''Trick Bag'' is the seventh studio album by the funk group The Meters. The name comes from their cover of the

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

single of the same name.

Background

In spring of 1976 the band was on tour opening for the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

on their Tour of Europe '76. According to Jason Berry's ''

Up from the Cradle of Jazz ''Up from the Cradle of Jazz: New Orleans Music Since World War II'' is a book by Jason Berry, Jonathan Foose and Tad Jones. It chronicles the history of New Orleans music, primarily rhythm and blues, and its evolution post-World War II. It was fi ...

'', several tracks on this album are preliminary recordings and were selected for release in the absence of band members.

Reception

Stephen Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...

had a negative view and critiqued the album's attempt to sound mainstream. He singles out three tracks as exceptions: "Mister Moon", "Doodle Loop" and "Honky Tonk Women". Joe McEwen of ''

'' critiqued the song choices and the attempt to please the commercial market. He said two tracks are in-line with the band's style: "Doodle Loop" and "Chug-a-Lug", and had a positive view of the title track "Trick Bag".

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

also critiqued the song choices and had a positive view of the title track.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

. *

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. ...

– drums *

Art Neville Arthur Lanon Neville Jr. (December 17, 1937 – July 22, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist from New Orleans. Neville was a staple of the New Orleans music scene for over five decades. He was the founder of the funk band ...

– keyboards, vocals *

Cyril Neville Cyril Garrett Neville (born October 10, 1948) is an American percussionist and vocalist who first came to prominence as a member of his brother Art Neville's funky New Orleans-based band, The Meters. He joined Art in the Neville Brothers band ...

– congas, percussion, vocals *

Leo Nocentelli Leo Nocentelli (born June 15, 1946) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the funk band The Meters. He wrote the original versions of several funk classics such as "Cissy Strut" and "Hey P ...

– guitar, backing vocals *

George Porter Jr. George Porter Jr. (born December 26, 1947) is an American musician, best known as the bassist and singer of The Meters. Along with Art Neville, Porter formed the group in the mid 1960s and came to be recognized as one of the progenitors of fun ...

– bass guitar *Kenneth "Afro" Williams – percussion *Tony Owens – backing vocals *Terry Smith – backing vocals *

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

– father's vocals (track 7) Production * The Meters – producer *

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, describ ...

– producer *Bob Irwin – mastering *Bill Dahl – liner notes *Rich Russell – design *Ed Thrasher – art direction *Michael P. Smith – photography *Tom Copi – photography

References

{{Authority control 1976 albums The Meters albums Albums produced by Allen Toussaint Reprise Records albums