Leo Nocentelli (born June 15, 1946) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...

band The Meters. He wrote the original versions of several funk classics such as "

Cissy Strut "Cissy Strut" is a 1969 funk instrumental by The Meters. Released as a single from their eponymous debut album, it reached No. 4 on the R&B chart and No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 20 ...

" and "Hey Pocky A-Way". As a session musician he has recorded with a variety of notable artists such as

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

, Robert Palmer and

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer who performed in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, and soul. Starting her career in 1954, sh ...

. He is the recipient of a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award as a member of The Meters.

Career

Nocentelli grew up in the Irish Channel and Seventh Ward neighborhoods of New Orleans. He was encouraged by his father to pursue music. He played

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

at an early age and started on guitar at age twelve. He gravitated to jazz and was influenced by jazz guitarists

Charlie Christian Charles Henry Christian (July 29, 1916 – March 2, 1942) was an American swing and jazz guitarist. Christian was an important early performer on the electric guitar and a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. He gained nat ...

Barney Kessel Barney Kessel (October 17, 1923 – May 6, 2004) was an American jazz guitarist born in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Known in particular for his knowledge of chords and inversions and chord-based melodies, he was a member of many prominent jazz groups a ...

Johnny Smith Johnny Henry Smith II (June 25, 1922 – June 11, 2013) was an American cool jazz and mainstream jazz guitarist. He wrote "Walk, Don't Run" in 1954. In 1984, Smith was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. Early life During the Great D ...

and

Kenny Burrell Kenneth Earl Burrell (born July 31, 1931) is an American jazz guitarist known for his work on numerous top jazz labels: Prestige, Blue Note, Verve, CTI, Muse, and Concord. His collaborations with Jimmy Smith were notable, and produced the 1965 ...

. His first professional gig was at age thirteen. By age fourteen he was backing notable musicians such as

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

and

Clyde McPhatter Clyde Lensley McPhatter (November 15, 1932 – June 13, 1972) was an American rhythm and blues, soul, and rock and roll singer. He was one of the most widely imitated R&B singers of the 1950s and early 1960sPalmer, Robert (1981)"Roy Brown, a Pi ...

. He played jazz,

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

, and rock. He joined the Hawketts and developed a reputation as a guitarist. At age seventeen he did session work for Motown acts including the

Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...

Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top 1 ...

, and Spinners. In 1964 he was drafted and served in the army for two years. During

leaves A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

he did session work in New Orleans. After the service he joined Art Neville and the Neville Sounds, at the time a recently founded seven-piece band. By 1968 the band consisted of four members: Nocentelli, Art Neville,

George Porter George Porter, Baron Porter of Luddenham (6 December 1920 – 31 August 2002) was a British chemist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1967. Education and early life Porter was born in Stainforth, near Thorne, in the then West ...

, and

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. ...

. The band had a fluid style and each instrument was free to go anywhere musically. The band performed dance-style rhythm and blues at the Ivanhoe nightclub six nights a week. On Sundays, Nocentelli, Porter, and Modeliste performed jazz gigs. Nocentelli said his bandmates were his biggest influence and called his experience up to this point in time the learning phase of his career. The band released two singles as The Meters, "Sophisticated Cissy" and "

", both originally written by Nocentelli. The commercial success of "Cissy Strut" became an impetus for the band's subsequent recording career as The Meters. From 1969 to 1977 the band released eight studio albums, with Nocentelli as one of the primary songwriters. He wrote the original versions of funk songs such as "People Say" and "Hey Pocky A-Way". Early on, improvisation was a major part of song development. Though the band gained notoriety in the music community, the lack of commercial success along with managerial and artistic factors gave way to their disbandment in late 1970s. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Nocentelli wrote, co-wrote and did session work – mostly in Cosimo, Sansu, and Sea-Saint studios. As songwriter and producer, he learned from and was influenced by

Allen Toussaint Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descri ...

. He backed a variety of artists such as

, Robert Palmer,

Albert King Albert Nelson (April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), known by his stage name Albert King, was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps b ...

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...

Earl King Earl Silas Johnson IV (February 7, 1934 – April 17, 2003),
known as Earl King, was an American singer, guit ...

Chris Kenner Christophe Kenner (December 25, 1929 – January 25, 1976) was an American, New Orleans-based R&B singer and songwriter, best known for two hit singles in the early 1960s, " I Like It Like That" and " Land of 1000 Dances", which became staples ...

