Booker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental rhythm & blues band that was infl… Read Full Bio ↴Booker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental rhythm & blues band that was influential in shaping the sound of Southern soul and Memphis soul. The original members of the group were Booker T. Jones (organ, piano), Steve Cropper (guitar), Lewie Steinberg (bass), and Al Jackson, Jr. (drums). In the 1960s, as members of the house band of Stax Records, they played on hundreds of recordings by artists such as Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, Bill Withers, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, Johnnie Taylor and Albert King. They also released instrumental records under their own name, of which the best known is the 1962 hit single "Green Onions". As originators of the unique Stax sound, the group was one of the most prolific, respected, and imitated of its era. By the mid-1960s, bands on both sides of the Atlantic were trying to sound like Booker T. & the M.G.'s.
In 1965, Steinberg was replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn, who played with the group until his death in 2012. Al Jackson, Jr. was murdered in 1975, after which Dunn, Cropper and Jones reunited on numerous occasions using various drummers, including Willie Hall, Anton Fig, Steve Jordan and Steve Potts.
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2008, and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2012.
Having two white members (Cropper and Dunn), Booker T. & the M.G.'s was one of the first racially integrated rock groups, at a time when soul music and the Memphis music scene in particular were generally considered the preserve of black culture.
Formed in 1962 in Memphis, Tennessee, Booker T and the MG's ("MG" officially stood for "Memphis Group", and is usually punctuated correctly on LP covers as "M.G.") became one of the most important soul outfits in the history of music. They were indispensable as the house band for Stax Records, backing many rising artists (Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Albert King, and many others), but it was the MGs themselves that put Stax on the map with such singles as "Green Onions", which reached number three on the Pop Charts, and "Hip Hug-Her", which reached number six on the Pop Charts.
The group consisted of four core members: Booker T. Jones on keyboards and organ (as well as many other instruments), Steve Cropper on guitar, Al Jackson Jr. on drums, and Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass. Cropper and Dunn were originally in the first house band for Stax, The Mar-Keys, and later were part of the Blues Brothers, both in the band and in the movie. Various others added horns and other instruments, and a young Isaac Hayes covered the keys on at least one session.
Not only were they blazing new trails with their funky instrumental soul music, but also with their integration of races, as two of them were white (Donald "Duck" Dunn and Steve Cropper) and two of them were black (Booker T. Jones and Al Jackson), which was very unusual for 1962.
In 2007 the documentary Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story was released, with interviews and footage in which Booker T. Jones, Steve Cropper, Wayne Jackson and Donald Duck Dunn are interviewed about the history and successes of Stax, among many others Stax' people.
Donald Duck Dunn died in his sleep at age 70 on Sunday, May 13, 2012.
Lewie Steinberg died on July 21, 2016 in Memphis at the age of 82.
(2) As the house band at Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, Booker T. & the MG's may have been the single greatest factor in the lasting value of that label's soul music, not to mention Southern soul as a whole. Their tight, impeccable grooves could be heard on classic hits by Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Carla Thomas, Albert King, and Sam & Dave, and for that reason alone, they would deserve their subsequent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But in addition to their formidable skills as a house band, on their own they were one of the top instrumental outfits of the rock era, cutting classics like "Green Onions," "Time Is Tight," and "Hang 'em High."
The anchors of the Booker T. sound were Steve Cropper, whose slicing, economic riffs influenced many other guitar players, and Booker T. Jones himself, who provided much of the groove with his floating organ lines. In 1960, Jones started working as a session man for Stax, where he met Cropper. Cropper had been in the Mar-Keys, famous for the 1961 instrumental hit "Last Night," which laid out the prototype for much of the MG's (and indeed Memphis soul's) sound with its organ-sax-guitar combo. With the addition of drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewis Steinberg, they became Booker T. & the MG's. Within a couple years, Steinberg was replaced permanently by Donald "Duck" Dunn, who, like Cropper, had also played with the Mar-Keys.
