The Shock of a Well-Known Fact

I was recently reading this New Yorker blog post about Robert Gordon's new book on Stax Records when I came across the matter-of-fact line that Otis Redding was 26 years old when he died. Now, I knew Redding was young when he perished in that plane wreck along with his backing band, the Bar-Kays. But 26?!?! I always assumed he was somewhat older because of his looks and THAT VOICE. That gritty, lived-in wonder of a voice. A true manchild, gone to the promised land way too early.

(I can't confirm, but the video was said to have been taped the day before he died.)\