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Take Me To The River
Composer: Al Green / Mabon Hodges

Take Me To The River was performed a few times by the Grateful Dead in 1995. The song was also performed by The Other Ones, Ratdog, RD3, The Kreutzmann/Margen Band, Billy & The Kids, and the Valentines. It was also played by Phil Lesh with The Foundation Band and Friends at a benefit in 2006.

The song was written in 1973 and first released on Hi Records by Al Green as a track on the Al Green Explores Your Mind album. On this album Green dedicates the song to Little Junior Parker.

Rather than release the Al Green recording as a single Hi Records released a version by Syl Johnson in 1975 which reached #7 in the R&B charts. Take Me To The River was later a hit for Talking Heads in 1978.



Ratdog recordings

info Fish Tree Water Blues, Various Artists (Ratdog and Charlie Musselwhite), 1999
info Hartford CT: October 22, 2003
info Little Rock AR: November 19, 2003
info Washington, March 30, 2004
info Tulsa OK, September 15, 2004Ratdog, 2004
info Milwaukee WI, March 31, 2005
info Wilkes-Barre PA, April 13, 2005
info Washington DC, April 27, 2005
info Ocean City, MD, August 9, 2005
info Erie, PA, October 28, 2005
info Atlanta, GA, November 15, 2005
info North Charleston, SC, March 16, 2006
info Ridgefield, CT, August 21, 2006
info Buffalo NY, October 28, 2006
info Greensburg PA, March 4, 2007
info Norfolk VA, March 20, 2007
info Raleigh, NC, November 11, 2007
info Upper Darby, PA, October 16, 2009

Billy & The Kids

info 4/27/23, New Orleans, LA, Billy & The Kids, 2023

Al Green recordings

This list is not intended to be comprehensive.

no info Al Green Explores Your Mind, Al Green, 1974
no info Al Green's Greatest Hits: Volume II, Al Green, 1977
no info Single (Love And Happiness / Take Me To The River), Al Green, 1977
no info The Complete Al Green: His Greatest Hits, Al Green, 1977
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Have A Good Time), Al Green, 1982
no info 14 Greatest Hits, Al Green, 1984
no info East Memphis Music: The Hits From The Stax Era, Various Artists (Al Green), 1984
no info Supreme Al Green: The Greatest Hits, Al Green, 1992
no info Unchained Melody, Al Green, 1993
no info Blood In Blood Out Soundtrack, Various Artists (Al Green), 1993
no info Back To Back Hits, Al Green / Teddy Pendergrass, 1995
info The Promised Land, Various Artists (Al Green), 1995
no info Take Me to the River: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2, Al Green, 1997
no info Anthology, Al Green, 1997
no info More Greatest Hits, Al Green, 1998
no info Get Soul! Old School Soul Sampler, Various Artists (Al Green), 1998
no info Legends Of Soul, Al Green, 2001
info New Millennium Funk Party, Various Artists (Al Green), 2001
no info The Immortal Soul Of Al Green, 2003
no info The Absolute Best, Al Green, 2004
info Express Yourself: Soul in the 20th Century, Various Artists (Al Green), 2006
no info The Definitive Greatest Hits, Al Green, 2007
no info Platinum Al Green, 2008
no info What Makes The World Go 'Round?, Al Green, 2008
no info Take Me to the River: A Southern Soul Story 1961-1977, Various Artists (Al Green), 2008
info Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Live (DVD), Various Artists (Al Green), 2009
no info Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame: Live: Legends, Various Artists (Al Green), 2010
no info Hi Records: The Soul Years, Various Artists (Al Green), 2014
no info The Hi Records Singles Collection, Al Green, 2018

Other recordings

This list is not intended to be comprehensive.

