The Reddings - The Awakening (2010)

Otis Redding III, was only three years old when his father, one of the greatest voices in the history of popular music died. But at 16 he isn't intimidated by his heritage and neither is his brother Dexter, 20, or cousin Mark Locket, 23. This trio of young talents that form The Reddings reveal their debut album, The Awakening, released by the Washington based Believe In A Dream Records and distributed by CBS. The Awakening is a diverse album marked by romantic ballads, chunky dance tracks and even a fusion instrumental. The single, "Remote Control," is a vibrant piece of dance music with Otis Jr. 's steady rhythm guitar, catchy ensemble vocals and Mark's smooth tenor gliding over a powerful rhythm track. "Remote Control" sets the tone for The Reddings' other strong party songs "Funkin' On The One," "It's Friday Night," and "Doin' It." On everyone of these songs Dexter's energetic lead bass lines and the trio's graceful harmonies again and again show the Reddings' great innate musical talent in action. The ballads are just as impressive, especially "Come In Out The Rain," a truly romantic love song written by Dexter and Mark. It makes one remember that when Otis Sr. was just in his mid-twenties when he wrote love classics such as "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and "My Lover's Prayer." This parallel is even stronger when Dexter's low tenor voice fondles the lyric in a style close to his father's. Dexter's handling of "Lady Be My Love Song" is also quite moving, while Mark's smooth tenor softly caresses a tale of unrequited love on "I Want It." Both are examples of an emotional maturity that marks all the music of this gifted young trio. "The Awakening" features Dexter's bass and Mark's drums (his only drum performance on the album) on an instrumental that calls to mind Billy Cobham and Stanley Clarke. Mark proves himself to be a quick, propulsive player while Dexter incorporates Larry Graham progressions into his agile approach. A short piece of "The Awakening" is reprised at album's end. In Otis Jr.'s words, "We are proud of our heritage, but we want our own identity too. In everything we do The Reddings intend to maintain the high standard of quality our name represents. We're aware of what came before and we are looking ahead. That's what our music is all about. The Awakening shows that so very well.