A song that was met with initial pushback from his label, Redding never knew that it would become his most iconic single. The lines to follow are where tones of sadness could be interpreted, though Cropper recalls them as "hitt the masses." Redding moves from oceanic imagery to a quick reflection of "I can't do what ten people tell me to do / So I guess I'll remain the same, listen." Interpretations range from Otis feeling stalled in his career to a slow-moving Civil Rights Movement.
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"So the rest of the song, where I said, you know, 'I left my home in Georgia, headed for the Frisco Bay,' it was just about him going out there to perform at the Fillmore." Verse 3: Im sittin here restin my bones, and this loneliness wont leave me alone, yes. G D C G I cant do what ten people tell me to do, F D so I guess Ill remain the same, yes. Bridge: G D C Look like nothings gonna change. "He had just left San Francisco, where he played at the Fillmore," Cropper recalled. Sitting in the morning sun I'll be sitting when the evening comes Watching the ships roll in And I watch 'em roll away again Sitting on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away I'm just sitting on the dock of the bay Wasting time I left my home in Georgia Headed for the 'Frisco bay 'Cause I had nothin' to live for And look like nothing's gonna come my way So I'm just Sitting on the dock. Oo, Im just sittin on the dock of the bay, wastin time. Cropper ended up fleshing out Redding's outline. "Otis was just bigger than life," he explained. According to Cropper, Redding was reluctant to write about himself, but for Cropper, it was easy. Cropper suggested that it was he, not Redding, who was most responsible for adding the biographical references.
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The video features video clips and photos of Otis Redding in the prime of his. He completed the song later with co-writer Steve Cropper. Watch the official video for (Sittin On) The Dock Of The Bay by Otis Redding. In 1967, while performing in San Francisco, he stayed on a houseboat in Sausalito and began writing "Dock of the Bay." Otis Redding was born in Dawson, Georgia, and moved with his family to Macon when he was five.