How the “Nastiest Thing” One Musician Could Think Off Didn’t Become a Throw-Away

Once again, Dave from A Sound Day recently reached out to a bunch of fellow bloggers to invite their thoughts on the latest topic for his monthly recurring fun feature Turntable Talk. This time, his ask was to write about an instrumental we like a lot. Following is my humble contribution, which was first published on Dave’s blog on January 12.

While it’s safe to assume most of us had things we happily kissed goodbye or wish could get rid of once and for all when 2023 came to its close, it’s great to see when beloved things continue. In my mind, the latter include Turntable Talk, which remains one of the most fun blogging activities each month thanks to fellow blogger Dave who always comes up with great topics!

For Round 22, Dave asked us to forget about the words, if you will, and share some thoughts on an all-instrumental we dig. If you’re familiar with my music taste, you know how much I love vocals, especially when sung in perfect harmony. As such, you might think I may have a hard time finding an instrumental I really like. Well, not really.

In fact, I knew right away which tune I would write about. Then I thought, ‘well, perhaps not so fast!’ After all, there are multiple instrumentals I dig, such as Monty Norman’s James Bond Theme, The Shadows’ Apache, Fleetwood Mac’s Albatross and The Allman Brothers Band’s Jessica. Heck, even my favorite hard rock band Deep Purple penned a great instrumental titled April.

After I had thought about the above and a few additional instrumentals, I decided to go Brooklynite, cheerfully concluding ‘fuhgeddaboudit!’ So I went back to my initial pick, hoping nobody else will choose it: Green Onions by Booker T. & the M.G.’s.

Why Green Onions? Coz it’s a friggin’ awesome tune with a cool sound and a simple, yet infectious groove that makes you want to snip your fingers or engage other parts of your body to move along! Green Onions also is an instrumental with a nice background story.

Originally, the 12-bar blues with its distinct Hammond organ sound was composed by Booker T. Jones when he was 17. This was around 1961 and, as such, predated The M.G.s. At that time, remarkably, Jones already was a professional musician and had played baritone saxophone on the recording of Cause I Love You by Carla Thomas and Rufus Thomas – the first hit single for Satellite Records, which soon would become Stax Records.

The M.G.s who in addition to Jones (organ, piano, keyboards, guitar) originally featured Steve Cropper (guitar), Lewie Steinberg (bass) and Al Jackson Jr. (drums), came together in 1962. Serving as Stax’ house band, they played on countless recordings by the label’s artists, such as Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas and Rufus Thomas. And rockabilly singer and Sun Records recording artist Billy Lee Riley.

When on a Sunday in June 1962 Riley didn’t show up for a scheduled recording session, Booker T. & the M.G.s began jamming to a tune Jones initially had written on piano but felt it sounded better with a Hammond organ. Stax co-owner Jim Stewart liked what he heard and decided to record the track, Behave Yourself, with the idea to release it as a single. Once it was in the can, they needed a B-side. That’s when the magic happened.

Jones started playing his “old” composition on the Hammond. The other members of the M.G.’s began improvising to it. The end result was Green Onions, which initially was titled Funky Onions. However, Stewart’s sister and Stax label co-owner Estelle Axton (Stax = Stewart-Axton) felt Funky Onions sounded like swearing. Therefore, it was renamed Green Onions.

After they had recorded Green Onions, Cropper took a copy of the tune to Memphis radio station WLOK where he was friendly with morning DJ Rueben Washington. All Washington needed to hear was part of the track. He cut off the record that was on the air and started playing Green Onions several times. The phone lines lit up quickly and the rest is history.

Green Onions, which subsequently became the A-side of the single, peaked at no. 3 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 in late September 1962. The track also topped the R&B Singles chart for a combined (non-consecutive) four weeks.

About 17 years later, in December 1979, Green Onions entered the UK Singles Chart after it had been featured in Quadrophenia, a 1979 British drama film that was loosely based on The Who’s 1973 rock opera of the same name. Eventually, it peaked at number no. 7 in late January 1980 and stayed on the British chart for 12 consecutive weeks!

I’ll leave you with a few quotes related to Green Onions, as documented by Songfacts:

“If we released this as a record, what would you want to call it?” “Green Onions,” was Booker T. Jones’ reply. “Why ‘Green Onions'” Jim asked. Booker T: “Because that is the nastiest thing I can think of and it’s something you throw away.” – dialogue between Jim Stewart and Booker T. Jones

“‘Green Onions’ appears to be a simple song, but every time I play it, I have to pay attention. I have to remember, and school myself on how the notes go, because it’s just not as simple as it sounds.” – Booker T. Jones

“When you’re a successful songwriter, you might see your songs get in movies, cartoons, commercials. But I never knew that I would be a co-writer on a song for adult diapers (laughs). For four years ‘Green Onions’ was in a commercial for Depends. That song’s gone from adult diapers to pita chips and now it’s in a dog food commercial. As soon as they get through with it someone else will use it.” – Steve Cropper

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube

New Jersey Singer-Songwriter Jake Thistle Shines on Debut Studio EP

Jake Thistle may not be a household name, but that could soon change. The New Jersey singer-songwriter has played with the likes of John Hiatt, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Steve Ferrone and Ron Blair (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) and Jon Herington (Steely Dan), and been on bills with Jackson Browne, Stevie Nicks, Foo Fighters and Steve Earle, among others. Thistle is now out with his first studio EP. And he’s all of 19!

