Otis Redding

Long before Olivia Rodrigo alluded to her driver’s licence in song, Otis Redding’s ID card helped him get the break he so desperately needed. After all, if he hadn’t been hired to drive guitarist Johnny Jenkins to an audition in Memphis, Redding might never have showcased his own abilities for Stax Records, the legendary soul label who released his breakthrough single, These Arms Of Mine, in 1962.

Serendipity alone doesn’t explain Redding’s success: the future “King Of Soul” had the vast reserves of talent and dedication needed to get to the top. Recorded with Stax’s regular house band, Booker T And The MGs, the Macon, Georgia-born singer’s immaculate 1964 debut album, Pain In My Heart, was a commercial slow-burner, but its successors – not least UK Top 10 smash Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul – showcased his raw, yet highly emotive, voice and established Redding among the best soul singers of all time by the time he played 1967’s Monterey International Pop Festival.

The future should have been his for the taking from thereon in, but just days after recording his glorious, chart-topping signature song, (Sittin’ On The) Dock Of The Bay, Otis Redding died in a plane crash, in December 1967, his tragically premature passing robbing modern music of one of its most singular talents.