, and

Betty Harris Betty Harris (born September 9, 1939 in Orlando, Florida, United States) is an American soul singer. Her recording career in the 1960s produced three hit singles that made the U.S. ''Billboard'' R&B and ''Billboard'' Hot 100 charts: "Cry to ...

. In 1971, Nocentelli recorded a solo debut album called ''Another Side''. He wrote the album during a brief span when the Meters were split up. Nocentelli sidelined the project because the Meters scored a record deal with Warner in 1972 and it was not released until 2021. In the early 1980s Nocentelli toured with

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffe ...

. He moved to Los Angeles in 1982. He continued to do session work and performed regularly with former bandmate George Porter as GEO/LEO. He also remained close with Modeliste, who had moved to the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area G ...

. They performed in various quartet formations and released a live album titled '' Nocentelli: Live in San Francisco''. At one of their shows in 1989, Nocentelli and Porter invited Modeliste and Neville on stage. The impromptu performance was the first reunion of the original Meters. The same year Nocentelli, Neville, and Porter formed The Funky Meters with Russell Batiste on drums. Nocentelli performed with the reincarnated lineup until 1993. He briefly moved back to New Orleans in the early 1990s and returned to Los Angeles in 1992. He continued to perform with two Meters-inspired lineups: The Meter Men and The Meters Experience. The Meter Men are Nocentelli, Porter, and Modeliste with

Page McConnell Page Samuel McConnell (born May 17, 1963 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American multi-instrumentalist most noted for his work as the keyboardist and a songwriter for the band Phish. In addition to having been a member of Phish since 1985, ...

on keyboards; variations included keyboardists Rich Vogel, John Gros, and drummer Russell Batiste. The Meters Experience is Nocentelli in various quartets with

Bernie Worrell George Bernard Worrell, Jr. (April 19, 1944 – June 24, 2016) was an American keyboardist and record producer best known as a founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic and for his work with Talking Heads. He is a member of the Rock and Rol ...

, Bill Dickens,

Oteil Burbridge Oteil Burbridge is an American multi-instrumentalist, specializing on the bass guitar, trained in playing jazz and classical music from an early age. He has achieved fame primarily on bass guitar during the resurgence of the Allman Brothers Ban ...

Al Di Meola Albert Laurence Di Meola (born July 22, 1954) is an American guitarist. Known for his works in jazz fusion and world music, he began his career as a guitarist of the group Return to Forever in 1974. Between the 1970s and 1980s, albums such as ...

Jason Crosby Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek Greek mythology, mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was marri ...

, George Laks, Albert Margolis, Jamal Batiste, Ricky Cortez, Felix Pollard, and others. Early on, Nocentelli used a

Gibson ES-175 The Gibson ES-175 (1949-2019) is a hollow body Jazz electric guitar manufactured by the Gibson Guitar Corporation. The ES-175 became one of Gibson's most popular guitar designs. History In 1949 the ES-175 was introduced by the Gibson Guitar co ...

hollow body guitar. He switched to a semi-hollow Fender Starcaster in mid-1970s. Around 2001 he switched to the semi-hollow

Gibson ES-335 The Gibson ES-335 is the world's first commercial semi-hollowbody electric guitar, sometimes known as semi-acoustic. Released by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its ES (Electric Spanish) series in 1958, it is neither fully hollow nor fu ...

. Nocentelli has performed in several reunions with the original Meters lineup. He moved to New Orleans in 2015 and continues to perform. He received a

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is a special Grammy Award that is awarded by The Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of ...

in 2018 as a member of The Meters.

Style

Nocentelli was self-taught. In his early teens he emulated jazz guitarists while listening to

phonograph records A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...

. He was drawn to jazz, but to survive professionally he had to become proficient in multiple genres. In 1960s and 1970s he was part of an era in which New Orleans jazz gave way to rhythm and blues, and funk.Berry 1992, ''Up from the Cradle of Jazz'', pp. 16, 192, 196. Nocentelli's band, The Meters, were innovative and set the stylistic tone of New Orleans funk. The band's early works were rooted in improvisation. According to Nocentelli, genres are relative and he alludes to incorporating different genres in his style. He said in funk as well as in

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

you have to complement and react to what you hear, and said that is not a teachable skill. In addition to live performance and session work, songwriting was a significant part of Nocentelli's contribution.