The band's first and biggest hit, "Green Onions" (a number three single in 1962), came about by accident. Jamming in the studio while fruitlessly waiting for Billy Lee Riley to show up for a session, they came up with a classic minor-key, bluesy soul instrumental, distinguished by its nervous organ bounce and ferocious bursts of guitar. For the next five years, they'd have trouble recapturing its commercial success, though the standard of their records remained fairly high, and Stax's dependence upon them as the house band ensured a decent living.
In the late '60s, the MG's really hit their stride with "Hip Hug-Her," "Groovin'," "Soul-Limbo," "Hang 'em High," and "Time Is Tight," all of which were Top 40 charters between 1967 and 1969. Since the presence of black and white musicians made them a biracial band, the MG's set a somewhat under-appreciated example of both how integrated, self-contained bands could succeed, and how both black and white musicians could play funky soul music. As is the case with most instrumental rock bands, their singles contained their best material, and the band's music is now best appreciated via anthologies. But their albums were far from inconsequential, and occasionally veered into ambitious territory (they did an entire instrumental version of the Beatles' Abbey Road, which they titled McLemore Avenue in honor of the location of Stax's studios).
Though they'd become established stars by the end of the decade, the group began finding it difficult to work together, not so much because of personnel problems, but because of logistical difficulties. Cropper was often playing sessions in Los Angeles, and Jones was often absent from Memphis while he finished his music studies at Indiana University. The band decided to break up in 1971, but were working on a reunion album in 1975 when Al Jackson was tragically shot and killed in his Memphis home by a burglar. The remaining members were active as recording artists and session musicians in the following years, with Cropper and Dunn joining the Blues Brothers for a stint in the late '70s.
The MG's got back into the spotlight in early 1992, when they were the house band for an extravagant Bob Dylan tribute at Madison Square Garden. More significantly, in 1993 they served as the backup band for a Neil Young tour, one which brought both them (and Young) high critical marks. The following year, they released a comeback album, arranged in much the style of their vintage '60s sides, which proved that their instrumental skills were still intact. Like most such efforts, though, it ultimately failed to re-create the spark and spontaneity it so obviously wanted to achieve. Jones continued with his own musical output through the following decades, often lending his instrumental skills to other artists and occasionally issuing his own albums, such as the 2009 solo effort Potato Hole. Bassist Dunn, intermittently active with festival and tour appearances after the turn of the millennium, had been touring with Cropper and Eddie Floyd in Japan during May 2012 when he died in his sleep in a Tokyo hotel. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
In 1965, Steinberg was replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn, who played with the group until his death in 2012. Al Jackson, Jr. was murdered in 1975, after which Dunn, Cropper and Jones reunited on numerous occasions using various drummers, including Willie Hall, Anton Fig, Steve Jordan and Steve Potts.
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2008, and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2012.
Having two white members (Cropper and Dunn), Booker T. & the M.G.'s was one of the first racially integrated rock groups, at a time when soul music and the Memphis music scene in particular were generally considered the preserve of black culture.
Formed in 1962 in Memphis, Tennessee, Booker T and the MG's ("MG" officially stood for "Memphis Group", and is usually punctuated correctly on LP covers as "M.G.") became one of the most important soul outfits in the history of music. They were indispensable as the house band for Stax Records, backing many rising artists (Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Albert King, and many others), but it was the MGs themselves that put Stax on the map with such singles as "Green Onions", which reached number three on the Pop Charts, and "Hip Hug-Her", which reached number six on the Pop Charts.
The group consisted of four core members: Booker T. Jones on keyboards and organ (as well as many other instruments), Steve Cropper on guitar, Al Jackson Jr. on drums, and Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass. Cropper and Dunn were originally in the first house band for Stax, The Mar-Keys, and later were part of the Blues Brothers, both in the band and in the movie. Various others added horns and other instruments, and a young Isaac Hayes covered the keys on at least one session.
