Hammond B-3 organ master Booker T. Jones plays in two groups: Booker T. & the MGs, the Rock Hall of Fame instrumental band that started in the 1960s, and Booker T., his own solo ensemble that is touring behind his first solo album in about two decades. Booker T brought his solo group to the Varsity Theater on Friday night, and it was an evening for the jam-band nation. Booker's quintet was more about guitar than his B-3 organ, more about jams than grooves, more about hard-charging rock than bouncy soul. The 108-minute set was divided between tunes on Booker T's 2009 Grammy-winning solo CD, "Potato Hole," and stuff he did in the 1960s (with either the MGs or as a first-call Memphis studio musician). New pieces like "Potato Hole" and "Warped Sister" were about grungey guitar grooves, sorta like the Allman Brothers meet Neil Young. However, this combo – the guitarists have worked with Mariah Carey and the Fabulolus Thunderbirds -- never really cut loose with long-winded jams to delight the fan base until the cheeky and playful encore instrumental treatment of OutKast's "Hey Ya." Similarly, this group came up short on the vintage soul. On the MGs material, they missed the bounce of Duck Dunn's bass and the soulful expressiveness of Steve Cropper's guitar. The guitar raveup by Troy Gagnier and Brendan Black on "Hang Em High" seemed misguided whereas Booker's organ and Jeremy Curtis' "Can't Turn You Loose" bass line fueled "Time Is Tight." Jones, 65, who displayed an easy-going, laidback charm, isn't known for his vocals. But he sang a few numbers that he either wrote for others or recorded with them. His voice, like his personality, was easy and laidback. In some respects, his singing suggested Jimi Hendrix doing ballads. But Albert King's "Born Under a Bad Sign" (cowritten by Booker) and Otis Redding's "I've B een Loving You Too Long" (Booker played on the recording) demand a passionate soulfulness that Booker couldn't muster. Still, thanks to the fresh energy of drummer Darian Gray and the spirit of the rest of the band, it was a guitar-driven good time. However, some fans might prefer the Jones-and-Cropper good grooves of Booker T & the MGs. The MGs will return to the Dakota in June. So let the Booker T debate continue. Set list Harlem House/ Pound It Out/ Warped Sister/ She Breaks/ Green Onions (MGs) / Born Under A Bad Sign (Albert King)/ Potato Hole/ Hold On I'm Coming (Sam & Dave). Dock Of The Bay (Otis Redding)/ . Ain't No Sunshine (Bill Withers)/ Melting Pot/. Hip Hug Her (IMGs)/ Soul Limbo (MGs)/
Hang Em High (MGs)/ Time Is Tight (MGs) / I've Been Loving You Too Long (Otis Redding) encore Hey Ya (OutKast)