Was Otis Redding's ass wet when he sat on the dock of the bay?

Otis Redding sang "(Sittin') On the Dock of the Bay." It's a very nice song, but the key lyric makes no sense to people with nautical knowledge.

• Nitpickers like me know that Otis was sitting on a pier, or maybe a wharf or a jetty or a quay.
• The actual dock is the space in the water next to whatever Otis was sitting on.
• Non-nitpickers are free to sit or stand on docks.

(below) We have "dry docks" in addition to the more common wet docks.

And, of course, Star Ships visit space docks.

Er...what's up, Doc?