Redding, Otis "Otis Blue" [Mono]

Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul, or simply Otis Blue, released
September 15, 1965 on Stax Records, is the third studio album by soul
singer Otis Redding. The album mainly consists of cover songs by popular
R&B and soul artists, and, bar one track, was recorded in a 24-hour
period over July 9/10 1965 at the Stax Recording Studios in Memphis,
Tennessee. Otis Blue was critically acclaimed upon release and became
one of Redding's most successful albums; it reached number 6 on the UK
Albums Chart, and was his first to reach the top spot of the Billboard
R&B chart. Furthermore, it produced three popular singles, all
charting at least in the top 50 on both the Billboard R&B and the
Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is considered by many critics to be
Redding's first fully realized album. Three of the eleven songs were
written by Redding: "Ole Man Trouble", "Respect", and "I've Been Loving
You Too Long". Three songs were written by Sam Cooke, a soul musician
who had died a few months earlier. As was the case in the previous
albums, Redding was backed by house band Booker T. & The M.G.'s, a
horn section of members of The Mar-Keys and The Memphis Horns, and
pianist Isaac Hayes. Otis Blue is included in a number of "best album"
lists, including Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, Time
magazine's list of the All-Time 100 Greatest Albums, and Robert Dimery's
"1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". Rhino Records released a
two-disc Collectors Edition of Otis Blue in 2008.