Person:Otis Redding (1)

Biographical Summary

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Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. Nicknamed the "King of Soul", Redding's style of singing gained inspiration from the gospel music that preceded the genre. His singing style influenced many other soul artists of the 1960s.

Redding was born in Dawson, Georgia, and at age two, moved to Macon. Redding quit school at age 15 to support his family, working with Little Richard's backing band, the Upsetters, and by performing in talent shows at the historic Douglass Theatre in Macon. In 1958, he joined Johnny Jenkins's band, the Pinetoppers, with whom he toured the Southern states as a singer and driver. An unscheduled appearance on a Stax recording session led to a contract and his first hit single, "These Arms of Mine", in 1962.

Stax released Redding's debut album, Pain in My Heart, two years later. Initially popular mainly with African-Americans, Redding later reached a wider American pop music audience. Along with his group, he first played small shows in the American South. Redding later performed at the popular Los Angeles night club Whisky a Go Go and toured Europe, performing in London, Paris and other major cities. He also performed at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

Shortly before his death in a plane crash, Redding wrote and recorded his 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. The album The Dock of the Bay was the first posthumous album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart. Redding's premature death devastated Stax. Already on the verge of bankruptcy, the label soon discovered that the Atco division of Atlantic Records owned the rights to his entire song catalog.

Redding received many posthumous accolades, including two Grammy Awards, the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame. and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In addition to "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay", "Respect" and "Try a Little Tenderness" are among his best-known songs.

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1. ↑ Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index: Death Master File, database. (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service).

   Name: Otis Redding
   SSN: 255-56-0903
   BORN: 9 Sep 1941
   Died: Dec 1967
   State (Year) SSN issued: Georgia (1954)
   Source Citation
   Number: 255-56-0903; Issue State: Georgia; Issue Date: 1954

2. ↑ United States. Social Security Administration. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936–2007. (Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, 2015).

   Name: Otis Redding Jr
   Gender: Male
   Birth Date: 9 Sep 1941
   Death Date: Dec 1967
   Claim Date: 9 Jan 1968
   SSN: 255560903

3.   Otis Redding, in Wisconsin, United States. Death records index, 1959-1997: Database. (Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Department of Health).

   Name: Otis Redding
   Age: 26
   Sex: M (Male)
   Birth Date: abt 1941
   Death Date: 10 Dec 1967
   Location: Madi (May be abbreviated)
   Certificate: 033057

4.   Macon Telegraph; Macon, Georgia, USA.

   Otis Redding Jr.
   In Loving Memory of Otis Redding, Jr. You will always be remembered as a Loving Husband, Father, Extraordinary Friend and Legendary Entertainer. We love and miss you always but your legacy continues through us. Zelma Redding & Family September 9, 1941 - December 10, 1967
   Published in The Telegraph on Dec. 10, 2010

5.   .

   Otis Redding, Jr
   Birth: 9 Sep 1941 Dawson, Terrell County, Georgia, USA
   Death: 10 Dec 1967 (aged 26) Monona, Dane County, Wisconsin, USA
   Burial: Big O Ranch Redding Family Estate Grounds, Round Oak, Jones County, Georgia, USA
   Memorial #: 2205
   Bio: Rhythm and Blues Singer. He was one of the most popular and critically acclaimed soul vocalist, songwriter and musician representatives of the R&B style known as Southern soul, and was one of the first artists to broaden his appeal to white audiences. Born in Dawson, Georgia, the son of a Baptist minister, he grew up in poverty in the Tindall Heights housing projects of Macon, Georgia, where he started singing in the church choir of Vineville Baptist Church. He later attended Ballad Hudson High School and participated in the band. He dropped out of high school in the tenth grade, determined to help his family financially, and would work with singer Little Richard's former band, “The Upsetters”, serving as both chauffeur and vocalist as the group played the fraternity-house circuit. He also began to compete in local talent shows for the $5 prize, winning 15 straight times. He was discovered while singing with Macon guitarist Johnny Jenkins band, “The Pine Toppers”, and first recorded as a member of that group for the tiny Confederate label in 1960. In October 1962, Jenkins and the group were booked to record songs at Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, and Otis Redding was invited at the end session to make his first solo album "These Arms of Mine." The album became the first of a series of soul ballads by Redding. During the mid-1960s, he toured the United States playing numerous one-night engagements in theatres such as the Apollo in New York City, New York and clubs frequented by African-Americans. He also toured Canada, Europe, and the Caribbean, and his concert tours were among the biggest box office successes of any touring performer during this time. Ironically, although he consistently impacted the R&B charts beginning with the Top Ten appearance of "Mr. Pitiful" in 1965, none of Redding's singles fared better than #21 on the pop Top Forty. In 1965, he moved his family into a spacious 300-acre property, in Round Oak, Georgia he called "The Big O Ranch". In September of that same year he released “Otis Blue/ Otis Redding Swings Soul”, which was recorded in 24 hours and feature the song "Respect" as well as the now-celebrated soul ballads, "I've Been Loving Yoo Too Long," and "A Change is Gonna Come." The song that many consider Redding's greatest, "Try A Little Tenderness," was later recorded in 1967. On December 10, 1967 in Lake Monona, Madison, Wisconsin, Otis Redding, along with six others were killed in a plane crash during a storm en route to a concert in Madison. About 4,500 mourners crowded Macon's City Auditorium for Redding's funeral a week later. He was buried on the grounds of his family estate. Four months after his death, Otis Redding would achieve his first American number one album for his hit which hit No. 1 on the pop and R&B charts. “(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" (1967) released in January of 1968 later won Redding two 1968 Grammy Awards. He has received several other honors since his death, including induction into the the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, The Georgia Music Hall of Fame, the naming of a bridge in Macon after Redding and the United States Postal Service issuing a commemorative stamp in his honor on June 16, 1993. In 1992, a release of the CD "The Very Best of Otis Redding” was issued and soon went gold after selling more than 500,00 copies.
   Family Members
   Parents
   Otis Redding 1913-1968
   Fannie Roseman Redding 1916-1989
   Siblings
   Christine Redding Lowder 1938-2018
   Darlene Burr-Stinger Redding 1939-1988
   Maintained by: Find A Grave
   Added: 1 Jan 2001
   URL: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2205
   Citation: Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 11 September 2018), memorial page for Otis Redding, Jr (9 Sep 1941–10 Dec 1967), Find A Grave Memorial no. 2205, citing Big O Ranch Redding Family Estate Grounds, Round Oak, Jones County, Georgia, USA ; Maintained by Find A Grave .

6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3} .

   Christian, Margena A. "Life And Legacy Of Otis Redding." Jet 112, no. 11 (September 17, 2007): 38. Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed September 11, 2018).

7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} .

   1997. "Redding, Otis." Chambers Biographical Dictionary (Bio Ref Bank)Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed September 11, 2018).