Otis Redding
The Best – See & Hear
Shout Factory
The Legacy Continues
also available on amazon
This is a great example of the type of work Shout Factory is doing, in one package you get some vintage footage of Otis Redding, both in Oslo at a club on the European Stax/Volt tour, and at Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 the year he was tragically killed in a plane crash. The DVD was directed by D.A. Pennebaker (Don’t Look Back) and includes some footage of Sam and Dave as well as Booker T. & The MG’s, who backed both artists on the tour. It gives a good glimpse into the dynamic performer Otis was on stage, as well as the underappreciated Sam & Dave, who sure could dance.
The CD is 12 cuts of some of the very best of Otis Redding; it includes the cut, Tramp, performed with Carla Thomas. The hit parade includes such classics as (Sittin’ On) The Dock of The Bay, Respect, Try A Little Tenderness, and Satisfaction. Because his career was cut so short by a plane crash many of his songs were played
almost to death on the radio and were considered big hits and are very familiar and they are contained here, however several that never got great radio airplay, yet are good examples of his versatility are included; Mr. Pitiful, Pain In My Heart, and The Happy Song (Dum Dum). Of course there are personal favorites that are left out, but that would change the whole nature of the set and what Shout Factory is doing; bringing us a good sampling of the artists work and a visual so that we can see at what level the performer operated, and still keep the price moderate. A very worthwhile set for those who did get to see and hear him in his day, and for the uninitiated.