George Porter Jr. & Runnin’ Pardners Announce New Instrumental Album

Photo Credit: Steve Rapport

Distinguished New Orleans bassist George Porter Jr. will release his latest set of new music, an instrumental album, Porter’s Pocket, on February 7, 2025. The music collection will arrive via Color Red, featuring Porter’s longtime quartet, The Runnin’ Pardners. As a preview, the ensemble will share the first single, “Tito’s Dumpling Machine,” tomorrow, Friday, Nov. 21.

Leaning into his signature funk approach, informed by membership in The Meters and a go-to sessions player for Allen Toussaint in the ‘60s and ‘70s, Porter seizes the opportunity on his latest set to hold down the rhythm and elicit waves of syncopated bass. “Before there was ‘funk’ as people call it, New Orleans musicians always had a way of using rhythm in a way nobody else was. I am just a student of Earl King and George French and that musical school and somewhere along the way, people out there decided it was ‘funk,’” Porter commented in a press release, adding context to the genre for which he is known for. 

Across the set, Porter taps his Runnin’ Pardner collaborators to assist with the instrumental presentation, including keyboardist Michael Lemmler (Jubilation, TriFunctA), drummer Terrence Houston (The Funky Meters, Toubab Krewe), and newest member Chris Adkins (Raphael Saadiq, Mark Broussard) on guitar. On tomorrow’s release, Porter credits Houston’s role in propelling the composition: “My attitude has always been that the drummer defines where the song goes and so I really enjoy letting a drummer set up the tune.”

In addition to his hometown’s part in inspiring the set, Porter acknowledges the various experiences that have informed his approach, including improvisational masterminds such as members of the Grateful Dead and fellow greats Robert Palmer, Patti Labelle, and Tori Amos. The musician’s history can also be associated with performing with prolific timekeepers such as Meters’ Zigaboo Modeliste, Russell Batiste Jr., and now, Houston. 

Porter  & Runnin’ Pardners are known for their weekly residencies at the Big Easy’s renowned Maple Leaf Bar, ceaseless tours that illuminate road dog status, as well as a frequenter on the festival circuit. Prior to the album release, Porter will join The Black Crowes for a two-night stand at the famed Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, N.Y., on Dec. 21 and 22. Tickets are on sale now. 

Pre-save “Tito’s Dumpling Machine” now.