The Otis Redding Dictionary Of Soul : Complete & Unbelievable
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| Release Date: |
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| Label: |
Atlantic |
| Rating: |
4.5 |
Description: With its somewhat grandiose title, the legendary Otis Redding's fifth album maintained much of the same formula that had been used on his previous recordings for the Stax subsidiary label Volt, combining some fine Redding-penned originals with the stylized vocalist's interpretations of others' material. While Redding always lent his own special raw, gospel-edged stamp to everything from the Beatles' perky "Day Tripper" to a slowed-down, unparalleled reading of the pop standard "Tennessee Waltz," it was on his own songs--such gems as "Fa- Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)" (his 15th R&B hit single), the plaintive "Ton of Joy," and the bluesy "Hawg for You"--that Redding was at his soulful best. That said, nothing quite compares to how he turned another pop classic, "Try a Little Tenderness" into an emotive opus that became a showstopper wherever he appeared during his tragically short-lived four years as a hit-making recording artist. As an example of the horn-driven Memphis sound,
Dictionary of Soul is an excellent reference, and Redding is in peak form as a true American original, whether he's giving '50s hit man Chuck Willis's "You're Still My Baby" a workover or breezing through his own almost-joyful "She Put the Hurt on Me." For the benefit of those with limited "knowledge" of Redding's specialized vocal vocabulary, the original album included some sidesplitting definitions of terms such as "gotta-gotta" ("not able to do without it") and "ou" ("ouchless excitement"), and they are reproduced in full on this reissue of what is easily one of Redding's finest recordings.
--David Nathan
Tracklist of The Otis Redding Dictionary Of Soul : Complete & Unbelievable
Reviews:
A Soul Classic
This was my 2nd Otis CD, after "Otis Blue", and it is a great companion to that great record. I love the Memphis horn sound; much of the greatness of these recordings is the backing of Booker T and MGs. I really find these CDs to be fun, just fun to listen to, tap your feet to, sing along with. Otis has loads of personality and a distinctive voice. Good stuff.
Singing " Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa".
Otis Redding was one of the greatest soul singers of all time. He could rock like Little Richard, and then turn around and sing a ballad like Sam Cooke. This was his fifth album, from 1966. It contains a mixture of some classic hits like "Fa Fa Fa Fa Fa" and "Try a Little Tenderness", and fine lesser known songs like "Hawg For You". But what really showcases Otis's unique talent is the cover songs here. He could take a country song like "Tennessee Waltz", a standard like "Try a Little Tenderness", a Beatles song like "Day Tripper" and and old R&B song like "You're Still My Baby" and when he got through with them they sounded like Otis Redding songs. Fans of classic sould should dig this album.
that ain't no hogwash.
i don't want to spoil anyone's listening experience but if you've never heard the first song on this album before then turn your stereo up really loud before you do 'cause the first words out of his mouth are so funny you will laugh.