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
You Don't Love Me
Booker T. & the MG's Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How I love you
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
You don't love me
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
I know
That you sipping that liquor you gon call my phone
But I've been doing better cause I'm on my own
Fuck love
Fucked up
Can't trust
Can't love
Done with these hoes
Tell me that you hate me but I know that you love me
Tell me that you love me but I know that you hate me
Tell me lies on a daily
Done with you driving my crazy
Taking drugs to fight these demons only thing that can save me
You don't love me
How I love you
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
You don't love me
How I love you
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
You don't love me
How I love you
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
You don't love me
How I love you
You don't want me
How I want you
Now it's fuck you
Wish I could undo
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
The lyrics of "You don't love me" express the pain and frustration of the singer who is dealing with the aftermath of a failed relationship. The song talks about how the singer's love for their partner is unrequited and how they feel ignored, betrayed, and hurt by them. The opening lines of the lyrics say "You don't love me/How I love you/You don't want me/How I want you." – this stark contrast between the two people's feelings sets the tone for the rest of the song. It also highlights the fact that the singer is still very much in love with their partner, while the other person has moved on.
The lyrics express a deep sense of regret and longing for the past. The singer wishes they could go back and undo the mistakes made by their partner by letting other people touch them. This line is particularly powerful as it suggests that the singer feels their partner has been unfaithful to them, and this betrayal has left deep scars. The refrain of "Now it's fuck you" re-emphasizes the frustration and anger of the singer. They are tired of being hurt and are now rejecting their partner and their love entirely.
The use of explicit language may detract from the underlying message of the song for some people. However, it adds to the raw emotionality of the lyrics and creates a sense of authenticity. The use of slang also helps to make the song more relatable to a broader audience.
Line by Line Meaning
You don't love me
The singer feels unloved by the person they are addressing.
How I love you
The singer loves the addressed person deeply.
You don't want me
The singer feels unwanted by the addressed person.
How I want you
The artist desires the addressed person deeply.
Now it's fuck you
The artist's sentiment towards the addressed person has changed to anger and resentment.
Wish I could undo
The singer regrets their past decisions and wishes they could take them back.
How you let all of them niggas touch you?
The singer is angry and hurt that the addressed person has been intimate with other people.
I know
That you sipping that liquor you gon call my phone
But I've been doing better cause I'm on my own
The artist is aware that the addressed person may try to reach out when they are drinking, but they are now focusing on themselves and their own well-being.
Fuck love
Fucked up
Can't trust
Can't love
Done with these hoes
The artist expresses their disillusionment with love and relationships, and their frustration with the people they have been involved with.
Tell me that you hate me but I know that you love me
Tell me that you love me but I know that you hate me
The artist perceives mixed messages from the addressed person and feels confused about their feelings.
Tell me lies on a daily
Done with you driving my crazy
Taking drugs to fight these demons only thing that can save me
The singer is struggling with emotional and mental issues, and feels that drugs are the only way to cope with their pain caused by the addressed person's actions.
Lyrics © DistroKid
Written by: Michael Gomez
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind