Otis Redding

Otis Redding helped define soul in the 1960s with a voice that could turn from grit to tenderness in a line. Born in Dawson, Georgia, he emerged as a singer, songwriter, producer and arranger whose records carried gospel feeling into Southern soul and R&B.

His run of albums includes Pain in My Heart, The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads and Otis Blue / Otis Redding Sings Soul, all central to his reputation. He also wrote songs that travelled far beyond his own catalogue, including “Respect”, while “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” became his best-known recording. Redding died in a plane crash near Madison, Wisconsin in December 1967, aged 26, but the force and warmth of his singing still feel startlingly present.