I agree with bigtimemusic lover: the sound quality of "The Ultimate Otis Redding" is sub-par. Although the choice of tracks is admirable, the mushy audio does not do Otis justice. If you still have your turntable hooked up, compare a hit track from an Otis LP (such as Atco's "The Best of Otis Redding") to the same track on this CD. You will be amazed at the difference.
If I were to own just one Otis Redding recording, it would have to be "Live in Europe". The energy, the crowd and - most especially - Otis' electric performance - make "Live in Europe" indispensable.

"The Ultimate Otis Redding" is my favorite Otis Redding CD. Otis was a great singer. His voice was strong and powerful, and he knew how to properly use it to express emotion. He died much too early, but during his brief recording career, he managed to make quite a number of very fine recordings.

I like this CD so much because all of the songs on it are excellent, the disc contains a very nice mixture of rockers and ballads, all of the songs are in their studio versions, and the sequencing makes the disc very interesting.

Instead of doing what might be expected, and beginning with his one and only chart hit, "Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay," the CD begins with the song "Respect." I suppose some people are unaware of the fact that Redding recorded this song before Aretha Franklin. His version is very different from hers. Of course, both of them did a great job on it.

This CD also has Redding's cover of the Rolling Stones's "Satisfaction." One could argue that Redding's version is the better of the two. His use of horns gives a very new perspective to the song. This is probably the best cover of a Stones's song that has ever been recorded by anybody.

Some of my other favorites here are "Mr. Pitiful," "Shake," "Tramp," and "I Can't Turn You Loose."

One of the things that I never liked about commercial radio and the so-called "classic rock" radio stations is that except for the song "Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay," they have totally ignored the wonderful music of Otis Redding. That's a shame, really, because every song on this disc is excellent.

While I agree wholeheartedly with all the reviewers of the quality of Otis Redding's music, I must break away from the ranks and say that the sound of this CD stinks. It sounds very weak and sterile (as do most of the CDs from the Warner Special Products label that were issued in the mid 80's), something that isn't deserving of Otis Redding's stature. Pick up Rhino's The Very Best Of Otis Redding (either volumes), or better yet, pick up the 2-CD set "Dreams To Remember" which is PACKED with the good stuff as this CD just doesn't cut it.

Peace.

This CD features 20 of Otis Redding's most popular songs. The song selection is just about perfect, but the sound leaves a little to be desired. But if you are not an audiophile, it probably won't bother you much, and you should enjoy it.

Otis Redding was truly the one and only King of Memphis Soul and this excellent compilation includes most of his big hits. Otis was great with both uptempo numbers and ballads and this CD offers a good sampling of both worlds. The liner notes are also very informative and this package is (as a whole) anice tribute to one of R&B's most important and influential male vocalists. Otis' music remains timeless and while I strongly recommend all of his original albums (all of which are now available on CD) this CD still a fine sampler of his music.