The Meters - Rejuvenation

'Rejuvenation' is probably best known, in certain circles anyway, for being the album that contains 'Just Kissed My Baby', the opening of which uses a full on lustful wah-wah guitar riff that was used to great effect by Public Enemy on 'Time Bomb', a track from their debut LP 'Yo Bumrush The Show'. This LP though is about more than just one lick and for me highlights a band at the peak of their musical career.
Hailing from New Orleans this is Southern Fried Funk and The Meters make full use of the areas rich musical heritage, incorporating Soul, Mardi Gras, Gospel, R&B and even subtle country leanings to their sound. Formed in 1967 by Art Neville, who had already been making rhythm & blues for nearly two decades, with bands such as the Hawketts, he recruited Leo Nocentelli on guitar, George Porter Jr. on bass and Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste on drums. They then became the house band for producer Allen Toussaint, becoming a kind of New Orleans' answer to the Stax/Volt Memphis studio band Booker T. and the MG's, and backed up the likes of Lee Dorsey and Ernie K-Doe. They also cut instrumental albums for the local Josie label, but when Reprise signed the Meters in 1971, Neville started singing again, which leads us nicely to 1974’s Rejuvenation.

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Just one look at the cover; garishly decorated room, lady in stacked heels, big afro, eating watermelon, drinking Ripple wine and surrounded by, I dare say, funky ass records, I can make out The Meters ‘Cabbage Alley’ anyway, you can almost hear what you’re gonna get. Opening track, the conscious 'People Say' is a blue print for funk, with its stunted wah guitar licks, solid bass and jumping drum. Up next is the deep, soulfully, bluesy 'Love Is For Me' and then Baby kicks in. 'What'cha Say' leads off in an almost light rock kind of way with funky breaks. It's in songs like this that you can hear what most probably made people like Paul McCartney such a big fan. Much the same can be said with 'It Ain't No Use', an 11 minute plus true psychedelic funk in which each member takes his own tangent while the pulse never falters. It sounds like something a young Eric Clapton would sing (who inspired who?...hmm). In between these two tracks is the raw, driving funk of ‘Jungle Man’ while ‘Hey Pocky A-Way’ starts with a bit of a piano rattling rag time feel, then rolls along in fine funky, foot tappin’ form, with bright blasts of brass.
The song that follows the earlier mentioned ‘Ain’t No Use’ is a complete opposite “Loving You Is On My Mind” is a loungey, free & easy, happy go lucky sounding instrumental. The album then reverts to form and finishes with the in ya face drum & bass, plus sharp keyboard accents, homage and repatriation call to the land where it all began ‘Africa’. On a side note this track was used hook line and sinker by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers for one of their early work outs titled ‘Hollywood’, and shows to some extent how far the influence of the Meters has travelled with even Mick Jagger quoted as saying “they are best mother f***ing band in the world!” .You can still catch Neville and Porter playing their mixed bag-o-funk, with various guests as the Funky Meters live occasionally, although most of the dates I’ve seen advertised are state side. So if you can’t catch ‘em live go get rejuvenated on some Meters sophisticated funk.

www.amazon.co.uk/Rejuvenation-Remastered-Meters

Tracklist for Rejuvenation (original version)

A1. People Say
A2. Love Is For

A3. Just Kissed My Baby

A4. What’cha Say

A5. Jungle Man

B1. Hey Pocky A-Way

B2. It Ain’t No Use
B3. Loving You Is On My Mind

B4. Africa