Video: 50th Anniversary Of Otis Redding's "The Dock Of The Bay"

Princess Cruises, Playing For Change and the Estate of Otis Redding have produced a video to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Otis' iconic hit "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay." 

The video is filmed in port cities around the world visited by Princess Cruises – San Francisco, Los Angeles, Ft. Lauderdale, Hawaii, Jamaica and Barcelona. 

The track includes Jack Johnson, Corinne Bailey Rae, Aloe Blacc, Dexter and Otis Redding III, James Gadson, Louis Mhlanga, the students from the Otis Redding Foundation Music Camp, Claire Finley, Irie Love, Mar Sanchez and the Rass Brass Extension.

“(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" was the 6th most played track of the 20th century. It has been streamed over 200 million times. It was the first song in pop music history to reach #1 posthumously on the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B charts.

Proceeds from the video, which will be available on YouTube and screened on board Princess Cruises' fleet, will benefit the Otis Redding Foundation and the Playing For Change Foundation. Both organizations support youth empowerment through music education. 

From December 17 to March 31, Princess Cruises guests and viewers can donate on board Princess ships or at www.princess.com/DockOfTheBay. Princess Community Foundation will match donations up to $25,000.

Otis Redding

Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music. During his lifetime, his recordings were produced by Stax Records, based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Redding was born in Dawson, Georgia, and at the age of two, moved to Macon, Georgia. Redding quit school at age 15 to support his family, working with Little Richard's backing band, the Upsetters, and by performing in talent shows at the historic Douglass Theatre in Macon, Georgia. In 1958, he joined Johnny Jenkins's band, the Pinetoppers, with whom he toured the Southern states as a singer and driver. An unscheduled appearance on a Stax recording session led to a contract and his first single, "These Arms of Mine", in 1962.

Stax released Redding's debut album, Pain in My Heart, two years later. Initially popular mainly with African-Americans, Redding later reached a wider American pop music audience. Along with his group, he first played small gigs in the American South. He later performed at the popular Los Angeles night club Whisky a Go Go and toured Europe, performing in London, Paris and other major cities. He also performed at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

Shortly before his death in a plane crash, Redding wrote and recorded his iconic "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" with Steve Cropper. The album The Dock of the Bay was the first posthumous album to reach number one on the U.K. Albums Chart. 

Redding received many posthumous accolades, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In addition to "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," "Respect" and "Try a Little Tenderness" are among his best-known songs.