On This Day

On this day in December 1967 the world lost one its best soul singers. Otis Redding was not just "The King Of The Soul Singers", he was an incredibly hard working man. The weather between Cleveland and Madison, Wisconsin was marginal even to an optmist. But there was a gig to play, and Otis was not one to let his fans down. He had recorded "(Sittin) On the Dock of the Bay" just three days earlier. While that song made him famous to the mainstream, he was widely renowned in smaller communities as a stellar performer and songwriter ("Respect" became a mammoth hit for Aretha Franklin). His musical achievements were recognized in many ways, including his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. It was his dedication that drove him to make the trip to Madison, with the tragic result of his plane crashing into Lake Monona. He was in the co-pilot seat, my father was in the pilot seat. It was believed that engine failure due to icing caused the crash while the plane was on final approach to Truax Field. The event changed not only the music world, but also my life. This post is dedicated to the memory of Otis, my father, and the others on the plane that fateful evening.