Pain in My Heart (1964)
Redding's impressive debut album. His covers of "You Send Me," "Stand by Me," "Lucille," and "Pain in My Heart" are solid. But the best reason to get the album is Redding's own "These Arms of Mine."
Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul (1966)
Rolling Stone magazine calls Redding's fifth album "one of the best examples of the Memphis soul sound" (source). It includes some of the biggest hits that Redding wrote—"Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)" and "My Lover's Prayer" as well as his powerful cover of James Campbell, Reginald Connell, and Harry M. Woods' "Try a Little Tenderness."
Dock of the Bay (1968)
One of four albums released posthumously, the title track is accompanied by unreleased recordings put together by Steve Cropper, Redding's guitarist and songwriting partner.