Picked a copy of Booker T & the Mg's - Best Of.. at the local GW for a buck about a week ago and just got around to cleaning it up and playing it now. Man , I never new the LP would be so good . The music is swinging and makes me crave more . What would the genre be classified as. I'm thirty 39 if it matters , and never had any exposure to this band besides Green Onions and Groovin . Any comments appreciated. Next up : Little Feat - Waiting For Columbus.

Detroit soul sound.

memphis soul

B.T. & The M.G.'s had many instrumental hits including, Hang 'Em High (most excellent version), Soul Limbo, Green Onions, Time Is Tight and Hip-Hug-Her. BTW: "M.G." stood for Memphis Greats...not the British Leyland car.

LOLOLOL
You mean they had songs other than Green Onions? Never would have known this by listening to local radio! :lmao:

The Stax sound.

LOLOLOL
You mean they had songs other than Green Onions? Never would have known this by listening to local radio! :lmao:
No kidding. Programmers nowadays ignore anything that didn't make it into the Top 10.

They were the Stax house band. You hear them behind a bunch of Stax artists. Guitarist Steve Cropper was also a Stax producer.

Interestingly I have a CD called "Free At Last" which is a collection of songs on the Chalice label/division of Stax. Chalice was the gospel music arm of the main Stax brand, and Steve Cropper (MGs), Isaac Hayes, Al Jackson (MGs) and other members of the great Stax session men played on these gospel cuts by The Dixie Nightingales, The Jubilee Hummingbirds, etc.

Steve Cropper was about 12 people ahead of me at the polls yesterday (1 hour line). I would have talked with him but Eddie Arnold was right in front of me and we had too much fun talkin'.
Ahhh Nashville where the stars are your neighbors.

"Green Onions" ranks up there all time on my fav's list when it comes to instrumental! The Ventures did a cover version of it, and I think I have it somewhere around here on an LP, but even their version couldn't touch Booker T's version!

wasn't it the MGs who did the Blues Brothers Movie?

I googled it and it seems that some of the original members are now part of a band called The Blues Brothers Band, but no info on them doing a movie.

wasn't it the MGs who did the Blues Brothers Movie?
Not all of them...just Steve Cropper (guitar) and Duck Dunn (bass).

Yes, as mentioned, STAX! Real soul and R&B from Memphis.

One thing to remember is to listen for that 'recorded in a movie theater' sound. Ohhh those tight drums, the deep & luscious bass, the swingin' sweet vocal tracks... NOTHING sounds like genuine Stax recordings. Nothing ever will.

Hey Motown Records, put that in your pipe and smoke it!

Absolutely LOVE "Time is Tight"....Yeah, Stax had it all over about everybody else back in the day...These "artistes" nowadays aren't qualified to carry Booker T.'s toolbox around for him...

If you want to read up on the Stax sound, the MGs, and other integrated studios (Muscle Schoals and Fame), and soul music, search out Peter Guralnick's book: "Sweet Soul Music, Rhythm and blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom" There is an accompanying CD, which is also great.

Booker T & The MG's (which stands for Memphis Guys) were the Stax Records house band, which was known as the Mar-Keys in that role. Closely related, musically, were the Bar-Kay's, Otis Redding's band, who died in the same plane crash.

Yes, guitarist Steve Cropper and Donald "Duck" Dunn, were in the Blues Brothers band in the first movie.

As the Mar-Keys they recorded and toured with such names as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, and other soul greats of the '60's.

Keyboardist Booker T. Jones could really work that Leslie pedal for effect!

BTW, in some of the recordings you will hear your speakers rattling... before you start tearing your speakers up looking for the rattle, that rattle is really in Dunn's bass amp, as recorded in the studio. Just so you know. Passing on this little tip. Uh, just take my word for it.

Time is Tight (Booker T & the MG's) and Can't Turn You Loose (Otis Redding) share the same bass line. These two tunes were put together to become the opener and closer on the Blues Brothers albums and in the movie.

Yeah, I love Time is Tight, too!

I saw them in 1970 with Creedence Clearwater at the Oakland Coliseum. They were great and I remember how great they sound as a live group. Not an easy task at that place. I have a copy of the soundcheck jam they did with Creedence the day before, I wonder where I put that? I have yet to play it. :scratch2:


Carl

I love the Stax sound. If you ever come to Memphis, you should check out the Stax museum that chronicles the history of the label and soul music (in general). The Complete Stax-Volt Singles 1959-1968 boxed set is the best way to discover the label's early years and its many performers.

Search out Peter Guralnick's book: "Sweet Soul Music, Rhythm and blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom" There is an accompanying CD, which is also great.

Hey Wornears (hopefully you can hear me)!!!

I've owned this book for many many years and I NEVER knew that there's an accomanying CD! Do you have the CD by any chance? :naughty:

That would be an affirmative.

Full title is: Sweet Soul Music, Voices From The Shadows

1992 on Sire Records label on CD. Has a couple of interesting liner notes:

"Mastered from original mono and stereo tapes."

"This record was mastered with vintage tube equipment restored especially for this project."

"A listening companion to Peter Guralnick's book Sweet Soul Music."

Found it in a local used CD store (since closed) a couple of years ago. PM me for more "information.":music:

By the way, this is a great book. In fact, I think that I will pull it out of the library and give it another read.

I'd like to sincerely thank each person who has responded to this thread . I do appreciate your input on those things which may be old hat to some but to me are a newfound and joyous discovery. I think we all share that feeling on some level , hence the time we spend here.


-Russ O.

I saw them in 69 at the Atlantic City Pop Festival. They certainly got the hips swaying and the feet moving of the concert goers. I have some great shots of them but this site won't give me the bandwidth to post the pics here.

Hey Russ, enjoy that soul - there ain't nothin' like it! It's a lifelong love!

Well, learn something new every day, lol! I didn't know that about the Blues Brothers ST, and I even googled it!:no:

Since we're on the subject of Stax Records, I'll share a couple of tidbits that I haven't saw mentioned here.

First off, Elvis did some recordings there in the early 70's after he had started his comeback. Vintage stuff! :yes:

On a slightly lesser note, lol, Jimmy Hart of WWE wrestling fame, recorded some singles there as well.

Hart was part of a group in the 60's called The Gentrys who had the one-hit wonder "Keep On Dancing" plus several other great songs (I actually own a 45 of their work). When the Gentrys disbanded, Hart put together another band and called it Jimmy Hart and the Memphis Gentrys! At one time, I had a 45 of them on the Stax label, but I have no idea whatever happened to it, lol!

And let's not forget...

Steve Cropper and Duck Dunn were also in the 2nd Blues Brothers movie.
The "AX" in STAX stood for Axton...As in Mae Axton, as in the writer of "Heartbreak Hotel", as in the mother of singer/songwriter Hoyt. For some proof that some things get better with age, check out Clapton's Crossroad's Guitar Festival DVD and see Booker T. and the MG's(Memphis Group) as the backing band for several of the artists