Not only were they blazing new trails with their funky instrumental soul music, but also with their integration of races, as two of them were white (Donald "Duck" Dunn and Steve Cropper) and two of them were black (Booker T. Jones and Al Jackson), which was very unusual for 1962.
In 2007 the documentary Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story was released, with interviews and footage in which Booker T. Jones, Steve Cropper, Wayne Jackson and Donald Duck Dunn are interviewed about the history and successes of Stax, among many others Stax' people.
Donald Duck Dunn died in his sleep at age 70 on Sunday, May 13, 2012.
Lewie Steinberg died on July 21, 2016 in Memphis at the age of 82.
(2) As the house band at Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, Booker T. & the MG's may have been the single greatest factor in the lasting value of that label's soul music, not to mention Southern soul as a whole. Their tight, impeccable grooves could be heard on classic hits by Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Carla Thomas, Albert King, and Sam & Dave, and for that reason alone, they would deserve their subsequent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But in addition to their formidable skills as a house band, on their own they were one of the top instrumental outfits of the rock era, cutting classics like "Green Onions," "Time Is Tight," and "Hang 'em High."
The anchors of the Booker T. sound were Steve Cropper, whose slicing, economic riffs influenced many other guitar players, and Booker T. Jones himself, who provided much of the groove with his floating organ lines. In 1960, Jones started working as a session man for Stax, where he met Cropper. Cropper had been in the Mar-Keys, famous for the 1961 instrumental hit "Last Night," which laid out the prototype for much of the MG's (and indeed Memphis soul's) sound with its organ-sax-guitar combo. With the addition of drummer Al Jackson and bassist Lewis Steinberg, they became Booker T. & the MG's. Within a couple years, Steinberg was replaced permanently by Donald "Duck" Dunn, who, like Cropper, had also played with the Mar-Keys.
The band's first and biggest hit, "Green Onions" (a number three single in 1962), came about by accident. Jamming in the studio while fruitlessly waiting for Billy Lee Riley to show up for a session, they came up with a classic minor-key, bluesy soul instrumental, distinguished by its nervous organ bounce and ferocious bursts of guitar. For the next five years, they'd have trouble recapturing its commercial success, though the standard of their records remained fairly high, and Stax's dependence upon them as the house band ensured a decent living.
In the late '60s, the MG's really hit their stride with "Hip Hug-Her," "Groovin'," "Soul-Limbo," "Hang 'em High," and "Time Is Tight," all of which were Top 40 charters between 1967 and 1969. Since the presence of black and white musicians made them a biracial band, the MG's set a somewhat under-appreciated example of both how integrated, self-contained bands could succeed, and how both black and white musicians could play funky soul music. As is the case with most instrumental rock bands, their singles contained their best material, and the band's music is now best appreciated via anthologies. But their albums were far from inconsequential, and occasionally veered into ambitious territory (they did an entire instrumental version of the Beatles' Abbey Road, which they titled McLemore Avenue in honor of the location of Stax's studios).
Though they'd become established stars by the end of the decade, the group began finding it difficult to work together, not so much because of personnel problems, but because of logistical difficulties. Cropper was often playing sessions in Los Angeles, and Jones was often absent from Memphis while he finished his music studies at Indiana University. The band decided to break up in 1971, but were working on a reunion album in 1975 when Al Jackson was tragically shot and killed in his Memphis home by a burglar. The remaining members were active as recording artists and session musicians in the following years, with Cropper and Dunn joining the Blues Brothers for a stint in the late '70s.
