Booker T & the Mrs served as the primary band for Stax-Volt, the central label for all Southern Soul music that didn’t include James Brown. The band played songs on their own, like “Green Onions” above, but also served as the backing band for all of Stax-Volt’s artists. Of note is also that the band was an integrated affair, even though most of the artists they accompanied were black.
What intrigues me the most about the group is the fact that they were single handedly the band for a number of incredibly famous acts. I can't say that I’m aware of any true modern counterpart. Sure, there are session musicians who show up on many artist’s records and tour with various acts, but I’m not sure there are any more “record label bands” anymore. It would be fascinating to know when the practice started to fade away.
