Remembering Otis Redding

Today I visited the Georgia Music Hall of Fame on the closing day of “I’ve Got Dreams to Remember,” a collection of music, photographs, film and artifacts documenting the career, life, and death of Otis Redding. My only regret is that I didn’t go see this exhibit sooner, so that I could recommend it to others.

The exhibit’s photography was indeed compelling, with many images of Redding early in his career. My favorites were the studio photographs, showing him working with such greats as Booker T. Jones, Steve Cropper, and Donald “Duck” Dunn. And a series of photos from the 1967 memorial service at the Macon City Auditorium showed the outpouring of support, both from black and white fans. A friend told me just this past Saturday that she skipped school to attend the memorial. Caught by a television camera and seen on the evening news by her father, she was grounded for a week. “Was it worth it?” I asked. “Oh yes,” was the reply. “No regrets.”

Otis Redding was immensely influential on the music world, despite having an all-too-brief career. In 1962, Redding recorded These Arms of Mine on the Volt label, a Stax subsidiary, and the song reached #20 on the R&B billboard and #85 on the pop billboard. Five years later, and just four days before his death, Redding recorded (Sittin’ on the) Dock of the Bay. Produced by guitarist Steve Cropper and released posthumously, the song was ironically the only Redding song to climb higher that #21 on the Top 40 charts, holding the number one spot for four weeks in 1968. Dock of the Bay was a turning point, a Dylan-like departure from Redding's soul roots, representing something of a crossover toward pop music. Had death not ended this career so short, who knows what Redding might have achieved.

Aretha Franklin, The Black Crows,The Blues Brothers, and so many other acts benefitted from Redding’s songwriting genius and musical influence—as have I. Today, few know that Respect was written by Redding. And unfortunately, Hard to Handle is much more synonymous with the Black Crows. As a musician, I am very proud to play so many of his songs. And I'm also convinced that if I every make it as a musician, I may may pull a John Madden an only take the bus.

One of the most compelling items on display in the Redding exhibit is a poster for a concert at The Foundry, in Madison Wisconsin on December 10, 1967, featuring Otis Redding with the Bar-Kays. Ironically, the opening act was a band called the Grim Reapers, who would later become Cheap Trick. The Grim Reapers played one set before Redding’s death was announced to the crowd.

Like virtually every artist reaching greatness, Otis’s career caught a huge break. He was the driver for Johnny Jenkins, the bandleader of the Pinetoppers, who did not have a driver's license. Redding would later front the group. Two years later, his stint with the Pinetoppers led to an opportunity to record These Arms of Mine in Memphis. But quicker than fate brought fortune, it brought a Beechcraft 18 aircraft down in Lake Monona near Madison, Wisconsin on December 10, 1967. What an incredible lesson in taking advantage of the opportunities life brings, and living life to the fullest, as any day might be the last.