With the recent passing of the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir at 78, there are fewer legends who dedicated their life completely to music. George Porter Jr. is absolutely one of those legends and, lucky for us, is still going strong at the same age of 78. The Meters member is a lifelong collaborator and bringer of joy, and every year around Mardi Gras, he embarks on a short tour to share a taste of his New Orleans legacy with audiences. On Friday, January 30th, he kicked off that run with a return to Portland, Oregon for a performance in front of eager funk enthusiasts at The Get Down.
In these troubled times, there is perhaps no greater unifying force than funk music. It is timeless and appealing to every demographic. When George Porter Jr. and his Runnin’ Pardners hit the stage at the Get Down, they provided the dancing crowd of all types with nearly two hours of soul-soothing musical balm. From the opening grooves that featured thick bass lines and Porter’s jazzy interplay with pianist Michael Lemmler, building into funk-fusion. Newer tune “See Me? See Me? See Me?” rolled along with playful ease and the danceable bounce of a second line parade, setting the tone before the band dropped into a double dose of Professor Longhair with “Goin’ To The Mardi Gras” and the piano boogie of “Hey Now Baby,” the first of several New Orleans classics they would play. The band slowed things down for the smooth-flowing R&B of “Runnin’ Partner” and the dreamy, synth-laced “I Wish” that saw Porter’s soulful vocals taking the spotlight. The quartet ramped things back up for the punchy Meters classic “Same Old Thing,” letting the twangy funk morph into the first loose jam session of the night and culminating with the kind of bass solo that showed this legendary player is still very much in the game. “I Get High” turned up the heat even more with its deep in-the-pocket groove before the swaggering boogie of “Name Up In Lights.”
Keeping spirits high and the dancing constant, the band returned old favorites that somehow never get old with rousing takes on “Mardi Gras Mambo” and “Hey Pocky Way,” with the latter working in a little taste of Billy Preston’s soul-funk classic “Will It Go Around In Circles” before taking it back to Professor Longhair’s “Big Chief.” They hit the final stretch with guitarist Chris Adkins leading the charge on the sharp and thumping anthem “Wanna Get Funky” bleeding into the quintessential funk instrumental “Cissy Strut.” Closing out with the classic tune “Turn On Your Lovelight” as perhaps a nod to the Grateful Dead, Porter and his band finished in fine form and kept the party going right until the end of their set.
All photos by Greg Homolka.
