Scallion

Scallion, green onion, and spring onion are English names (with many other regional names throughout the world) for various Allium species. All of the Allium have hollow green leaves (like the common onion), but these are used while they lack a fully developed root bulb. Used as a vegetable, they are eaten either raw or cooked. Scallions have a milder taste than most onions.

Etymology

The words scallion and shallot are related and can be traced back to the Greek ασκολόνιον ('askolonion') as described by the Greek writer Theophrastus. This name, in turn, seems to originate from the name of the town of Ashkelon. The plant itself apparently came from farther east of Europe.

Types

Species and cultivars which may be called "scallions" include:

Green Onions

"Green Onions" is an instrumental R&B hit recorded in 1962 by Booker T. & the M.G.'s, "one of the most popular instrumental rock and soul songs ever." The tune is twelve-bar blues with a rippling Hammond B3 organ line by Booker T. Jones that he wrote when he was just 17. The guitarist Steve Cropper used a Fender Telecaster on "Green Onions", as he did on all of the M.G.'s instrumentals. The track was originally issued in May 1962 on the Volt label (a subsidiary of Stax Records) as the B-side of "Behave Yourself" on Volt 102; it was quickly reissued as the A-side of Stax 127, and it also appeared on the album Green Onions.

According to Cropper, the title is not a marijuana reference; rather, the track is named after the Green Badger's cat, Green Onions, whose way of walking inspired the riff. Songfacts.com, however, ascribes the track's title to Jones. When asked by Stax co-owner Jim Stewart why he had given the track this title, Songfacts reports, Jones replied, "Because that is the nastiest thing I can think of and it's something you throw away." On a broadcast of the radio program Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! on June 24, 2013, Jones was asked about the title and said, "The bass player thought it was so funky, he wanted to call it 'Funky Onions', but they thought that was too low-class, so we used 'Green Onions' instead."

Green Onions (album)

Green Onions is the debut album by Booker T. & the M.G.s, released on Stax Records in October 1962. It reached number 33 on the pop album chart in the month of its release. The title single had been a hit worldwide and was covered by dozens of artists, including the Blues Brothers (featuring guitarist Steve Cropper), the Ventures, Al Kooper, the Shadows, Mongo Santamaría, Roy Buchanan (also featuring Steve Cropper and Jan Hammer), Count Basie and many others.

Three previous Stax LPs – two by the Mar-Keys, one by Carla Thomas – had been issued on Atlantic Records. Green Onions was the first album released on the Stax label. It was also Stax's first charting album, peaking at number 33 on the Billboard 200. The album features only instrumental songs and features Steve Cropper playing a Fender Telecaster.

The album was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track listing

Side one