Try A Little Tenderness

"Try a Little Tenderness"
Single by Otis Redding
from the album Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
B-side	"I'm Sick Y'all"
Released	November 14, 1966
Format	7" 45 RPM
Recorded	Stax Studios, Memphis, Tennessee: 1966
Genre	Soul
Length	3:46 (album version) 3:20 (single version)
Label	Volt/Atco
Writer(s)	Jimmy Campbell and Reg Connelly Harry M. Woods
Producer	Jim Stewart Isaac Hayes Booker T. & the M.G.'s
Otis Redding singles chronology

"Try a Little Tenderness" is a song written by Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly and Harry M. Woods, and recorded initially on December 8, 1932 by the Ray Noble Orchestra (with vocals by Val Rosing) followed by both Ruth Etting and Bing Crosby in 1933. Subsequent recordings and performances were done by such recording artists as Otis Redding, Pat O'Malley in the Jack Hylton's Big Band, Little Miss Cornshucks (1951), Jimmy Durante, Frank Sinatra, Mel Tormé, Rod Stewart, Frankie Laine, Percy Sledge, Earl Grant, Al Jarreau, Sheena Easton, Nina Simone, Etta James, Tina Turner, Three Dog Night, John Miles and Andrew Strong, Chris Brown, Michael Bublé, The Von Bondies, Cássia Eller, Amber Riley in the Fox show Glee, Florence and The Machine, Jessica Sanchez from season 11 of American Idol, Cyndi Lauper Live at the White House and performed by a studio orchestra during the opening credits of Dr. Strangelove.

Otis Redding version

A popular version in an entirely new form was recorded by soul artist Otis Redding in 1966. Redding was backed on his version by Booker T. & the M.G.'s, and Stax staff producer Isaac Hayes worked on the arrangement.[1] Redding's recording features a slow soulful opening that eventually builds into a frenetic R&B conclusion, that features Redding shouting: "You've got to hold her, Squeeze Her,..." as well as the words: "Sock it to me". This version peaked at #25 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has been named on a number of "best songs of all time" lists, including those from Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It is in the 204th position on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.

Aretha Franklin had covered the song in 1962 for her LP The Tender, the Moving, the Swinging Aretha Franklin on Columbia Records. After hearing it, Sam Cooke added it to his live shows, as can be heard on his live LP Sam Cooke at the Copa (1964). In Cooke's version, only two verses are included, as part of a medley (with "For Sentimental Reasons" and "You Send Me").

Redding's vocals were sampled by Kanye West & Jay-Z on the song Otis.

Covers

The song has been covered numerous times, including a version by Three Dog Night that peaked at #29 on the Billboard Top 100 in 1969. Their version is a direct version of Otis Redding's interpretation of the song, including the added Coda, used in Redding's version. The song was featured prominently in the 1991 feature film The Commitments and its subsequent soundtrack, as were numerous other Redding songs, such as "Mr. Pitiful". Saxophonist David Sanborn covered the song on the 1995 album Pearls.[2] Michael Bolton covered the song on his 1999 album Timeless: The Classics Vol. 2.

The song was also featured in the 2000 film Duets, where Paul Giamatti and Andre Braugher (with Andre's vocals provided by Arnold McCuller) sing it together as a duet in a karaoke competition. It is also featured in the John Hughes film Pretty in Pink where Duckie mimes the song to Andie (Molly Ringwald) in the record store Trax.

Swedish indie rock band Peter Bjorn and John performed a version of the song in September of 2011 for The A.V. Club's A.V. Undercover series.[3]

References

1. ^ Bowman, Rob (1997). Soulsville U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records. New York: Schirmer Trade. ISBN 0-8256-7284-8. Pg. 105-1072
2. ^ "Pearls overview". Allmusic. 
3. ^ "Peter Bjorn And John cover "Try A Little Tenderness" by Otis Redding". Retrieved March 25, 2013. 

External links

• Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics