Spring Week

“Otis Redding” by William Morganstern. Skipjack (1967), page 57. University Publications, UPUB S2-001. View larger.

Ticket to Otis Redding show, April 22, 1967. Robert Dietrich collection, Collection 246. View larger.

The first Spring Week (an early version of Quadmania) took place April 22- 29, 1967, and began with a rousing Saturday evening performanceby the "King of Soul," Otis Redding (1941-1967). The performance was for

a semi-formal dance in Gym 1 and was also broadcast into the Commuter Cafeteria for others to hear. Accompanied by his twelve-piece band, Redding performed two forty-five minute sets between 9:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. Redding had achieved national and international acclaim in the early 1960s, and, soon after his UMBC appearance, he was a featured performer at the landmark Monterey Pop Festival. In December 1967, he wrote and recorded his famous song "(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay" with guitarist Steve Cropper before heading to the Midwest for several appearances. On route to the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Redding’s Beechcraft airplane tragically crashed into a lake four miles from the airport.