3 Ways Otis Blue Pays Tribute to Sam Cooke

Sam Cooke was killed months before Otis Redding recorded Otis Blue, making the album a direct tribute to his friend and influence.

Three of the album’s eleven songs are Cooke compositions: “Change Gonna Come,” “Shake,” and “Wonderful World.”

The covers serve as both a memorial and a statement of Redding’s own arrival as a major soul artist.