no info Total Explosion, Syl Johnson, 1975
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Could I Be Falling In Love), Syl Johnson, 1975
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Walk Of Life, Part II), Fessor Funk, 1975
no info Night Shift, Foghat, 1976
no info Single (I'll Be Standing By / Take Me To The River), Foghat, 1976
no info More Songs About Buildings And Food, Talking Heads, 1978
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Thank You For Sending Me An Angel), Talking Heads, 1978
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Found A Job), Talking Heads, 1978 (UK)
no info Levon Helm, Levon Helm, 1978
no info The Bride Stripped Bare, Bryan Ferry, 1978
no info Single (Salvation Is Free / Take Me To The River), The Gigantic Overland Travelers, 1978
no info The Bride Stripped Bare, Bryan Ferry, 1978
no info Big Fun, Shalamar, 1979
no info Thelma Camacho, Thelma Camacho, 1980
info Jealous Kind, Delbert McClinton, 1980
no info Live Talkies, Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels, 1982
no info The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads, Talking Heads, 1982
no info Stop Making Sense, Talking Heads, 1984
no info Single (Take Me To The River / Life During Wartime (This Ain't No Party...This Ain't No Disco...This Ain't No Foolin' Around)), Talking Heads, 1984
no info Schuur Thing, Diane Schuur, 1985
no info Victim Of Life's Circumstances, Delbert McClinton, 1987
no info Single (Break Every Rule / Take Me To The River), Tina Turner, 1987
no info The History Of Hi Records Rhythm & Blues, Volume Two: The Glory Years, Various Artists (Syl Johnson), 1987
no info The Commitments Soundtrack, The Commitments, 1991
no info Single (Mustang Sally / Take Me To The River), The Commitments, 1991
no info Sand In The Vaseline, Talking Heads, 1992
no info Return Of The Boogie Men, Foghat, 1994
no info Back In the Game, Syl Johnson With Hi Rhythm, 1994
no info The A Sides, Syl Johnson, 1994
no info Memphis Boogie, Boogie Blues Band, 1994
no info The Memphis Horns, The Memphis Horns, 1995
no info Medusa, Annie Lennox, 1995
no info Hi Times: The Hi Records R&B Years, Various Artists (Syl Johnson), 1995
no info The Best Of Syl Johnson: The Hi Records Years, Syl Johnson, 1996
no info The Best Of, The Commitments, 1996
no info Live At Blues Alley, Eva Cassidy, 1996
info Ultimate Collection, Tom Jones, 1997
info 70's Funk & Soul Classics, Various Artists (Syl Johnson), 1998
info Lost Marbles, Lost Marbles, 2000
info Jealous Kind/Plain from the Heart, Delbert McClinton, 2001
no info The Memphis Box, Various Artists (Syl Johnson), 2001
no info Burnin' Down the House: Live at the House of Blues, Etta James, 2002
no info The Essentials, Foghat, 2002
info Spontaneous Combustion, Ellen McIlwaine, 2002
no info Ultimate Soul Classics Volume III, Various Artists (Syl Johnson), 2002
no info Brave New World, Tim Russ, 2003
no info Once In A Lifetime, Talking Heads, 2003
info Saturday Night Live: 25 Years of Music, Various Artists (Talking Heads), 2003
no info R&B 3, Charlie Wood, 2004
no info Live II, Foghat, 2006
no info The Essential Recordings: Volume 1, Bobby Rush, 2006
no info Live From Austin TX, Delbert McClinton, 2006
no info Covered By Foghat, Foghat, 2006
no info The Definitive Rock Collection, Foghat, 2006
no info Cien Noches, Ben Sidran Hammond Quartet, 2008
no info Same As It Ever Was, Talking Heads, 2009
no info Diamond In The Rough, Syl Johnson, 2009
no info Chronology, Talking Heads, 2011
no info All About Everything, John Boutté, 2012
info Live At Who Hill, The Whiskeyhickon Boys, 2012
no info Live 1981, The Protons, 2013
info 3/28/13, San Francisco, CA, Steve Kimock, 2013
no info It's Showtime: The Midnight Ramble Sessions Vol. 3, The Levon Helm Band, 2014
no info The Memphis Project Volume 1, Dual Drive, 2014
no info Chicken Heads: A 50-Year History Of, Bobby Rush, 2015
no info Live From Centennial Park, Atlanta 1996, Jack Mack & The Heart Attack, 2019
no info Southern Soul: From Memphis To Muscle Shoals & More, Lucinda Williams, 2020

In addition to these recordings Take Me To The River can be found on concert recordings by Gov't Mule, Hot Buttered Rum and other groups.

 
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