MUSIC OR DIE #30 - Booker T. & the M.G.'s, "Green Onions" (1962)

Rich in Vitamin K!

Part 30 of my 1000+ part series.
(For info on that, clickety-click-click)

In which the bad news is that it's still all instrumentals, but the good news is that they're mainly of FAMOUS SONGS! 

TL;DR

A mild improvement is still an improvement!

More after The Cut >>>

1.) Green Onions - Ahhh, the song that launched a thousand 1960s films. I feel like I can recall at least 3 films off the top of my head that use this prominently, such as A Single Man and American Graffiti. 

Like with our prior "Chicken Shack" adventures with Jimmy Smith, this prominently features a Hammond B-3 organ. Maybe it's the length of the song (read: this one is shorter), maybe it's the pop culture references, or maybe it's a mix of both, but I definitely prefer this to anything on Smith's album.

Something about this just feels...cool. I suspect it's the interspersed guitar mixed with that walking bassline. 

Tasty indeed.

2.) Rinky Dink - Ugh, love the call and response between the organ and the guitar in this. 

The original was by Dave "Baby" Cortez:

They're not phenomenally different...though Cortez's does get the SexySax nod of approval.

That's the stuff

It's fun! I can dig it! 

3.) I Got a Woman - It's a cover of the Ray Charles classic. Though I have covered other Ray Charles songs before, I haven't gotten to do this one yet:

(I did do the Elvis cover though...)

Charles is untouchable, but I gotta say...I actually appreciate the faster tempo of Booker T.'s version. I know, I'm just as shocked as you are. It's a great arrangement of a fantastic song...even if it's hard for modern listeners to disentangle it from that behemoth...

4.) Mo' Onions - Episode IV: A New Onion.

The chiller cousin of "Green Onions." It's a really good vibe, and I'm into it. Whereas the prior one is more "LET'S DO THE TWIST AND DRINK FIREWATER!", this is more "LET'S LIE ON THE CARPET AND SMOKE THE DEVIL'S LETTUCE." As long as we're getting up to trouble either way.

Vicious.

 

5.) Twist and Shout - Yep, another cover! I'm not going to address THAT version of it, since I'm 99.9% sure I'll get to it later, but I will "Shout" out (ha!) the Isley Brothers' version, which came out the same year as Booker T.'s:

Again, the tempo of Booker T.'s is faster, which I really dig for a song about TWISTING and SHOUTING, though Isley Brothers...you get the SexySax nod:

I can just feeeeeel "Careless Whisper" washing over me now

6.) Behave Yourself - You've been Very Naughty indeed and need to cool your jets there, Mister.

If "Green Onions" is the party and "Mo' Onions" is the afterparty, then "Behave Yourself" is the blissed-out, 3 am after-afterparty, if you catch my drift.

"Chill" is the best word I can think of to describe it.

-THUS PASSES SIDE ONE-

7.) Stranger on the Shore - I knew (or at least strongly suspected) from the outset that this was a cover somehow. What I didn't expect, though, was for it to be a cover of a song by THIS GUY:

What. An. Icon.

Apparently Bilk's original version – yes, on the CLARINET – made it to NUMBER ONE ON THE CHARTS. Man, the early 60s, what a time to have been alive.

But I digress. The original sounds like it would be a BBC theme song – which, surprising no one, it was –whereas Booker T.'s is – surprising no one – more of just a...chill jam. 

...maybe I should put a moratorium on "chill." Or invest in a thesaurus.

8.) Lonely Avenue - Another song made famous by Ray Charles! Though in a strange twist of fate, this was a song written by a white man in the 1950s and popularized by a black man! Wonders never cease.

It's a great song, and yes...gets that SEXY-SAX NOD:

I will run this GIF into the ground.

The Booker T. version does stay true to the original spirit of it, I think, but there's something about the real pained loneliness that Charles brings to it. This version, though, is really a solid groove more than a transporting experience. 

9.) One Who Really Loves You - A Smokey Robinson track! Though...if I'm perfectly honest, I have to admit I'm not an enormous fan of this song in general.

Yes, I probably deserve this

I don't even have a good reason for it - I just don't really like it for whatever reason, though both versions are fine versions of the song. I love the guitars in Booker T.'s - surely that counts for something?! 

MOVING ON -  

10.) You Can't Sit Down - Originally recorded by, wait for it...The Bim Bam Boos. 

AND YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS?

Thaaat's right, there's some SexySax on that Bim Bam Boos version alright, which will always give it the edge in my heart. Both are great, though - no real complaints from me. 

Although I'm sorry to report that I was seated the entire time.

11.) A Woman, a Lover, a Friend - Mm, mm, mm, there's the good stuff.

First version performed by "Mr. Excitement" himself, Jackie Wilson:

Sidebar: If you haven't already, do yourself a favor and listen to the fantastic "Jackie and Wilson" by Hozier

It's a sultry song at its core – peak proto-R&B – and this remains in Booker T.'s version. 

12.) Comin' Home Baby - And we're at the album closer! It's a funky smooth one indeed. A solid mid-tempo with some solid guitar and bass to go with the usual organ stylings. Maybe I need to put a moratorium on "solid" too.

So I could talk about the first version recorded by Mel Tormé - but why do that when I can discuss the version by...MICHAEL BUBLE AND BOYZ II MEN. Yes, you read that right.

...actually, what more can I say?

FINAL THOUGHTS:

It's a fun album - definitely good for a road trip along the beach or something where you're cruising. Apart from the few original songs (e.g., "Green Onions," etc.) I don't think it's anything revelatory - mainly instrumental versions of popular contemporary songs. 

Still, not bad to blast at a late night fondue shindig.

Personal standout tracks:

"Green Onions," "Mo' Onions," Behave Yourself" - ideally in a row