Otis Redding III, the son and namesake of the acclaimed 1960s soul singer who made a name for himself as a singer and guitarist, died Tuesday in Macon, Georgia. He was 59 years old.
The cause was cancer, his sister Karla Redding-Andrews said in a statement posted to the Facebook page of the Otis Redding Foundation, the family’s charity.
Mr. Redding was just 3 years old when his father died along with several members of his band in a plane crash outside of Madison, Wisconsin on December 10, 1967. Otis Redding III and his brother Dexter, along with a cousin, Mark Lockett, later formed the funk band The Reddings, which recorded six albums during the 1980s. Otis was the group’s guitarist; Dexter, who survives him, played bass and handled vocals; and Mr. Lockett played keyboards.
The band had some success on the Billboard charts: “Remote Control” reached #6 on the Hot Soul Singles chart in 1980 and #89 on the Hot 100. The group’s final album, simply called “The Reddings”, featured the Die Hits The single “Call the Law” reached #88 on the Billboard album chart in 1988.
The Redding brothers never came close to matching their father’s success, but Otis Redding III continued to perform. When soul singer Eddie Floyd hired him to play guitar for a European tour, Mr. Redding felt comfortable singing “(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay” and other songs made famous by his father, he told WCSH- TV in Portland. Maine, in 2018.
“He said, ‘You can play guitar with me, but you have to sing some of your father’s songs,'” Mr. Redding recalled Mr. Floyd’s words. “I thought, ‘Huh? I don’t sing,” you know. And he said, ‘Well, you’re going to sing ‘Dock of the Bay’ with me tonight.’” He continued to perform his father’s songs live.
He said he was grateful for his father’s enduring legacy, even as it overshadowed his own musical endeavors.
“I go ahead and do what people want and I live with that,” he said, adding, “I don’t put myself under mental pressure to go begging for record deals.”
Otis Redding III was born on December 17, 1963 in Macon. His mother was Zelma Atwood.
In later years, he worked with his family’s foundation to organize summer camps teaching children to make music. He also served as chairman of the board of the local chapter of Meals on Wheels.
In addition to his sister Ms. Redding-Andrews and his brother, Mr. Redding’s survivors include another sister, Demetria Redding.
The New York Times contributed to the coverage.