The MG's got back into the spotlight in early 1992, when they were the house band for an extravagant Bob Dylan tribute at Madison Square Garden. More significantly, in 1993 they served as the backup band for a Neil Young tour, one which brought both them (and Young) high critical marks. The following year, they released a comeback album, arranged in much the style of their vintage '60s sides, which proved that their instrumental skills were still intact. Like most such efforts, though, it ultimately failed to re-create the spark and spontaneity it so obviously wanted to achieve. Jones continued with his own musical output through the following decades, often lending his instrumental skills to other artists and occasionally issuing his own albums, such as the 2009 solo effort Potato Hole. Bassist Dunn, intermittently active with festival and tour appearances after the turn of the millennium, had been touring with Cropper and Eddie Floyd in Japan during May 2012 when he died in his sleep in a Tokyo hotel. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
Heads Or Tails
Booker T. & the MG's Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Heads Or Tails' by these artists:
Abandoned By Bears [Verse 1] Everything just seems to sink away from me, away…
AK-69 a.k.a. Kalassy Nikoff (Go, Go)この世の裏と表 (Go, Go)事情知りゃちと重てぇ (Go, Go)不意に入るゾロ目 Heads or…
andralls Atomic bomb, dynamite, men on the moon Science for health, …
Baby Lemonade Driving down the road The wheel as cold as the raindrops…
BALLISTIK BOYZ from EXILE TRIBE Oh, hey hey, heads or tails, oh, oh Oh 熱い光浴びて Bring it…
Chief Kamachi Virtuoso & Jus Allah (German sample in the background) Yeah, check it out Snowgoo…
David Allan Coe Heads or tails, what will it be? Take your choice, him…
Devil Doll How long has it been Since we tryed this all over…
dwsdmusic I wish we could've known I wish we could've seen somehow I…
Emarosa You loved it when my heart dropped You paused, stopped, and…
Exile Oh, hey yeah, heads or tails, oh, oh 熱い光浴びて Bring it up,…
Jared Hart Well, it's 50/50 odds That we'll make it out alive But when…
Jayda G Hey, yeah, yeah Hey, bro, did you just get in? Yeah, man,…
Joy i was caught up in your spell i could tell…
jus allah (German sample in the background) Yeah, check it out Snowgoo…
Lilac Boy Desert day reaper Reaps the crops and withers This was the b…
Mr. Yarda Heads I just need some bands in my hand like yea An…
o-side Come and give me Heads Tails Give me head Need a Fuck Come g…
PiFFBREAK ARCADE Heads or tails, heads or tails Better make a flip Poppin' so…
Running Wild Liars and deceivers We are a thorn in their side 'cause we…
Scenes From A Movie Baby baby when the time comes can you keep it…
Shannon and the Clams Do what I want Do what I want Do what I want Do…
Snowgoons (German sample in the background) Yeah, check it out Snowgoo…
Snowgoons feat. Chief Kamachi, Jus Allah & Virtuoso (*German sample in the background*) Yeah, check it out; Snow…
Taxi Violence Hey sucker, jokes on you You can scream and shout till…
The Murder of My Sweet Heads or tails I'm shaking hands with all bad seeds While I…
The New Roses Well I′m down, I'm out, I′m broke, I'm damned And I'm…
Thousand Thoughts It′s like we're playing Russian Roulette And no-one seems to…
Winona Forever On the count of 3 What if we both stopped Over Overthinking …
We have lyrics for these tracks by Booker T. & the MG's:
A Woman a Lover a Friend Yeah, I want somebody to hold my hand Somebody to love…
Ain't It You're running in circles Causing so much pain Not…
Ain't That Peculiar Honey you do me wrong but still I'm crazy about…
Aw' Mercy Have mercy Have mercy baby Have mercy Have mercy on me …
Be Young Be Foolish Be Happy I felt the breeze of destiny, take me away The second…
Boot-leg Ain't no lyrics hear…
Born Under a Bad Sign One, two Born under a bad sign I been down since I…
Burnt Biscuits Can't see you when I want to Can't see you when…
Can You Dig It It's the Booker-man, y'all Can you dig it Yeah, yeah, that's…
Can't Be Still I make my living off the Evening News Just give me…
Day Tripper Got a good reason For taking the easy way out Got a…
