Soul legend Booker T. Jones performs April 13 at ECC Arts Center
Soul legend and Hammond B3 organ master Booker T. Jones, well known as the frontman of the band Booker T. & the M.G.'s, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, at the Elgin Community College Arts Center's Blizzard Theatre, Building H, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin.
A Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Musicians Hall of Fame inductee, and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Booker T. rose to fame in the 1960s as the frontman of Memphis' Stax Records band Booker T. and the M.G.'s. The M.G.'s were comprised of Booker T. (organ/piano), Steve Cropper (guitar), Lewie Steinberg (bass), Donald "Duck" Dunn (bass), and Al Jackson Jr. (drums). On classic Stax hits like "Green Onions," "Hang 'Em High," "Time Is Tight," and "Melting Pot," Booker T. and the M.G.'s pushed soul music's boundaries, refined it to its essence, and injected it into the nation's bloodstream. During his illustrious 50-year career, Booker T. has played with musicians such as Otis Redding, Albert King, Stephen Stills, Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Elton John, and Questlove.
A multi-instrumentalist best known for his organ grooves, Booker T.'s most recent release, "Sound the Alarm," marks his return to Stax Records. The album is an exciting reconnection to the Stax Records tradition, which began for Booker T. as a teen, when he wandered into Satellite Records in Memphis, Tenn. The record shop would later form Stax Records. "I found the music that I loved for the rest of my life at Satellite Records, while I was on my bike soliciting customers on my paper route," Booker T. recalls. "I walked into the lobby of the Capitol Theater, and it had been transformed into a record store, and there was Steve Cropper playing records for me there when I was in ninth grade. That legacy is my heart and my life. That's where I come from."
Tickets to Booker T. Jones are $38-$52. A three-course, preshow dinner prepared by ECC's award-winning Culinary Arts and Hospitality program can be purchased for an additional $29. Dinners must be ordered on or before Thursday, April 7. The Memphis-inspired menu for April 13 includes corn chowder served with biscuits and honey butter, beef short rib accompanied by sweet potato mashed and braised greens with bacon, and apple crisp with bourbon ice cream for dessert. Wine and beer are sold separately by the glass.
Tickets for all performances in the ECC Arts Center are available online at tickets.elgin.edu or at the ECC Arts Center box office. Box office hours are noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and noon to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday. To purchase tickets by phone, call (847) 622-0300. All major credit cards are accepted.