Arguably the best song from the Memphis Stax era’s most powerful and talented singer, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” (1968) takes everyman’s frustration with past decisions, couples it with worries about living up to your family and friends’ expectations, and wraps it up in the most beautiful vocal performance of which mankind is capable. Even on the 3,000th play, this song can send shivers down the spine of anyone who’s grabbed a mike and attempted to sing. But ol’ Otis didn’t do it all by himself: he had Booker T. & the M.G.’s keeping the beat in the background, helping the singer reach sweet soul perfection. For those of you playing Trivial Pursuit: recorded three days before Otis’s untimely death in a plane crash on December 10, 1967, Stax released “The Dock of the Bay” — his only #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 — posthumously. – Pop Dose