and other European cities. After appearing at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival Redding wrote and recorded the iconic "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" with Steve Cropper. The song became the first posthumous number-one record on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B charts after his death in a plane crash. The Dock of the Bay became the first posthumous album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart. (Read more at Wikipedia.)

Links to Peel
Regular listeners to Peel's shows were familiar with his story about hearing 'Ole Man Trouble' by Otis Redding for the first time. As recounted to Andy Peebles in My Top Ten (1984):

"I used to live in Oklahoma and work for a radio station just outside Oklahoma City. I used to do gigs on Indian reservations in the south of the state. It’s one of these things which sounds “come on, he’s making this up” – but it is true. And I used to work with a band called Dan Yankee & The Carpetbaggers, who were wonderful people. And we were driving back from the gig, it must have been 3 or 4 o’clock in the morning listening to a radio station coming from Memphis and this next record came on. And this is another one of those things – funnily enough, they mostly seem to happen to me in cars – and we actually pulled over to the side of the road and we were just transfixed." The song was a major favourite of Peel's who later selected it for the Peelenium 1965. 'Try A Little Tenderness' was subsequently chosen for the Peelenium 1966, making Redding one of the relatively few artists with more more than one track in the list.

(To be continued)

Festive Fifty Entries

 * None

Sessions

 * None

Peelenium

 * Peelenium 1965: Ole Man Trouble
 * Peelenium 1966: Try A Little Tenderness

Other Shows Played

 * 1967
 * 13 August 1967 (Radio London): I'm Sick Y'all (7" b-side of Try A Little Tenderness) Atlantic (played by Willy Walker – Peel reads news)


 * 1972
 * 25 February 1972: That’s How Strong My Love Is (LP - The Best Of Otis Redding) Atco
 * Radio Luxembourg Tracklistings 5: Ole Man Trouble (LP – Otis Blue/ Otis Redding Sings) Atlantic


 * 1973
 * 24 April 1973: Ole Man Trouble (single – Respect b-side, 1965) Volt


 * 1979
 * 30 August 1979: Ole Man Trouble (Atlantic) (40th birthday records)
 * 30 October 1979: Mr Pitiful
 * 01 November 1979: I've Been Loving You Too Long


 * 1980
 * 20 February 1980: That's A Good Idea
 * 18 March 1980: I Can't Turn You Loose (EP) Atlantic


 * 1981
 * 25 March 1981: Ole Man Trouble (JP tells a story about the first time he heard Otis Redding during his time in America.)


 * 1982
 * 26 April 1982: I Can't Turn You Loose (LP - Recorded Live: Previously Unreleased Performances) Atlantic
 * 29 April 1982: Good To Me (LP - Recorded Live: Previously Unreleased Performances) Atlantic
 * 29 April 1982: Chained And Bound (LP - Recorded Live: Previously Unreleased Performances) Atlantic
 * 29 April 1982: Old Man Trouble (LP - Recorded Live: Previously Unreleased Performances) Atlantic (JP: "I first heard the single version of that when I was driving back with a band called Dan Yankee and the Carpetbaggers from a gig on an Indian reservation in the south of Oklahoma, driving through the woods at about three o'clock in the morning, something like that. And that came out of the radio. Terrific it was.")
 * 29 July 1982: I've Been Loving You Too Long


 * 1984
 * 21 May 1984: These Arms Of Mine


 * 1991
 * 01 December 1991: These Arms Of Mine' (LP 'The Complete Stax/Volt Singles 1959-68')


 * 1992
 * 18 January 1992: Pain In My Heart
 * 22 February 1992: There Goes My Baby (CD - It’s Not Just Sentimental) Ace
 * 09 February 1992: Come To Me (9-CD v/a album - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles 1959-1968) Atlantic
 * 08 March 1992: Remember Me (CD-It's Not Just Sentimental - The Unheard Otis 22 Tracks) Stax
 * 04 April 1992: Gone Again (CD - It's Not Just Sentimental - The Unheard Otis 22 Tracks) Stax / Volt
 * 10 April 1992: Stay In School (CD - It's Not Just Sentimental) Ace
 * 11 April 1992: I've Got Dreams To Remember (CD - It's Not Just Sentimental) Stax
 * 16 May 1992: That's How Strong My Love Is (9xCD compilation-The Complete Stax/Volt Singles 1959-1968-Vol 4)' (Atlantic)
 * 24 December 1992: White Christmas


 * 1993
 * 25 June 1993: I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (CD – Good To Me – Live At The Whiskey A Go Go – Volume 2) Stax


 * 1999
 * 28 October 1999: Ole Man Trouble (LP-Otis Blue) Volt (Peelenium 1965)
 * 02 November 1999: Try A Little Tenderness (LP-The Otis Redding Dictionary Of Soul - Complete & Unbelievable) Volt (Peelenium 1966)


 * 2000
 * 21 December 2000: Merry Christmas Baby
 * 2001
 * 20 December 2001: Old Man Trouble (Volt) (to follow Okkervil River’s ‘Listening To Otis Redding At Home During Christmas’)


 * Other
 * My Top Ten: Ole Man Trouble
 * Jerry Wexler : Soul Man: These Arms Of Mine / I Can't Turn You Loose