Cigarettes and Coffee

In this smoky soul song, Otis Redding is enjoying cigarettes and coffee with his lady at quarter-to-three in the morning, and there's nowhere else he'd rather be. They're probably at a 24-hour diner, where in 1966 any customers lingering at that time would likely be drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes.

Jerry Butler, a popular singer who had hits with "Make It Easy on Yourself" and "Are You Happy," wrote this song but didn't record it. The original version was by Al "TNT" Braggs in 1961. His version got little attention, but five years later Otis Redding popularized the song when he included it on his third album, titled The Soul Album. Two other songwriters are listed on the track: Eddie Thomas and Jay Walker. Little is known about them.

This isn't the only song to pair cigarettes and coffee: Marty Robbins had a hit in 1963 with "Cigarettes And Coffee Blues."