Photo by Sanjay Suchak

There are few bands as integral to New Orleans’ musical identity as The Meters. Since they first set out in 1965, the ensemble has gone on to champion a legacy of funk in the Crescent City, backing high-profile collaborators and inspiring generations of descendants while remaining active as storied, innovative musicians for six decades. This legacy, and their continued influence on music culture more broadly, resounded from the band’s revival at the Saenger Theater on Saturday night, where The Meters’ surviving members reconnected to celebrate their time-honored catalog with an all-star cast of support and special guests.

On Saturday, The Meters co-founders George Porter Jr., Leo Nocentelli and Zigaboo Modeliste, latter-day member Cyril Neville and noted torchbearer Ivan Neville banded together for the second of two reunion shows, which together represented their first performance since 2017, prior to original singer and keyboardist Art Neville’s passing in 2019. The soul-funk powerhouse was supported by a horn section of trombonist Alex Wasily (Dumpstphunk), trumpeter Ashlin Parker and saxophonist Jason Mingledorff, as well as four backing vocalists. Before the performance began, the band’s original members took the stage with Art Neville’s daughter Arthel Neville and representatives from the New Orleans Mayor’s Office, who ceremoniously proclaimed May 6 to be “The Meters Day.”

Porter, Nocentelli, Modeliste and Ivan Neville set off the show by sharing vocals on The Meters’ “Fire on the Bayou,” the title track from their unforgettable 1975 studio album. After instrumental takes on the slick funk rumble of “Cissy Strut” and “Look-Ka Py Py,” Modeliste took over vocals from the kit for “People Say.” Neville and Nocentelli shared the lead on “Mister Moon” before Cyril Neville strutted onstage to command the spotlight on “No More Okey Doke” and “Be My Lady,” both of which he’d lead in the studio on the band’s final album, New Directions.

After the stacked ensemble offered up loose, expansive renditions of “Do the Dirt” and “(Doodle Loop) The World Is a Little Bit Under the Weather,” they called on the celebrated bassist Oteil Burbridge as the first of the evening’s high-profile special guests. Burbridge, well-known for his part in acts like The Allman Brothers Band and Dead & Company, joined Porter for an extended bass duel on “Hey Pocky A-Way,” then singer, songwriter, guitarist and Gov’t Mule frontman Warren Haynes joined to a roar of applause for “Just Kissed My Baby.” Before the festivities came to a close, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks appeared, still done up for their performance of the national anthem at the Kentucky Derby just hours earlier, and lent their talents to an anthemic finale of “It Ain’t No Use.”

Get an inside look at Saturday’s festivities in the fan-recorded videos below, and read on for the evening’s full setlist.

The Meters
Saenger Theater – New Orleans
5/2/26
Set: Fire on the Bayou, Cissy Strut, Look-Ka Py Py, People Say, Mr. Moon, No More Okey Doke*, Be My Lady*, Can You Do Without?, (Doodle Loop) The World Is a Little Bit Under the Weather, Hey Pocky A-Way+, Just Kissed My Baby^, It Ain’t No Use#
Notes:
* Cyril Neville on lead vocals
+ w/ Oteil Burbridge
^ w/ Warren Haynes and Oteil Burbridge
# w/ Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Warren Hanyes and Oteil Burbridge