Album of the Day

It's tough to go wrong with a record by Booker T & The MG's, the Memphis group whose instrumental backing helped turn Otis Redding, Sam & Dave and many more into stars. The quartet also had a string of hits in their own right, and the aptly titled DOIN' OUR THING, the band's sixth studio album, shows why. The 1968 Atlantic collection simmers with soul on 11 tracks, and while most of them are covers, the inventive arrangements and top-notch playing on “Ode To Billie Joe,” “You Keep Me Hanging On,” “Expressway To Your Heart” and “Let's Go Get Stoned” make this a virtual master class for aspiring musicians. The work by drummer Al Jackson, Jr. and guitarist Steve Cropper is particularly noteworthy here, and as this is Cropper's birthday, we'll cue up DOIN' OUR THING and shout “Play it, Steve!”