Eleanor Rigby Ah look at all the lonely people Ah look at all…
Georgia on My Mind You been running on my mind, it don't make sense But…
Get Ready I never met a girl who makes me feel the…
Gimme Some Lovin' Send me some lovin' Send it, I pray How can I keep…
Got To Get You Into My Life I was alone, I took a ride I didn't know what…
Groovin' Groovin', on a Sunday afternoon Really couldn't get away to…
I Can Dig It It's the Booker-man, y'all Can you dig it Yeah, yeah, that's…
I Got A Woman I've got dreams, dreams to remember I've got dreams, dreams …
I Hear a Symphony You've given me a true love and ev'ry day I…
I Was Made to Love Her I was born in Lil' Rock Had a childhood sweetheart We were…
In the Midnight Hour I'm gonna wait til the midnight hour That's when my love…
It's Your Thing its your thing…
Johnny I Love You Some other girls are fillin' your head with jive So now…
Just My Imagination Each day through my window I watch her as she…
Lady Madonna Lady Madonna, children at your feet Wonder how you manage to…
Let It Be It seems like, it's almost like it used to be I…
Let's Go Go go go We on a roll I got school on…
Let's Go Get Stoned Let's go get stoned Let's go get stoned When your baby w…
Let's Wait Awhile There's something I want to tell you There's something I thi…
Light My Fire Get it right it's all I ever want I don't…
Lonely Avenue Now my room has got two windows But the sunshine never…
Love Child You think that I don't feel love What I feel for…
Mercy Mercy Have mercy Have mercy baby Have mercy Have mercy on me …
More I might have to pour some I might have to…
On a Saturday Night Well, I'm looking for my, baby And when I found my…
One Who Really Loves You Some other girls are fillin' your head with jive So now…
Run Tank Run I go too hard for the nana, overtired 'gon be…
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town I just came back from a lovely trip along the…
Since You've Been Gone Baby baby, sweet baby There's something that I just got to…
Sing a Simple Song Sing a simple song Yeah, yeah, yeah I'm talkin' talkin' t…
Something When something is wrong with my baby Something is wrong with…
Soul Limbo (Instrumental)…
Soul Man Comin' to you on a dust road Good lovin', I got…
Spoonful It could be a spoonful of diamond It could be a…
Sunny Walked with no one and talked with no one And I…
The Christmas Song Chestnuts roasting on an open fire Jack Frost nipping at you…
The Exodus Song This land is mine, God gave this land to me This…
the one who really loves you Some other girls are fillin' your head with jive So now…
Think Toda a minha life tava à espera disto Toda a minha…
When Something Is Wrong With My Baby When something is wrong with my baby Something is wrong with…
White Christmas I'm dreaming of a white Christmas Just like the ones I…
Working In The Coal Mine Workin' in the coal mine Goin' on down, down Workin' in a…
You Can't Do That Hit me after nine baby ima slide through I don't want…
you don't love me You don't love me How I love you You don't want me How…
You Keep Me Hanging On (Keep me hangin' on) Set me free why don't cha babe Get…
You Left the Water Running You left the water running when you left me here…
You're All I Need Like the sweet morning dew, I took one look at…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Booker T.:
Can You Dig It It's the Booker-man, y'all Can you dig it Yeah, yeah, that's…
Can You Dig It? It's the Booker-man, y'all Can you dig it Yeah, yeah, that's…
Can't Be Still I make my living off the Evening News Just give me…
Eleanor Rigby Ah look at all the lonely people Ah look at all…
Gimme Some Lovin’ Send me some lovin' Send it, I pray How can I keep…
Groovin' Groovin', on a Sunday afternoon Really couldn't get away to…
I Can Dig It It's the Booker-man, y'all Can you dig it Yeah, yeah, that's…
Mercy Mercy The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want He makes…
Something When something is wrong with my baby Something is wrong with…
We have lyrics for these tracks by the MG's:
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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