"One of the greatest records ever made, Redding's 1965 third album, reissued on limited-edition crystal-clear vinyl, was recorded at Stax Recording Studios over a 24-hour period with a six-hour gap to allow the musicians involved - the exceptional throughout Booker T And The MG's, Isaac Hayes and The Mar-Keys horn section - to play scheduled gigs ... It's Otis, impassioned, begging and pleading, who brings the house down, though. Of the 11 songs, Redding wrote three - the plaintive "Ole Man Trouble", a Paul Robeson styled spiritual blues; "Respect", which of course became a feminist anthem in Aretha's hands; the emotion-capsizing "I've Been Loving You Too Long, co-written with Jerry Butler. The remaining eight are covers; Redding taking on Sam Cooke, the Stones, The Temptations, Solomon Burke and William Bell with aplomb and as if the songs were penned for him alone".
