Otis Redding remains an immortal presence in the canon of American
music on the strength of such classic hits as “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of
the Bay,” “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” “Try a Little Tenderness,”
and “Respect,” a song he wrote and recorded before Aretha Franklin made
it her own. As the architect of the distinctly southern,
gospel-inflected style of rhythm & blues associated with Stax
Records in Memphis, Redding made music that has long served as the gold
standard of 1960s soul. Yet an aura of myth and mystery has always
surrounded his life, which was tragically cut short at the height of his
career by a plane crash in December 1967.
In Otis Redding: An Unfinished Life, Jonathan
Gould finally does justice to Redding’s incomparable musical artistry,
drawing on exhaustive research, the cooperation of the Redding family,
and previously unavailable sources of information to present the first
comprehensive portrait of the singer’s background, his upbringing, and
his professional career.
In chronicling the story of Redding’s
life and music, Gould also presents a social history of the time and
place from which they emerged. His book never lets us forget that the
boundaries between black and white in popular music were becoming porous
during the years when racial tensions were reaching a height throughout
the United States. His indelible portrait of Redding and the mass
acceptance of soul music in the 1960s is both a revealing look at a
brilliant artist and a provocative exploration of the tangled history of
race and music in America that resonates strongly with the present day.
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