Take Me to the River

Green and Hodges wrote it during three days in 1973 in a rented house at Lake Hamilton, Arkansas, where they had gone to come up with new material. According to Mitchell, Green wrote the words and the two men wrote the tune together. Green recorded it for Al Green Explores Your Mind (1974), produced by Mitchell, with Charles, Leroy and Teenie Hodges, Howard Grimes and the Memphis Horns. He opens by dedicating the performance to Little Junior Parker, a cousin who had gone on. The Guardian's Batey calls it the best thing Green ever did, but notes that in his autobiography, which takes its title from the song, Green dismisses it in a couple of sentences and says he prefers Syl Johnson's version.

Hi did not release Green's track as a single and passed the song to its labelmate Syl Johnson. His recording, also produced by Mitchell with most of the same musicians, reached number 48 on the Hot 100 in 1975. Rolling Stone ranked Green's original number 117 on its 2004 list of the 500 greatest songs, and it entered the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2011.

Live and covers

Talking Heads recorded it for More Songs About Buildings and Food (1978) with Brian Eno in Nassau, in the Bahamas. David Byrne had at first resisted putting out a cover, and Eno suggested they play it as slowly as possible. It reached number 26 on the Hot 100 in February 1979, and Pitchfork noted it put them in the top 30 singles for the first time. Foghat recorded it in 1976, and Levon Helm and Bryan Ferry both recorded it in 1978. Hootie & the Blowfish and a gospel choir backed Green on it at the sixth Billboard Music Awards in 1995. At the 2014 Kennedy Center Honors, where Green was an honoree, Mavis Staples and Sam Moore sang it with a gospel choir.