The Meters - The Meters

The Meters - The Meters

Album #108 - May 1969

Episode date - January 24, 2018

The Alternative Top 40
    0:00
    0:00

    The world didn’t necessarily need a band to fill the space between James Brown and the MG’s, but the Meters decided to do it anyway, and a lot us are very glad that they did.

    Combining the rigid syncopation of Brown’s rhythm sections with the loose space of Booker T’s group, the Meters found new ground for soul music by adding their own second line flavor to that mix. The New Orleans influence on the band’s sound cannot be overstated. This record simply could not have been made anywhere else in the world. The grooves are so steeped in New Orleans gumbo-groove that you can almost smell the sassafras. Apart from the occasional exhortation, this was strictly an instrumental affair (subsequent albums would add vocals a bit more with each release).

    The rhythm section of George Porter, Jr. and  “Zigaboo” Modeliste could syncopate a nursery rhyme, and they throw around upbeat accents with abandon while organist Art Neville and guitarist Leo Nocentelli drop in and over the rhythms as tight as sheets over a drill sergeant’s mattress.

    The Meters were nothing if not consistent. I’ve never heard a Meters track I didn’t like, and I never heard a Meters album that wasn’t very, very good. After much consideration, I picked their first album for inclusion here only because their others follow its formula so closely – find a perfect groove and hold it, and make sure to leave some breathing room for the funky spaces. An argument could easily be made that time made the Meters only more funky with each release (through the seventies, at least) but the first album is classic for its definitive combination of restraint and release. Meet the new funk, not quite the same as the old funk.

    May 1969 - Billboard Charted 108

     

     

    Related Shows

    Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left

    Nick Drake: Five Leaves Left

    Album #113 - September 1969

      0:00
      0:00
      The Stooges - We Will Fall

      The Stooges: The Stooges

      Album #112- August 1969

        0:00
        0:00
        Miles Davis - In A Silent Way

        Miles Davis: In a Silent Way

        Album #111 - July 1969

          0:00
          0:00
          Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica

          Captain Beefheart: Trout Mask Replica (Part 2)

          Album #110 - June 1969

            0:00
            0:00
            Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica

            Captain Beefheart: Trout Mask Replica (Part 1)

            Album #110 - June 1969

              0:00
              0:00
              The Shaggs - Philosophy of the World

              The Shaggs

              Album #109 - June 1969

                0:00
                0:00
                The Sir Douglas Quintet: Mendocino

                The Sir Douglas Quintet: Mendocino

                Album #107 - April 1969

                  0:00
                  0:00
                  The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground

                  The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground

                  Album #106 - March 1969

                    0:00
                    0:00
                    DUSTY SPRINGFIELD

                    Dusty Springfield: Dusty in Memphis

                    Album #105- March 1969

                      0:00
                      0:00
                      The Flying Burrito Bros. -The Gilded Palace of Sin

                      The Flying Burrito Bros.: The Gilded Palace of Sin

                      Album #104 - February 1969

                        0:00
                        0:00
                        The Monkees - Head

                        The Monkees: Head

                        Album #103 - December 1968

                          0:00
                          0:00
                          The Kinks: The Kinks Are The Village Preservation Society

                          The Kinks: The Kinks Are The Village Preservation Society

                          Album #102 - November 1968

                            0:00
                            0:00