Don Julio Rides Again

Prolific New Orleans bassist George Porter Jr., will be releasing a brand new instrumental album entitled Porter’s Pocket with his longstanding quartet the Runnin’ Pardners available via Color Red on February 7, 2025. Porter Jr is joined by his longtime collaborator keyboardist Michael Lemmler (Jubilation, TriFunctA), drummer Terrence Houston (The Funky Meters, Toubab Krewe), and newest member Chris Adkins (Raphael Saadiq, Mark Broussard) on guitar. Today, listeners get another taste of what the help entails with the uptempo, bluesy "Don Julio Rides Again." 

Like many of the songs on the album, "Don Julio Rides Again" was cultivated during Porter Jr. & Runnin' Pardners' longstanding residency at the renowned local favorite Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans, Louisiana. It starts with a cascading intro guitar riff from Adkins before a vamp passes the baton to Lemmler to take over the riff on organ. It's chock full of qualities stedfast fans of The Meters and rare-groove vinyl crate diggers alike have come to enjoy: a fat New Orleans pocket, funky Hammond organ, and locked in drum breaks from Houston that allows his Runnin’ Pardners band to really drive the track while George does what he does best: holding down the rhythm.