Released on November 17, The Half Left Out features seven original songs Thistle wrote over the past couple of years. The EP follows a stripped down June 2021 CD, Down the Line, which he recorded at home, using instruments he knew how to play himself. I can recommend it and previously covered it here. While the songs on the CD are remarkable, The Half Left Out is a step up, especially from a sonic perspective!

Thistle may only be 19, but he has been a classic rock fan for 15 years. His “Ed Sullivan moment” came just before his fourth birthday when he watched Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers play the halftime show at the 2008 Super Bowl. Some five years later, Thistle picked up the guitar and subsequently began posting videos of himself playing on YouTube. Eventually, none other than Tom Petty learned about his videos and invited him to one of his shows and to meet backstage! The above post has more about Thistle’s incredible background story.

Let’s come back to The Half Left Out and take a closer look at some of the songs. Brooklyn Can Wait is the EP’s opener. “I recorded  ‘Brooklyn Can Wait’ very soon after it was written, so I walked into the studio with far fewer expectations on how I thought the final product should sound, considering I hadn’t been sitting with the song for too long,” Thistle explained in a statement. “I had such a great time experimenting and laying down the sound that moved the record in a new direction.” It surely is a beautiful track way to kick off the EP!

Ghosted Road, the first song recorded for the EP, was inspired by The Allman Brothers Band, according to the above statement. That’s never a bad thing in my book! It also became its first single and initially was released in December 2022. “It was the first track I recorded with a full band ever,” Thistle said, “so I’m really grateful for all I’ve learned from this session in particular.” Evidently, the accompanying video captures the session. It’s a neat-sounding song with a great melody, which also nicely showcases Thistle’s vocals that are clear with just a tiny bit of an occasional rasp.

This brings me to The Dreamer, which Thistle wrote about 2 years ago, making it the oldest song on the EP. I could totally picture a young Jackson Browne sing this. Knowing Browne is one of Thistle influences, I may be a bit biased here. No matter how you look at it, this is great and remarkably mature songwriting for an artist in their late teens! “I walked into the studio with a specific sound in mind having sat with the tune for so long,” Thistle explained. “I’m thrilled with the final result”. So am I. To me, The Dreamer is the standout on the EP. The song first appeared in March 2023 as the second single.

Closing out the EP is Rolling Away. “I recorded it twice,” Thistle explained, “the first version in New Jersey with a full band as a b-side to 2022’s “Ghosted Road”, and a second time down in Nashville. I really liked the first version, but once we started recording the other tunes for this release, I found myself hearing a different style and sound for this song, so I’m grateful the label agreed.” While I can only speak to the version that ended up on the EP, I think it’s a great way to close the record.

“I couldn’t be prouder of this album sonically, much in part due to the fantastic musicianship I was lucky enough to be surrounded by during its recording,” stated Thistle in summing up the EP. “We tracked almost everything in studio, which was a fantastic time. This entire process has taught me so much, and I can’t wait to apply it all on the next release. I hope you enjoy it!”

Speaking of musicianship, The Half Left Out features Nick Nella (guitar), Michael Beresky (bass) and Michael Santa Cruz (drums). Recorded between New Jersey and Nashville, the EP was produced by Tyler Sarfert, Jacob Kulick and April Rose Gabrielle. It was released via Gold’n Retriever Entertainment, an independent label and artist services organization founded in January 2021 by former RCA record executive Joe Riccitelli.

With The Half Left Out, Jake Thistle has accomplished another impressive milestone. Not only do I find the songwriting is remarkably mature for such a young artist, but Thistle’s vocals sound great throughout the EP. He also effectively took advantage of recording his songs in a professional studio with a full band.

So what’s next for Thistle? I asked him and here’s what he said: “I’m incredibly excited to get back into the studio to record the follow-up to my current EP, The Half Left Out. While my new album is fresh out into the world, I’ve continued to be busy writing and recording demos of new songs that we’ll record with the band and full studio production with the goal of putting out a full-length album in the coming year or so through my label, Gold’n Retriever Entertainment.”

He went on, “It’s a very exciting and creative time! As I progress with my professional music career and manage the many facets that go into making those dreams an ongoing and increasing success, I’ll continue to work simultaneously to complete my full-time course load at Rutgers University, where I double major in Journalism and Communications. There’s a lot to juggle between those important facets of my life, but all of these diverse experiences make me a more effective and productive person, and a better writer—I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m excited for what the future holds on all counts!”

Thistle is firing on all cylinders. I’ll continue to watch this young artist who is on a promising trajectory.

Note: This post has been updated on December 12, 2023 with comments by Thistle about his plans

Sources: Jake Thistle Releases His First Studio EP The Half Left Out Via Gold’n Retriever Entertainment November 17th (statement provided by Mixtape Media); Jake Thistle website; YouTube; Spotify