Green Onions – Booker T. & The MG’s | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#3) & R&B (#1 for 4 weeks); 1962
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
In 1958 a guitar-playing teenager named Steve Cropper formed an instrumental band called the Royal Spades. Honing their skills in clubs and at sock hops, the band eventually signed on as the house band for Satellite (later, Stax) Records in Memphis.
Along the way, the players fleshed out an infectious riff into Last Night. Last Night by the Mar-Keys (named after the prominent marquee in front of the record company’s offices) rode high on the charts throughout late summer 1961.
Although Last Night marked the heights of the Mar-Keys’ recording success, Cropper started playing with musical prodigy Booker T. Jones. Cropper and Jones, along with drummer Al Jackson, Jr. and bassist Lewis Steinberg, had just finished a demo date with rockabilly artist Billy Lee Riley, and began to jam on something they called Green Onions.
However, Stax co-owner Jim Stewart preferred another tune, Behave Yourself, which he renamed Green Onions, and organist Booker T. & his MG’s had their first hit.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Booker T. Jones
- Steve Cropper
- Lewie Steinberg
- Al Jackson Jr.
Lyrics Written by:
- Booker T. Jones
- Steve Cropper
- Lewie Steinberg
- Al Jackson Jr.
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).