Personnel:
Otis Redding (vocals); Steve Cropper (guitar); Andrew Love (tenor
saxophone); Floyd Newman (baritone saxophone); Wayne Jackson, Gene
"Bowlegs" Miller (trumpet); Isaac Hayes, Booker T. Jones
(keyboards); Donald "Duck" Dunn (bass); Al Jackson Jr. (drums);
Earl Sims (background vocals). Recorded at Stax Recording Studios,
Memphis, Tennessee in July of 1965 except track 5 recorded in April of
1965. Originally released on Volt (412). Includes original release liner
notes by Bob Rolontz. Many people's choice as their favorite Otis Redding
album, much of OTIS BLUE finds the quintessential soul singer in
atypically sensitive mode.
Up until its release he'd been regarded as something of an R&B shouter in the Wilson Pickett mould, and he doesn't disappoint fans of this earlier incarnation with typically energetic versions of "Respect," "Shake" and "Satisfaction." But it's the album opener, "Ole Man Trouble" that's a sign of Redding's emerging more mature, reflective side that was to culminate in the posthumous "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay," while the heartbreaking "I've Been Loving You Too Long" remains one of his, and perhaps soul music's, greatest performances. He is, of course, accompanied throughout by the classic MG's lineup which, as always, is the perfect foil for his distinctive style. OTIS BLUE finds Otis Redding and '60s soul at their respective artistic peaks.
