Over the weekend, iconic New Orleans funk act The Meters were honored with a 2018 Special Merit Award from the Grammys, recognizing the prolific funk ensemble with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. During the Saturday night acceptance ceremony held at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre during the Grammy Salute To Music Legends, The Meters’ bassist George Porter Jr., drummer Zigaboo Modeliste, and guitarist Leo Nocentelli were on hand to accept the honor.
With George Porter Jr. one of the most active bassists in the live music scene—his work spans from his Meters tribute project with Zigaboo Modeliste, Foundation of Funk, to frequent sit-ins at festivals and collaborations with artists as far-ranging as Dead & Company to Snoop Dogg—a number of artists have reached out to congratulate The Meters and Porter for the well-deserved award.
Today, George Porter Jr. has posted a video tribute from a number of high-profile musicians and friends, sharing their thoughts on the bassist and his role and influence. Opening with a video of Anders Osborne congratulating Porter, the video also features heartfelt thank yous from Dead & Company bassist Oteil Burbridge (whose video is recorded from a Dead & Company soundcheck), Widespread Panic bassist Dave Schools, Galactic drummer Stanton Moore, Gregg Allman Band bassist Ron Johnson, Johnny Vidacovich, George Porter Jr. & Runnin’ Pardners drummer Terrence Houston, Swampgrease drummer Terence Higgins, ALO bassist Steve Adams, Galactic bassist Robert Mercurio, Astral Project bassist James Singleton, and String Cheese Incident’s Jason Hann and Kyle Hollingsworth—hilariously, during the Hann and Hollingsworth’s tribute, George Porter Jr. himself walks through the background of the video.
Notably, most of the musicians in the video tribute thank George Porter Jr. not only for his vast contributions to music, but also for his loving personality and friendship. The love present in all the video responses paint George Porter Jr. as a guiding mentor and caring friend, who has earned the trust and adoration of a wide-spanning swath of artists from across the scene.
You can check out the video for yourself below (which we’ve uploaded to our YouTube account for ease of viewing), or head over to George Porter Jr.’s Facebook page.