Discography

Solo albums

* '' Nocentelli: Live in San Francisco'' (

DJM DJM is a range of DJ mixers made by Pioneer Electronics. Mixers in the DJM series include the DJM-300, DJM-350, DJM-400, DJM-450, DJM-500, DJM-600, DJM-700, DJM-750, DJM-707, DJM-800, DJM-850, DJM-900 Nexus, DJM-900 Nexus 2, DJM-909, DJM-1000 ...

, 1997) * ''Rhythm & Rhymes Part 1'' (TLB, 2009) * ''Another Side'' (

Light in the Attic ''A Light in the Attic'' is a book of poems by American poet, writer, and musician Shel Silverstein. The book consists of 135 poems accompanied by illustrations also created by Silverstein. It was first published by Harper & Row Junior Books in ...

, 2021), lost solo album, written in 1971, released in 2021

With others

Credits partly adapted from

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

. * '' Nightbirds'' ( Epic, 1974) with Labelle * ''

Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley ''Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley'' is the debut solo album by Robert Palmer, released in 1974. It was his first effort after three album releases co-fronting the band Vinegar Joe. Palmer is backed by The Meters and Lowell George of Little ...

'' (

Island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An isla ...

, 1974) with Robert Palmer * ''Keep On Lovin' You'' (United Artists, 1975) with Z. Z. Hill * '' Phoenix'' (Epic, 1975) with Labelle * ''

The Wild Tchoupitoulas The Wild Tchoupitoulas were originally a group of Mardi Gras Indians formed in the early 1970s by George "Big Chief Jolly" Landry. Landry, with his Autochthon American (Choctaw) heritage, had been an active performer in the Mardi Gras Indian sty ...

'' (

Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in Sout ...

, 1976) with

* ''

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

'' (Epic, 1977) with

* ''New Orleans Heat'' (1978) with

* ''Peaceful'' (Marina, 1978) with Al Johnson * '' Tasty'' (1978) with Patti LaBelle * ''

Changes Changes may refer to: Books * ''Changes'', the 12th novel in Jim Butcher's ''The Dresden Files'' Series * ''Changes'', a novel by Danielle Steel * ''Changes'', a trilogy of novels on which the BBC TV series was based, written by Peter Dickinson ...

'' (

MCA MCA may refer to: Astronomy * Mars-crossing asteroid, an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars Aviation * Minimum crossing altitude, a minimum obstacle crossing altitude for fixes on published airways * Medium Combat Aircraft, a 5th gen ...

, 1980) with

* ''

Fiyo on the Bayou ''Fiyo on the Bayou'' is the second studio album by the New Orleans four piece The Neville Brothers. It was released in 1981 on A&M. The album features background vocals performed by a young Whitney Houston and her mother Cissy Houston, with sou ...

'' (A&M, 1981) with

The Neville Brothers The Neville Brothers were an American R&B/soul/funk group, formed in 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana. History The group notion started in 1976, when the four brothers of the Neville family, Art (1937–2019), Charles (1938–2018), Aaron (b. 1 ...

* ''On My Way'' (Atlantic, 1982) with Gwen McCrae * ''Experiment in White'' (Atlantic, 1982) with Janis Siegel * '' On the Line'' (

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

, 1983) with

Michael Wycoff Michael Wycoff (January 1, 1956 – March 13, 2019) was an American R&B singer. He scored several hits on the US R&B chart during the 1980s. Biography Wycoff attended Wilmington Junior High School and Phineas Banning High School in Wilmington ...

* ''Let My People Go'' (

Quest A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. The word serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of e ...

, 1985) with

The Winans The Winans are an American gospel quartet from Detroit, Michigan consisting of brothers Marvin, Carvin, Michael and Ronald Winans. Members ''Please refer to the Winans family page for more detail on the individual members.'' About: Origins & Mu ...

* ''

Winner in You ''Winner in You'' is the eighth studio album by American R&B singer-songwriter Patti LaBelle. It was released by MCA Records on April 28, 1986, in the United States. Recording sessions took place during 1985–1986. Production was handled by sever ...

