Green Onions

Booker T. & The MG's | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 11, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Atlantic
• ASIN: B000002IR7
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,103 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #39 in Music > R&B > Soul > Memphis Soul
  • #42 in Music > R&B > Soul > Southern Soul

Track Listings

1. Green Onions

2. Rinky-Dink

3. I Got A Woman

4. Mo' Onions

5. Twist And Shout

6. Behave Yourself

7. Stranger On The Shore

8. Lonely Avenue

9. One Who Really Loves You

10. You Can't Sit Down

11. A Woman, A Lover, A Friend

12. Comin' Home Baby

Editorial Reviews

No Description Available
No Track Information Available
Media Type: CD
Artist: BOOKER T. & THE MG'S
Title: GREEN ONIONS
Street Release Date: 06/11/1991
Domestic
Genre: OLDIES

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Birth of a Dynasty, June 13, 2003

By 

thestaxman (Jackson, MS United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Green Onions (Audio CD)

This is what happens when a group of guys have an unexpected monster smash hit. In 1962, while in the studio jamming, a seventeen year old prodigy named Booker T. Jones, a twenty-one year old guitarist named Steve Cropper, and a couple of veterans of the Memphis music scene came up with something that Stax Records president Jim Stewart deemed good enough for release. Needing a B-side, Cropper suggested working up something Jones had been playing around with some time earlier. What was supposed to be a B-side excited Cropper, and local DJs quickly began to flip the "Behave Yourself" single to the other side, and "Green Onions" began to create quite a stir. Quickly, the sides were reversed, and "Green Onions", with it's groovin' riff, Booker T.'s funky organ lines, and cutting edge guitar bursts courtesy of Cropper became Stax's biggest hit at the time, reaching number three on the national Pop charts and topping the R&B charts. The group, now billing themselves as Booker T. & the MGs (Memphis Group), released this solid, if unspectacular instrumental album later that year.

As could be expected, they weren't really able to recreate the hit single's magic, and besides that title track, the rest of the album comes across today as sounding pretty dated. This album should not be bought to familiarize listeners with Booker T. & the MGs. Cropper, Jones, drummer Al Jackson, Jr., and later Donald "Duck" Dunn (who would replace original bassist Lewie Steinberg) are widely considered to be the tightest, most soulful, and versatile band of all time. They would go on to be the house band at Stax, playing behind Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Albert King, Eddie Floyd, Johnnie Taylor, Rufus and Carla Thomas, and more. They provided the blueprint for Soul music, and set a standard of excellence that nobody since has come close to meeting. On their own, they released over a dozen brilliant singles, and several terrific albums.

However, other than the timeless title track, there is nothing on the album that is a "must hear". And "Green Onions" can be found on MGs compilations, box sets, and countless soundtracks. Make no mistake about it though, the album, for what it is, is quite good. This isn't a garage band rushing to sell an album cause they had a hit. Lewie Steinberg was very accomplished, and Al Jackson, though just a few years older than Steve Cropper, had been playing in his father's Jazz/Swing band since he was five years old! And as well as Cropper's groundbreaking work on the title cut, the young white guitarist showed himself to be equally adept at both Blues and Jazz. His playing is both simple and sophisticated, with the underlying element being taste. And Booker T. Jones played like no seventeen year old kid. This being said, there is no real reason to recommend this album, unless you are already familiar with the MGs' greatness, and you want to hear everything they recorded.

33 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't buy this for "Green Onions"!, April 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Green Onions (Audio CD)

"Green Onions" is a great song--a song that sounds thrilling no matter how many times you've heard it. Unfortunately, the "Green Onions" album isn't nearly as exciting and gets kind of tiring after a listen or two. This was the MG's first album and was recorded after the 45 of "Green Onions" hit the top of the charts. The inventiveness and fire evident on the "Green Onions" single is just about impossible to find on the other tracks of this album, though. If you were thinking of getting this so you could hear "Green Onions"--well, don't do it. Pick up "The Very Best of" on Rhino. It has "Green Onions" and about 17 other songs that are just as thrilling. Then, if you want to have more MG's material, pick up "Hip Hug-Her" or "Soul Limbo" or the "Time is Tight" Box set. This album is one that only completists will want.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Classic instrumental, but too much supplemental, March 1, 2000

By 

Michael Sean (Seattle, WA - US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Green Onions (Audio CD)

"Green Onions" was originally recorded as the B-side to what was intended as their debut single, "Behave Yourself," but ended up reaching #1 in the R&B charts and becoming Booker T. & The MG's most famous tune. This album was quickly assembled around those two songs to capitalize on the success of the million-selling single. Along with a follow-up jam, "Mo' Onions," they recorded nine mediocre covers of previous hits by Ray Charles, the Isley Brothers, Jackie Wilson, and Acker Bilt. I'd recommend this album only if you don't plan on investing in the wonderful "Time Is Tight" box set, which contains the best tracks off this disc, the three originals.