Otis Redding

http://thehoboride.blogspot.com/2011/12/this-day-in-rock-history-december-10.html

Early Life• Otis Redding was born

on Sept 9th, 1941.• He is from Dawson,

Georgia.• He dropped out of

school at the age of 15, in order to support his family by working for other musicians and singing at talent shows

• (Otis redding)

http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/Otis%20Redding.html

Early Career

• He started off his musical career by working with Little Richard’s band, The Upsetters

• A few years later, he started working with a different band, The Pinetoppers

• (Otis redding)

http://addictedtovinyl.com/blog/2009/08/14/new-otis-redding-best-of-due-from-shout-factory-on-october-20th/

His Big Break

• While working with the Pinetoppers, Redding finally got his big break.

• He signed with Stax Records and released his first solo album on Jan. 1st, 1964.

• His songs included “Pain In My Heart”, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”, and “These Arms of Mine”

• He was inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in 1989

• (Otis redding)

Death

• On Dec. 10th, 1967, the plane carrying Otis Redding and his back up band crashed into Lake Monona on their way to Madison, WI.

• Even though his career was short, Redding made a huge impact on the musical world.

• (Otis redding)

http://portalwisconsin.wordpress.com/2010/12/06/the-day-otis-redding-dieddecember-10-1967-lake-monona-wi/

Musical Style

• Vocal talent– Otis had an intriguing voice that “created a new

emotional standard for southern soul”

• Band– He was backed by one of the best rhythm sections

in history; Booker T. & the M.G.’s

Musical Style (cont.)

• No backing vocals– Started the use of horn dialogue, in place of

traditional backing vocals, for call-and-response segments

• The King of Soul– Music was filled with vocal melismas, extended

periods of interpolation, and improvisation– Otis had a strong connection with the music

Performance Style

• Stage fright– Otis never got over his stage fright, and it would

show during his performances– He would practically freeze from the waist down

Performance Style (cont.)

• Band leader– The band members

were all friends of Otis and would always have fun on stage together

– Otis was able to command the band just by reacting powerfully to the music

Otis and The Bar Keyshttp://moonjunk.tumblr.com/post/10445700307/otis-redding-and-his-backing-band-the-bar-keys

Performance Style (cont.)

• Audience– He loved to make a connection with his audience– Constantly aware of the listener, and constantly

interacting

Main Influences• Little Richard

– Went on tour with Little Richard

– His inspiration and idolization gave Otis Redding a style imitating Little Richard in his youth

– Later, his idol Little Richard inducted him into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

• Sam Cooke– Sam Cooke’s distinctive

trademark high notes are found in much of Otis Reddings’ music

• (Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008; Brennen, 2008)

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005153/

Little Richard

Other Influences

• Eric Clapton• Jimi Hendrix• Both can be heard in his

later more rock and roll works like “Hard to Handle”

• (Gulla, 2007)

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/jimi-hendrix

Jimi Hendrix

Influenced by Otis Redding

• Almost all other soul singers of the 1960’s were influenced by Otis Redding

• He is often referred to as “The King of Soul” because of his strong original influence

• There are many artists that feature covers of his work– Aretha Franklin, The Doors, Pearl Jam, Kelly Clarkson, Willie

Nelson, Al Green, Kanye West, The Black Crows, and many more

• (Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008; Brennen, 2008)

Influenced by Otis Redding (cont.)

• His sons Dexter and Otis III also went into music forming the Reddings

• Came out with a Top 10 R&B song called “Remote Control”

• Consider their father a great inspiration

• (Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008; Brennen, 2008)

The Reddings

http://www.cdandlp.com/item/2/36918-220204-0-1-0/115371016/the-reddings-if-looks-could-kill.html

Style and Fit• Music of the 1950’s and early 1960’s consisted mainly of

white males. There were very few female artist/groups who were popular at that time. The British Invasion of the 1960’s, the emergence of Motown Records, and the evolving nature of Rock and Roll during this period would see artist become more experimental, innovative and risky with their music.

• During this time period the roots of rock and roll(Pop, C&W, and R&B) and the emergence of the basic rock and roll styles (Mainstream, Rockabilly, and Soft Rock) were the popular genres.

• Folk, Country, and Blues still remained relevant

Musical Style of the 1960’s

• Some of the top artist during the 1960’s include:– The Beatles– Elvis– Beach Boys– Ray Charles– Rolling Stones– Supremes– The Byrds– Bob Dylan– 4 Seasons– Sam Cooke

http://thebeatlesautographs.net/

http://www.eonline.com/celebs/Elvis_Presley/110703

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/102011/The-Supremes-late-1960s

Musical Style of the 1960’s (cont.)

• Otis’ simple style followed some characteristics of ‘soul music’ during the era and managed to stay uncomplicated. Although influenced by artist like Little Richard, Sam Cooke and even the Beatles (Sitting on the Dock of the Bay), Otis preferred the successful formula of simple, blues influenced ‘soul music’.

