''The Meters'' is the debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

by the American funk group The Meters. It was released in May 1969, the first of eight albums by the band. The band's early works were developed through improvisation. Band members had spent most of the 1960s performing together in nightclubs of New Orleans. They had a fluid musical style that included elements of R&B,

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

Background

The first track, " Cissy Strut," was the band's opening song during their residency at the Ivanhoe nightclub in late 1960s. The original melody was introduced by

Leo Nocentelli Leo Nocentelli (born June 15, 1946) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the funk band The Meters. He wrote the original versions of several funk classics such as "Cissy Strut" and "Hey Po ...

. The song was not yet titled, and the band's name was Art Neville and the Neville Sounds. The song was recorded at the Cosimo Studios. It was first released as a single and sold 200,000 copies in two weeks. Its commercial success became an impetus for the band's name change and subsequent recording career. The variety of instruments on the album's cover symbolizes the diversity of compositions and rhythms. Its back cover depicts the band members in the early phase of their career. Many of the band's early instrumental tracks were named only after they were recorded. The album's eighth track was named for the

6V6 The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode vacuum tube. The first of this family of tubes to be introduced was the 6V6G by Ken-Rad Tube & Lamp Corporation in late 1936, with the availability by December of both Ken-Rad and Raytheon 6V6G tubes announced. ...

vacuum tube, which is commonly used in guitar amplifiers.

Reception

A review by

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

noted the music's simplicity and nuance and called it "impressive". Tamara Davidson of ''Revive Music'' had a positive review and wrote "the album is filled with infectious grooves, filthy bass lines, and revolutionary drum rhythms." According to Brian Knight of ''The Vermont Review'', the album "set the pace for both the Meters and the entire New Orleans funk sound." Jeff Chang described the band in relation to the cultural backdrop of the 1960s, their influences, and their influence on music. He wrote: " Modeliste once described the songs as 'soundbites,' as 'entries of different grooves and different ideas about groove.' Indeed, they could fill a jam-band encyclopedia, hundreds of little ideas that could each be stretched out like twenty-minute rubber bands."

Track listing

Listed as "Sehorns Farm" on original LP release; and "Sehorns Farms" on original 45rpm single.

Personnel

Credits adapted from

. ;The Meters *

Art Neville Arthur Lanon Neville Jr. (December 17, 1937 – July 22, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist from New Orleans. Neville was a staple of the New Orleans music scene for over five decades. He was the founder of the funk band ...

– organ, keyboards *

Ziggy Modeliste Joseph "Ziggy" Modeliste (born December 28, 1948), also known as Zigaboo, is an American drummer best known as a founding member of the funk band the Meters. He is widely considered an innovator in the funk genre and New Orleans style drumming. ...

– drums *

– guitar * George Porter Jr. – bass guitar ;Production * Allen Toussaint – producer *

Marshall Sehorn Marshall Estus Sehorn (June 25, 1934 – December 5, 2006) was an American A&R man, songwriter, music publisher and entrepreneur who played an important role in the development of R&B and popular music in New Orleans between the 1950s and 1970 ...

– producer *Giovanni Scatola – remastering *Janie Gans – art supervisor *Jake Kennedy – liner notes

Charts

;Weekly charts ;Singles

References