McLemore Avenue

McLemore Avenue
Studio album by Booker T. & the MGs
Released April 1970
Recorded 1969
Genre Southern soul, instrumental rock
Length 38:12
Label Stax
STS-2027
Producer Booker T. & the MGs
Booker T. & the MGs chronology

The Booker T. Set
(1969)
McLemore Avenue
(1970)
Melting Pot
(1971)
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McLemore Avenue is a 1970 album by Booker T. & the MGs consisting entirely of mostly instrumental covers of songs from the Beatles' album Abbey Road (released only months earlier in September 1969). The title and cover are an homage to the Beatles album; 926 East McLemore Avenue being the address of the Stax studio in Memphis, as Abbey Road was for EMI in London.

Booker T. Jones said, "I was in California when I heard Abbey Road, and I thought it was incredibly courageous of The Beatles to drop their format and move out musically like they did. To push the limit like that and reinvent themselves when they had no need to do that. They were the top band in the world but they still reinvented themselves. The music was just incredible so I felt I needed to pay tribute to it."[1]

Track listings

All songs written by Lennon–McCartney except "Here Comes the Sun" and "Something", by George Harrison.

Side one

  1. Medley: "Golden Slumbers", "Carry That Weight", "The End", "Here Comes the Sun", "Come Together" - 15:48
  2. "Something" - 4:09

Side two

  1. Medley: "Because", "You Never Give Me Your Money" - 7:26
  2. Medley: "Sun King", "Mean Mr. Mustard", "Polythene Pam", "She Came In Through the Bathroom Window", "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" - 10:40

2011 Stax Remasters bonus tracks

  1. "You Can't Do That" - 2:47
  2. "Day Tripper" - 2:52
  3. "Michelle" - 2:52
  4. "Eleanor Rigby" - 3:41
  5. "Lady Madonna" - 3:35
  6. "You Can't Do That" (alternate take) - 3:08

It was also released digitally in a lossless and high quality version at 88.2 kHz and 24 bit.[2]

Personnel

Production credits

  1. Murray, Noel (2009-05-04). "Interview: Booker T. Jones". The A.V. Club.
  2. Entry at HDtracks