Mr. Otis Redding.
10/18/2022
This was supposed to be a list of Halloween films. But with the time I have and being able to be flexible. I’ve decided to talk about Otis Redding. I want to blend the things I love the most. Film and Music. The main thing I want to accomplish is to give you something you might not have thought about. I will do a lot of commercial films and try to interpolate obscurity. We will see how that goes. Not everything will be agreed upon. I will look forward to hearing different opinions or your personal recommendations. I hope you enjoy and open that mind of yours. In the words of Otis. A Change Is Gonna Come.
I love live concert films. I have watched them for years. I filled up my parents dvr with them. MTV had a wonderful channel called MTV world. It would be 24 hours of live music. I attribute my love for music to Mr. Chuck Klosterman and my mother. I still jam out to 90s house music because of her. Do not be surprised if you get a real mccoy recommendation. Both film and band. Long live Val Kilmer.
Chuck Klosterman wrote Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs in 2003. I would have read it with a bus full of Christian football athletes. Mr. Klosterman would open our minds to a bunch of new ideas. Which is funny when you think of how religion is supposed to hinder that at a young age. We would be asked these hypotheticals, here is an example. Genetic engineers at Johns Hopkins University have developed a so-called super gorilla. Though the animal cannot speak, it has a sign language lexicon of over twelve thousand words, and an IQ of almost 85, and most notably a vague sense of self-awareness. Oddly, the creature (who weighs seven hundred pounds) becomes fascinated by football. The gorilla aspires to play the game at its highest level and quickly develops the rudimentary skills of a defensive end. ESPN analyst Tom Jackson speculates that this gorilla would be borderline unblockable and would likely average six sacks a game (although Jackson concedes the beast might be susceptible to counters and misdirection plays). Meanwhile, the gorilla has made is clear he would never intentionally injure any opponent. You are commissioner of the NFL: Would you allow this gorilla to sign with the Oakland Raiders? The answer would be yes. The Raiders need all the help they can get. These hypotheticals would consume our minds and we would talk about it for the entire trip. The other thing he did was compare church to a concert. You could have the same experience at both events. I found that this would not be true for me a lot of the time. Concerts would always fill my heart with a great emotional experience. I recently watched Shake, this 20-minute film for the first time. It reminded me of this fact. I went in with no expectations and was entranced. All hail the King of Soul.
Shake! Otis at Monterey
During three days in the early summer of 1967, the Monterey International Pop Festival kicked off. It would be most remembered for the first major American Appearances by Jimi Hendrik and The Who. Sure, Jimi Hendrix breaks his guitar and hands it to the crowd. Pretty Rad, Crowd is shocked. Change is gonna come. During the three-day festival, more than two dozen artist would perform.
Otis Redding would finish June 17th out in style. On a rainy night, at 25 years of age from Macon, Georgia, and in a gorgeous green suit, with a huge career ahead of him, the film shows him performing a 19-minute set. Songs included were his own, Respect made famous by Aretha Franklin, unbeknownst to me was originally written by Otis. Otis would cover Shake by Sam Cooke and Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones. This would have been his first true festival for a white audience. The guitar, the bass, the drums, the horn and the stage presence. It was transcendent. Shake starts out and you see the cuts of Shake on your screen. You see his smile and his body in complete control. I see power and raw emotion. The bands clothing. The 60s were colorful. What a time to be alive. Standing with the future giants. He commanded Saturday night. “This is the love crowd?” sounding more like a statement, “Yeah!!!!” the attendants answered. At the eight and half minute mark, Otis then enters I’ve been loving you now. “Don’t make me stop now.” Then back from being somber, with flick of an internal switch he jumps into the cover of satisfaction. The crowd screaming for him. A master of tempo and charismatically sings a song for all the miniskirts. The film takes him offscreen. My biggest critique is they show all these women of the festival. It will not sound like a critique. I think it’s amazing to see all these different beautiful women, from different cultures and ages. It made me smile a ton. Until you realize you never know time you have. You will also hear the sample that Kanye West and Jay-Z used on the single Otis. Leaving the stage, he says “I got to go, I don’t wanna Go.” There it is. It’s over. Until another Time.
“Good God Almighty, I love you!”
There would not be any other times. What a shame, is that in December of 1967, Otis and three members of the Bar-Keys would die in a plane crash. Otis was 26. Posthumously he released The Dock of the Bay. Which is an album that has gotten me through many tough times.
After watching this film, I decided that I wanted this to be my first release. It’s been 55 years since this festival. Watching the film, it reminds you that life can be short. I was not aware of the fact that he passed so soon after the filming of it.
Below will be recommendations. If you have any please let me know.
Film Recommendation: Shake! Otis at Monterey on HBO Max
Album Recommendation: Otis Blue: Otis Redding
Book Recommendation: Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman
Song Recommendation: My Girl by Otis Redding
TV Show Recommendation: Mad Men
Further Viewing – Monterey Pop on Criterion Channel
Lemonworld 
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