Nathaniel Hawthorne once observed that “easy reading is damned hard writing.” The same holds true in music, where great mastery is often found in the simplest performances. Booker T and the MGs, one of the greatest backing bands of all time, played with such a profoundly deep groove that little elaboration was needed. It’s fitting that their best known instrumental track, “Green Onions,” has a minimalist melody, long stretches of space dotted by a few notes here and there.
As I watch and listen to this performance, I lock in on the drummer, Al Jackson, whose virtuosity was hidden in plain sight. The simple yet magical grooves he laid down beneath a long list of R&B classics, including this one, were what allowed such simple songs to convey a vast range of emotion.
– Jacob Slichter is the author of “So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star,” a critically acclaimed behind-the-scenes look at the music business that chronicles his experiences as the drummer for Semisonic. GQ magazine called it “One of the funniest, most incisive books about rock ‘ roll in recent memory.”
Miles Davis and John Coltrane – So What?, by John Munson, Celebrity Guest Blogger
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