– “Basically, I like any music that remains simple and I feel this is the formula that makes 'soul music' successful. When any music form becomes cluttered and/or complicated you lose the average listener's ear. There is nothing more beautiful than a simple blues tune. There is beauty in simplicity whether you are talking about architecture, art or music.” (1) – Soul Magazine

Social Influences

• Civil Rights Movement– The Civil Rights Movement was a

movement sustained by music. – Provided artist such as Otis the opportunity to pursue

business ventures and live the ‘American Dream’• Owned Otis Redding Enterprises.• Through performances, music publishing, royalties and record

sales, he earned more than a million dollars in 1967 alone (2)

• Counterculture Movement– Movement driven by youth, produced a market for rock,

soul, pop, reggae and blues music.

Social Influences-People• There was a constant threat

against the lives of blacks and those supported change, from black and white dissenters

• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr– “I Have A Dream” Speech promoted

social unity

• John F. Kennedy – Election changed the political dynamics

of the country– Assasination

• Medgar Evers– NAACP field secretary. Assassinated by

a member of the Ku Klux Klan in Jackson, Mississippi.

• Malcolm X – Assassination

http://muslimmatters.org/2011/03/03/what-does-the-civil-rights-movement-mean-for-muslims/

Martin Luther King Jr.

Political Influences

• Vietnam War– Anti-war movement

participants provided inspiration to much of the music during the 1960’s

– Draft• Manager, Phil Walden and

brother, Rodgers Redding were both drafted.

• Threats of War– Cold War– Made travel strenuous and

at times difficult

http://www.boomerslife.org/protests_rally_iran_neda_agha_soltan.htm

Musical Analysis

• The song that we chose to do our musical analysis on is “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay

• We chose this song because it became a number one hit on both the Pop and R&B charts after Otis Reddings’ death

Musical AnalysisInstrumentation

• Instrumentation: The instruments that we hear used in this particular song would be the drums, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, what sounds like a piano or a keyboard, and then there are some brass instruments like a saxophone (I think it might actually be a trombone)and trumpets.

• There are also some parts where I hear an electric guitar as well

• The whistling of Otis Redding is also an instrumentation in itself

• There is also some non-musical instrument sounds like the whooshing sound of water at the very beginning of the song to represent waves

Musical AnalysisMeter and Beat Subdivision

• Meter: The meter of this song would be quadruple meter or duple meter.– There are four beats per measure.

• Beat Subdivision: The beat subdivision in this song would be a duple subdivision. It’s difficult to hear but if you listen closely to the drums you can pick up on it.

Musical AnalysisTexture and Form

• Texture: The texture of this song is definitely homophonic melody and accompaniment. I feel it is this because it is the singer only being accompanied by musical instruments and no back-up singers.

• Form: The form is AABA. The B is actually 3 stanzas, so it sounds like AABACAA if you’re actually listening for different part feelings, but I think the idea in AABA is that there is an altered attention grabbing portion somewhere in the middle, so it would fit with the categorization.

Legacy

• Much of Stax Records’ success lies in the work of Otis Redding• Originally recorded country and rockabilly music• Following his success there, Stax added “Soulville,

USA” to its title

Legacy (cont.)

• Otis Redding had a profound influence on the history of soul music, as well as rock and roll• Named “The King of Soul”• Rolling Stones covered two of his songs• In 1989, he was finally inducted into the Rock and Roll

Hall of Fame• Jay-Z and Kanye West’s song, “Otis,” was Grammy

nominated for best rap song in 2011

Resources• Brennan, C.(2008). "Cooke, Sam 1931—1964." Contemporary Black Biography. Retrieved June 25,

2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2871900023.html• "Eyewitness Tells of Otis Redding's Violent Death". Jet. December 28, 1967.• Gulla, B. (2007) “Otis Redding.” Icons of r&b: An encyclopedia of the artists who revolutionized

rhythm (Vol. 1, pp. 412). Ann Arbor, MI: Greenwood Press.• Guralnick, Peter (1999). Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom.

Back Bay Books. • Hirsch, E.D. (1993). The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Houghton Mifflin. • Labrie, Peter (April 1968). "The Flame That Died". Black World/Negro Digest.• Otis redding. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://rockhall.com/inductees/otis-redding/bio/• Otis redding. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.crecon.com/davidwomack/otis redding.htm • Ritz, D. (2012). Otis redding. Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/494636/Otis-Redding • Scaruffi, P. (2005). A brief history of soul music. Retrieved from

http://www.scaruffi.com/history/soul.html • Scott Freeman, Otis!: The Otis Redding Story (New York: St. Martin's Griffin Press, 2001); Rhino

Records, Los Angeles, Otis!: the definitive Otis Redding [sound recording], (1993). • Shmoop Editorial Team (November 11, 2008).Otis Redding Influences. Retrieved June 25, 2012, from

http://www.shmoop.com/dock-of-the-bay/influences.html• Whatman, R. (2006, May 26). Otis redding: Living at the apollo november 1963. Retrieved from

http://browneyedhandsomeman.blogspot.com/2006/05/otis-redding-live-at-apollo-november.html