Next year
will be the 50th anniversary of Otis Redding topping the charts with his
signature song, "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay." Unfortunately the
single's success was bittersweet, as Redding tragically passed away in a plane
crash just weeks before its release. Leading up to the "Dock Of The
Bay" milestone, Rhino will introduce a new vinyl collection that brings
together all seven of the iconic soul singer's studio albums. Big O's biggest
hits are all here, from "Pain In My Heart" and "These Arms Of
Mine" to "Respect" and "Try A Little Tenderness."
The albums
included in the collection are: Pain In My Heart (1964), The Great Otis Redding
Sings Soul Ballads (1965), Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul (1965), The Soul
Album (1966), Complete and Unbelievable...The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
(1966), King & Queen - Otis Redding & Carla Thomas (1967), and The Dock
of the Bay (1968).
All of the
LPs replicate the original packaging, from the sleeve artwork down to small
details like the original record labels (Volt and Stax) and catalog numbers,
all housed together in a side-loading slipcase. Several of these albums are
long out-of-print and back on vinyl in mono for the first time in years.
The music
follows Redding's career from his 1964 debut Pain In My Heart up to The Dock of
the Bay, which was released in February 1968, just a few months after the
singer's untimely death in December 1967. Despite his short career, Redding
recorded songs that helped define soul in the Sixties and beyond.
The albums
are packed with Top Ten R&B hits: "Chained And Bound," "Mr.
Pitiful," "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and his cover of the
Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction." Another obvious
highlight is "Respect," a song Redding wrote and recorded in 1965,
which later become a massive hit for Aretha Franklin. Another essential is
"Tramp" from his unforgettable duets album with Carla Thomas, King
& Queen. As it happens, that's also the last album the singer would release
during his lifetime.
Redding's
music career began fatefully in 1962 when an unexpected opportunity to record
two songs led to a contract with Stax Records in Memphis. Throughout his
career, the singer was backed by the legendary Stax house band: keyboardist
Booker T. Jones, guitarist Steve Cropper, bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn,
and drummer Al Jackson Jr.
OTIS
REDDING: THE DEFINITIVE STUDIO ALBUM COLLECTION
Album
Listing
Pain In My
Heart
The Great
Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads
Otis
Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul
The Soul
Album
Complete and
Unbelievable...The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
King &
Queen - Otis Redding & Carla Thomas
The Dock of
the Bay
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