Green Onions

"Green Onions"
Cover of the 1962 US single
Single by Booker T. & the M.G.'s
from the album Green Onions
B-side "Behave Yourself"
Released September 1962 (1962-09)[1]
Format 7"
Recorded 1962,
Memphis, Tennessee
Genre
Length 2:52
Label Stax
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Booker T. & the M.G.'s singles chronology
"Green Onions"
(1962)		 "Jellybread"
(1962)

"Green Onions"
(1962)		 "Jellybread"
(1962)
Audio sample
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"Green Onions" is an instrumental composition recorded in 1962 by Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Described as "one of the most popular instrumental rock and soul songs ever",[2] the tune is twelve-bar blues with a rippling Hammond M3 organ line by Booker T. Jones that he wrote when he was just 17, although the actual recording was largely improvised while the band was waiting to record a session with another artist who was late to the studio.[3] The guitarist Steve Cropper used a Fender Telecaster on "Green Onions", as he did on all of the M.G.'s instrumentals.[4] The track was originally issued in May 1962 on the Volt label (a subsidiary of Stax Records) as the B-side of "Behave Yourself" on Volt 102; it was quickly reissued as the A-side of Stax 127, and it also appeared on the album Green Onions.[1]

According to Cropper, the title is not a marijuana reference; rather, the track is named after the Green Badger's cat, Green Onions, whose way of walking inspired the riff.[5] Songfacts.com, however, ascribes the track's title to Jones. When asked by Stax co-owner Jim Stewart why he had given the track this title, Songfacts reports, Jones replied, "Because that is the nastiest thing I can think of and it's something you throw away."[6] On a broadcast of the radio program Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! on June 24, 2013, Jones was asked about the title and said, "The bass player thought it was so funky, he wanted to call it 'Funky Onions', but they thought that was too low-class, so we used 'Green Onions' instead."

Single track listings

NameLocationFormatRecord labelRelease date
"Behave Yourself" b/w "Green Onions"US/UK7" 45 rpmVolt Records (US)May 1962
"Green Onions" b/w "Behave Yourself"US/UK7" 45 rpmStax Records (US)/London Records (UK)September 1962
"Green Onions" b/w "Boot-Leg"United Kingdom7" 45 rpmAtlantic RecordsMarch 1967

Chart performance

"Green Onions" entered the Billboard Hot 100 the week ending August 11, 1962, and peaked at No. 3 the week ending September 29, 1962. The single also made it to No. 1 on the R&B singles chart, for four non-consecutive weeks, an unusual occurrence in that it fell in and out of top spot three times.[7] It first appeared on the UK Singles Chart on December 15, 1979, following its use in the film Quadrophenia; it peaked at No. 7 on January 26, 1980, and stayed on the chart for 12 weeks.[8]

Personnel

Other recordings

The Surfaris recorded a version in 1963 on their album Wipe Out. (Dot DLP 3535 and DLP 25535). Harry James recorded a version in 1965 on his album Harry James Plays Green Onions & Other Great Hits (Dot DLP 3634 and DLP 25634).[15] In 1969, "Green Onions" was covered by Dick Hyman; his version peaked at No. 87 on the Canadian singles charts.[16] During the 1968 jam concerts at the Fillmore West in San Francisco that produced The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper, guitarist Mike Bloomfield and organist Al Kooper performed a jam of "Green Onions" that was included on the album. The song was sampled for Maxi Priest and Shaggy's 1996 recording of "That Girl".[17]

Similar recordings

Booker T. & the M.G.'s released a follow-up to "Green Onions", titled "Mo' Onions", on the album Green Onions in November 1962 and as a single in February 1964. It reached No. 97 on both the R&B singles and Billboard Hot 100 charts.[10]

Sonny Boy Williamson's 1963 recording "Help Me" was based on "Green Onions" and features Willie Dixon performing an upright bass riff very similar to the riff in "Green Onions" performed by Lewie Steinberg.[18]

Legacy

"Green Onions" was ranked No. 181 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time;[19] it is the only instrumental on the list. The track is currently ranked as the 137th greatest track of all time, as well as the best track of 1962, by Acclaimed Music.[20][21]

In 1999, "Green Onions" was given a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.[22]

In 2012, it was added to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress, a list of "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important" American sound recordings.[23]

"Green Onions" was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2018, as one of the five new entrants in the "Classic of Blues Recording (Song)" category.[24]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Strong, Martin Charles (2002). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate. p. 201. ISBN 978-1-84195-312-0.
  2. ↑ Unterberger, Richie. "Green Onions – Song Review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  3. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. 1. MUZE. p. 753. ISBN 0195313739.
  4. ↑ Electric Guitar Classics: 2010 Calendar. Sellers Publishing, Inc. 2009. ISBN 978-1-41628-395-9.
  5. ↑ Greenberg, Steve (1994). The Very Best of Booker T. & the MGs (CD liner notes)|format= requires |url= (help) (Media notes). Los Angeles: Rhino Records.
  6. ↑ "Green Onions by Booker T. & the MG's". Songfacts.com. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
  7. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 802.
  8. 1 2 "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Chart Positions Pre 1989 Part 3". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  10. 1 2 3 "Booker T. & the MG's – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending SEPTEMBER 22, 1962". Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. . Cash Box.
  12. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Green Onions". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Top 100 Hits for 1962". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  14. ↑ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1962". Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. . Cash Box.
  15. ↑ Edwards, David; Callahan, Mike (November 16, 2003). "Dot Album Discography, Part 4, LPs 25501-25852". Both Sides Now Publications. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  16. ↑ "RPM 100". RPM. Vol. 12 no. 8. October 18, 1969. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  17. ↑ Bastow, Clem (January 13, 2006). "Top Ten Totally Audacious Samples In Pop". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  18. ↑ Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press. p. 450. ISBN 1-55728-252-8.
  19. ↑ "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (1–500)". Archived from the original on August 20, 2006. . Rolling Stone.
  20. ↑ "Top 6000 Songs of All Time". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Top Songs of 1962". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Get Green With Music". GRAMMY.com. March 16, 2011. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
  23. ↑ "2011 National Recording Registry". Library of Congress. May 24, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  24. ↑ "News: The Blues Hall of Fame Welcomes Roebuck "Pops" Staples, Sam Lay, Mamie Smith, Georgia Tom Dorsey and the Aces As Its Newest Members on May 9 at the Blues Foundation's 39th Annual Induction Ceremony". Blues.org. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
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