Booker T. & the M.G.'s

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More About

• Ruthie Foster
• Wilson Pickett
• Ray Charles
• Soul Music
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media

Outside the world of jazz, it's pretty rare that a band with no significant history of lyric-driven songwriting can make such a huge impact on pop music. Booker T. & the M.G.'s are, naturally, an exception to that rule: From their omnipresent (yet never tiresome) 1962 debut single "Green Onions" through their classic '71 LP Melting Pot and beyond, Memphis's finest house band-turned-stars in their own right bridged the gap from Ray Charles-style soul to the funk of the '70s. And it's not like they needed their own singer, not when they could back some of the finest of their time—Otis Redding, Albert King, the Staple Singers, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, you name it. Put their photo in the dictionary next to the word "tight." With Ruthie Foster. All Ages.
Sat., Aug. 9, 7:30 p.m., 2008