Maps of Music

King & Queen (1967)

Where the lyrics of King & Queen take you, and where it was really made.

Only six of the eleven songs were cut during the recording session; the other five were overdubbed by Redding in the following days because of his concert schedule.

Key places

Recorded in Memphis (1967)

Recording site Ardent Studios — The album was recorded in Memphis, Tennessee in January 1967. The point uses city-level coordinates, so it marks the city rather than a studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• King & Queen: studio album by American recording artists Otis Redding and Carla Thomas
• Released March 16, 1967 by Stax Records (first issued as Stax 716)
• Thomas' fourth album and Redding's sixth, and his final studio album before his death on December 10, 1967
• Eleven songs: ten covers of soul classics, plus 'Ooh Carla, Ooh Otis', co-written by Redding and Al Bell
• Liner notes written by Tennessee Senator Howard H. Baker, Jr.

Background

• Producer Jim Stewart proposed a duet album, believing it would advance both artists' careers
• Stewart thought Redding's rawness and Thomas's sophistication would work well together
• The idea was also modeled on Marvin Gaye's duets with Mary Wells and Kim Weston
• Thomas was already successful in R&B, with many singles on the Hot 100 and Hot R&B charts
• Redding agreed to record with Thomas, saying that since she was from Memphis and Tennessee she could hang
• During the January 1967 recording, Thomas was studying at Howard University in Washington D.C. for an M.A. in English

Recording

• Recorded in January 1967 in Memphis, Tennessee
• Recording time given as about six days in one source and only three days in another
• House band Booker T. & the M.G.'s, pianist Isaac Hayes, and the brass section the Memphis Horns
• Six of the eleven songs were cut during the session
• The remaining songs were overdubbed by Redding in the following days because of his concert obligations

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Otis Ray Redding Jr. was born September 9, 1941 in Dawson, Georgia, and raised in Macon.
• He left school at 15 to support his family, performing in local talent contests and at Macon's Douglass Theatre.
• In 1958 he joined Johnny Jenkins' band, the Pinetoppers, touring the Southern states as singer and driver.
• A Stax Records session in 1962 led to a contract and his first hit, "These Arms of Mine".

Career

• His debut album Pain in My Heart was released by Stax in 1964; he later reached a wider pop audience.
• He performed at Whisky a Go Go in Los Angeles, toured Europe, and played the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967.
• "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" was recorded shortly before his death and released January 1968, becoming his only Billboard Hot 100 number one.
• He died in a plane crash on December 10, 1967 in Lake Monona, near Madison, Wisconsin.
• He is known as the "King of Soul" and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

Reappraisal

• AllMusic (Jason Ankeny) gives the album 4.5 stars out of 5
• Ankeny writes that Redding and Thomas share an undeniable chemistry and play off each other wonderfully
• Ankeny calls it Otis Redding's lighter, more purely entertaining record
• Robert Christgau gives the album an A−
• Christgau calls the album pretty ephemeral but praises the music
• Christgau says the album sounds vivacious, catchier and funnier than most soul music

Records

• 'Tramp': number two on the Billboard Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart, number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100
• 'Knock on Wood': number eight on the Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart, number 30 on the Hot 100
• 'Lovey Dovey': released late in 1968, number 21 on the Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart, number 60 on the Hot 100

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Only six songs were cut during the recording session; the others were overdubbed in the following days because of Redding's concert schedule.
• Thomas was studying for an M.A. in English at Howard University in Washington D.C. at the time of the January 1967 recording.
• Redding's rawness and Thomas's sophistication were the qualities producer Jim Stewart expected to work together.
• The duet concept followed the model of Marvin Gaye's duets with Mary Wells and Kim Weston.
• The album's liner notes were written by Tennessee Senator Howard H. Baker, Jr.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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