What 1962 hit by Booker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental soul classic?
Answer
"Green Onions"
Answer
"Green Onions"
What 1962 hit by Booker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental soul classic? The answer is "Green Onions."
Recorded in Memphis in June 1962, the track is built around Booker T. Jones's instantly recognizable Hammond M3 organ line. Steve Cropper played guitar, Lewie Steinberg played bass, and Al Jackson Jr. played drums. The musicians recorded much of the piece spontaneously, giving it the tight but relaxed feel associated with the Memphis soul sound.
"Green Onions" uses a twelve-bar blues progression and contains no sung lyrics, making the instrumental performance itself the central attraction. It was first issued on the Volt label, a Stax subsidiary, as the B-side of "Behave Yourself." After radio listeners responded strongly, Stax reissued it as the A-side and included it on the album Green Onions.
The alternative titles can cause confusion because "Hip Hug-Her" and "Time Is Tight" were also major Booker T. & the M.G.'s instrumentals. "Soul Finger" was a hit by another Stax-associated group, the Bar-Kays. None is the 1962 classic named in this question.
Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Aug. 2026