Otis Ray Redding Jr. was an American singer and composer who lived from September 9, 1941, until December 10, 1967.
He is a notable singer in the annals of popular music in America and a pioneer of rhythm and blues and soul. Redding, known as the “King of Soul,” took influence for his vocal technique from the evangelical music that came before the genre. His vocal style impacted a lot of 1960s soul performers.
What was the cause of Otis Redding death?
Otis Redding wanted to return to the song he had been working on shortly after his final Memphis recording session because he still needed to add new words to replace a whistled verse that had been added as a placeholder.
However, there was a Cleveland television appearance to make in the meantime, followed by a Madison, Wisconsin show.
On December 10, 1967, the private jet carrying soul music icon Otis Redding would, however, crash into the icy waters of a tiny lake three miles short of the airstrip, killing seven of the eight men on board, including Redding.
A few weeks later, “Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay,” with Redding’s whistled line appearing essential to the now-classic song, would be published in its “unfinished” version. The largest pop song of Redding’s career and the first posthumous #1 hit in history, it rose to fame quickly.