'' (MCA, 1986) with Patti LaBelle * '' Tenderness'' (American Clave, 1990) with

Kip Hanrahan Kip Hanrahan (born December 9, 1954) is an American jazz music impresario, record producer and percussionist. Personal life Hanrahan was born in a Puerto Rican neighborhood in the Bronx to an Irish-Jewish family. His father left when he was 6 ...

* '' Stickin' to My Guns'' (1990) with Etta James * ''

Victory Mixture ''Victory Mixture'' is a 1990 album by Willy DeVille. The album consists of cover versions of New Orleans R&B and soul classics by DeVille’s musical idols. Trouser Press said about the album, “A rootsy covers collection, ''Victory Mixture'' ...

'' (Orleans, 1990) with

Willy DeVille Willy DeVille (born William Paul Borsey Jr.; August 25, 1950 – August 6, 2009) was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five-year career, first with his band Mink DeVille (1974–1986) and later on his own, DeVille created ori ...

* '' Brother's Keeper'' (A&M, 1990) with The Neville Brothers * '' Storyville'' ( Geffen, 1991) with

Robbie Robertson Jaime Royal "Robbie" Robertson, OC (born July 5, 1943), is a Canadian musician. He is best known for his work as lead guitarist and songwriter for the Band, and for his career as a solo recording artist. With the deaths of Richard Manuel i ...

* ''

Solace Consolation, consolement, and solace are terms referring to psychological comfort given to someone who has suffered severe, upsetting loss, such as the death of a loved one. It is typically provided by expressing shared regret for that loss and ...

'' (1991) with

Sarah McLachlan Sarah Ann McLachlan OC OBC (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. As of 2015, she had sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is '' Surfacing'', for which she won two Grammy Awards (ou ...

* '' Us'' (Geffen, 1992) with

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

* ''Southern Exposure'' ( Jive, 1993) with

Maceo Parker Maceo Parker (; born February 14, 1943) is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s and Prince in the 2000s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many o ...

* '' There's Room for Us All'' (Black Top, 1993) with

Terrance Simien Terrance Simien (born September 3, 1965) is an American zydeco musician, vocalist and songwriter. He and his group The Zydeco Experience won the Grammy Award for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album in 2008 and for Best Regional Roots Music Album in ...

* ''Urban Blues Re: Newell'' ( Sony Plain, 1995) with King Biscuit Boy * ''Connected'' (NYNO, 1996) with

* ''Rock and Roll Doctor: Lowell George Tribute'' ( CMC, 1997) with various artists * '' Life, Love & the Blues'' (1998), with Etta James * '' Matriarch of the Blues'' (Private Music, 2000) with Etta James * '' Big Wide Grin'' (Sony, 2001) with Keb' Mo' * ''Sing Me Back Home'' (

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyou ...

, 2006) with New Orleans Social Club * ''

Maestro Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning "master" or "teacher") is an honorific title of respect (plural: maestros or maestri). The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera, in line with the ubiqu ...

'' (Heads Up, 2008) with

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, ...

* ''

The Dreamer The Dreamer may refer to: Comics * ''The Dreamer'' (comics), a 1985 semi-autobiographical graphic novel by Will Eisner * ''The Dreamer'' (webcomic), a 2007–2017 comic book series and webcomic by Lora Innes Film and television * ''The Dreamer' ...

'' (Verve, 2011) with Etta James * ''Unlock Your Mind'' (

Rounder Rounder(s) or The Rounder(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''The Rounders'' (1914 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounder'' (1930 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounders'' (1965 film), a western comedy * ''Rounders'' (film), a 1998 poker f ...

, 2012) with The Soul Rebels * ''Parking Lot Symphony'' (

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical c ...

, 2017) with Trombone Shorty

Instructional videos

* ''The Secrets of Funk: Using it and Fusing it !'' (2003) – instructional DVD

References

External links

Leo Nocentelli Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2020)
Leo Nocentelli Interview
Eric Krasno Plus One podcast (2021)
Leo Nocentelli Interview
The Guardian (2021) {{DEFAULTSORT:Nocentelli, Leo American funk guitarists American male guitarists American session musicians American soul guitarists African-American songwriters African-American guitarists American people of Italian descent Rhythm and blues musicians from New Orleans Songwriters from Louisiana Guitarists from Louisiana Louisiana Creole people 1946 births Living people The Meters members 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people American male songwriters

Career

Style

Discography

Solo albums

With others

Instructional videos

References

Further reading

External links