The 1965 third album from Redding, ably backed by Booker T & the MGs, the Memphis Horns and Isaac Hayes on piano is perhaps the definitive mid-sixties southern soul album. Made mostly of cover versions, Otis Blue is a genre-defining masterwork, a musical alchemy that blended R’n’B, blues and gospel into a template many would emulate. Listen to the dynamic peaks and troughs in both the musical accompaniment and Redding’s vocals on, for example, ‘I’ve Been Loving You Too Long’ to hear Southern soul perfection.